Hamlet is in anguish over the demise of his father and the events subsequent to it. Hamlet’s angst over his father’s death is reflected in his new found revulsion for his incestuous mother, his interactions with the apparitions of his father, and his search for revenge from his uncle.
Hamlet’s relationship with his mother is deeply affected by his father’s death. He is most affected by his mother’s behavior. He detests the fact that she moved on so quickly from his father, viewing her as incestuous and weak, “Frailty, thy name is woman…a beast would have mourned longer!-married with my uncle, my father’s brother…O most wicked speed, to post with such dexterity to incestuous sheets!”(1.2.146). His mother's actions make him doubt all people, as if everyone is innately bad:
Use every man after his
Desert, and who shall 'scape whipping? (2.2.506-507)
This shows that he is bitter and believes that if everyone got what they deserved, no one would be well off.
Though Hamlet’s interactions with the ghost of his father are significant, they do not fully induce him to kill the king. He is hesitant because he is a scholar, with reasoning skills. He is educated and appreciates those who are also educated, including his friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. There is a constant struggle between the side of him that is able to think logically and the side of him that is feeling a rush of emotions from everything that is going in his life. At first, he seems ready and willing to get revenge from his uncle:
Haste me to know't, that I with wings as swift
As mediation or the thoughts of love,
May sweep to my revenge. (1.5.29-31)
Later, however, he is able to reason through it:
The spirit that I have seen
May be the devil, and the devil hath power
T'assume a pleasing shape, yea, and perhaps
Out of my weakness, and my melancholy,
As he is very potent with such spirits,
Abuses me to damn me; I'll have grounds
More relative than this: the play's the thing
Wherein I'll catch the conscience of the King.
This shows that he understands that he shouldn't let his emotions get the best of him and that he should wait and study the new king's facial expressions during the play the next day.
Hamlet’s sanity is challenged by his father’s death. This is notable in the internal conflicts he faces when contemplating the murder of his uncle. He is unable to murder him, and feels like he is a coward because of it:
A damned defeat was made: am I a coward?
Who calls me villain, breaks my pate across,
Plucks off my beard and blows it in my face...
I should take it; for it cannot be
But I am pigeon-livered, and lack gall...(2.2.545-551)
These feelings affect his relationship with Ophelia, his mother, his friends, and with his duties at Prince. He will not tell anyone about the apparition, making Ophelia and his friends doubt his sanity. His distrust for people makes him question all of Denmark, calling it a, "prison." (2.2.241). Overall, Hamlet's mental state affects everything and everyone around him.
Great blog. I agree that Hamlet was disgusted by his mother and his uncle getting married. When he compares his mother’s actions to that of a beast, it is clear how great his disapproval is of their marriage. When he is visited by the supposed ghost of his father, he is fueled by the desire to seek revenge on Claudius. But after taking the time to analyze the situation he realizes that there is a lack of evidence against Claudius. I also agree that by Hamlet not telling anyone of the ghost he is being perceived as crazy.
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