NO he is putting his madness on
- “No hat ________, his stockings ______, _______ and down, ____________‘to his ankle”
- “With his hand __________”
- “His head thus __________”
- Under the mask of madness, he can _________
- Says he is going to put on an “___________”
- Polonius says “This be madness, yet _______” he also suspects that he “_____________”
- He is trying to ______ Gertrude
- Trying to delay _______
- He pretending to be mad, he saves _________”
- Maybe not madness, just ________
NO he is putting his madness on
- “No hat upon his head, his stockings fouled, ungartered and down, gyved to his ankle”
- “With his hand thus o’er his brow”
- “His head thus waving up and down”
- Under the mask of madness, he can be honest”
- Says he is going to put on an “antic disposition”
- Polonius says “This be madness, yet there is method in it” - he also suspects that he “puts on his confusion”
- He is trying to punish Gertrude
- Trying to delay killing Claudius
- He pretending to be mad, he saves himself from actually going mad
- Maybe not madness, just depression or a breakdown
YES he is actually mad
- He chooses Ophelia first…..
- In his first soliloquy he….
- “His madness is poor Hamlets _______”
- “What have I done wrong, I here ___________”
- Talks about himself in 3rd person…..
- Elizabethans would believe that speaking with a ghost……
- Elizabethan audience would not have understood _______
- According to the Freudian concept….
YES he is actually mad
- He chooses Ophelia first - the most delicate, weakest character who he is supposedly in love with
- In his first soliloquy he contemplates suicide
- “His madness is poor Hamlets enemy”
- “What have I done wrong, I here proclaim was madness”
- Talks about himself in 3rd person, distancing himself from his madness
- Elizabethans would believe that speaking with a ghost would lead you into madness
- Elizabethan audience would not have understood mental illness
- According to the Freudian concept, he has gone mad because of the Oedipus complex
HORATIO 1.5
- “Which might deprive your __________ and ________”
- “These are but __________”
Add some context
HORATIO
- “Which might deprive your sovereignty of reason and draw you into madness” - talking to a ghost drives you mad
- “These are but wild and whirling words my lord” - just after Hamlet had spoken to the ghost
HAMLETS APPEARENCE BEFORE OPHELIA 2.1
- “No hat ______, his stockings ________, _______”
- “With his hand ________”
- “His head thus ________”
Add some context
HAMLETS APPEARENCE BEFORE OPHELIA 2.1
- “No hat upon his head, his stockings ungartered and down, gyved around his ankles”
- “With his hand thus o’er his brow”
- “His head thus waving up and down”
Suggests contrived madness
He chooses Ophelia first, the weakest and most delicate character, who he is supposedly in love with - this cruelty reflects true madness
POLONIUS, GERTRUDE AND CLAUDIUS 2.2
- “My ________ son”
- “Hamlets ______”
- “Your sons ______”
Add context
POLONIUS, GERTRUDE AND CLAUDIUS 2.2
- “My too much changed son”
- “Hamlets lunacy”
- “Your sons distemper”
Gertrude refers to his Madness gently, often euphemistically, whilst Polonius and Claudius are much less sympathetic
FIRST INTERACTION WITH POLONIUS
- “Excellent well. You are a ______”
- “_____, _____, _____”
- “This be madness, yet ________”
Add context
FIRST INTERACTION WITH POLONIUS
- “Excellent well. You are a fishmonger” - calling him low down (in Branaghs version he is seen with a prostitute) - under the mask of madness he can mock those around him - a paradox in that when he is pretending he is at his most honest
- “Words, words, words”
- “This be madness, yet there is method in it” - suspects that Hamlet is pretending
Add context
What does T.S Eliot believe about Hamlets ‘antic disposition’?
Saw it as emotional relief
A.J.A Waldock
- “From the shelter of ______ and with the security of _____, he _______”
A.J.A Waldock
- “From the shelter of his madness and with the security of a jester, he launches his barbs”
What does Freudian Criticism say about his madness?
At the root of his insanity lies the Oedipus complex - he is in love with his mother and these feelings have no outlet, so drive him mad
- With this comes a hatred for his father
