Afterthought of the Play Hamlet

  A cursory review of the typical analysis of Hamlet himself within the action of the play typically paints a picture of a self-conscious type of anti-hero who in some instances seems to be bordering on the sociopathic for his apparently heartless actions (Welsh).  Some would even say that Hamlet’s main motivation was strictly that of self enrichment, lust for power, or worse.  However, deeper research suggests something quite different in Hamlet as a person, which in turn affects the entire play itself.

A different perspective on Hamlet himself shows him not as a greedy, heartless despot but rather as a person who is deeply grieved over the death of his father.  This grief, bordering on the all consuming, is what could have led Hamlet to take the path that he ultimately took (Fernie).

Reinforcing this possibility, it is fair to make the argument that had Hamlet’s father not died, and had his uncle not lived, Hamlet would have swiftly married Ophelia and taken on the lifestyle of a married gentleman of means rather than being thrust into the role of leader and placing him in the difficult positions from which the only escape at times was aggression and uncivil behavior.

Hamlet as a Classic Study of Human Emotion

Another angle from which Hamlet, both the entire work and the character himself can fairly be seen is as a sort of case study of human emotions which are still seen in people of the modern age.  If the argument that Hamlet is the type of person he is because of the grief and change of personality brought on by the death of his father, it is also legitimate to say that the same personality changes exist today (Welsh).

Just as in the modern family, because of the death of the patriarch, Hamlet is forced into roles and the making of decisions that he may not have automatically chosen given completely free will.  Therefore, Hamlet himself is more of a product of his environment than his own choices.

Afterthoughts of the Play Itself

If Hamlet the man is now seen in a different light as a result of the research, so too is the play itself.  Now, it can fairly be said that not only is Shakepeare’s work one of power and history, but it is also a complex analysis of human emotion, reactions to stress, and universal traits of human nature (MacCary).

Conclusion

What has been seen in this research is that Hamlet is not only a highly acclaimed work of literature, but also a gem whose total brilliance has yet to be fully discovered and understood.  By looking at the play from angles other than those of the conventional allows the reader to gain a new level of apprecation and enjoyment of Shakepeare’s writing.

In conclusion, if nothing else, what one can say about Hamlet is that it is as much a tale of the inner workings of the mind and a commentary on the universals of human nature as it is an historic play of epic proportions.

References

Fernie, Ewan. Shame in Shakespeare. London: Routledge, 2002.

MacCary, W. Thomas. Hamlet A Guide to the Play. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1998.

Welsh, Alexander. Hamlet in His Modern Guises. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2001.