Mania Dictator of Inability Hamlet's Madness
Manic: affected by violent madness . When one is affected by mania it becomes the dictator of his or her actions . This holds true in William Shakespeare's Hamlet . In the play, Hamlet is depressed to the point of mania. His entire existence is engulfed in his melancholia .Hamlet's words, thoughts, interactions and most tangibly his actions make his heavy-heartedness an undeniable reality . The degree of Hamlet 's depression is set by his ennui and his melancholy itself is revealed through his tenacity. Throughout the play Hamlet's actions are plagued by his overbearing depression. This depression in combination with Hamlet's mania is what makes his a bipolar disorder sufferer. Psychologically, mania is described as a mood disorder characterized by euphoric states ,extreme physical activity ,excessive talkativeness, distractedness, and sometimes grandiosity. During manic periods a person becomes "high" extremely active , excessively talkative, and easily distracted. During these periods the affected person's self esteem is also often greatly inflated. These people often become aggressive and hostile to others as their self confidence becomes more and more inflated and exaggerated .In extreme ca
ses (like Hamlet's) the manic person may become consistently wild or violent until he or she reaches the point of exhaustion. Manic depressives often function on little or no sleep during their episodes .(A.L.Smith &Weisman,1992) Shakespeare's Hamlet is built upon a foundation of hills and vallies .Oscar James Campbell describes Hamlet as a series of meditative pauses followed by burst of action . Due to this in combination with the fact that Hamlet is the key character of the play ; Hamlet displays many manic depressive characteristics. Oscar James Campbell argues that Hamlet's depressed his initial unrest. "Haste me to know't , that I , with wings as swift / As meditation or thoughts of love , / may sweep to my revenge (1.5.29-31). Here Hamlet pleads to the Ghost of King At the opening of the play Hamlet is portrayed as a stable individual . He expresses disappointment in his mother for her seeming disregard for his father's death. His feelings are justified and his actions are rational at this point ,he describes himself as being genuine. As this scene progresses it is revealed that Hamlet views himself as being weak: "My father's brother, but no more like my father/ than I to Hercules" (1.2.153) The doubts that Hamlet has concerning his heroism become particularly evident in his actions as the story progresses .These doubts are a major hindrance to his thoughts of revenge . Hamlet is overwhelmed , he makes this abundantly clear in act two:" O God , I could be bounded in a nut shell and count myself a king of infinite space if it were not that I have bad dreams." (2.ii.254-256) Here Hamlet expresses a desire to crawl away and hide - he wants to escape this
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Approximate Word count = 1137
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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