Hamlet: Feigned Madness

Part I of Essay
William Shakespeare’s drama Hamlet is full of fascinating characters. The most interesting and complex character is the main character, Hamlet. Hamlet delays in killing his uncle and this delay could be taken as a sign of weakness and cowardice, and that he must be truly ....

Part II of Essay
.... is never assumed except in the presence of the king or those whom he considers the king’s agents (Hankins 127). The train of events from the death of his father to the revelation of the ghost has profoundly disturbed Hamlet. He realizes it himself and fears that the excitement within him may betray his secret. He knows well that it is beyond his power to suppress it altogether, and so he pretends to be mad. Any slip of the tongue about his secrets will seem like the uttering of a mad man, and his real thoughts will be unknown to those arou ....