"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark." (Hamlet. 1.4, l.90) In every society a distinctive hierarchy or organization of power exists. In the Shakespearean world, life is kept constant through the maintenance of the Great Chain of Being or moral order. Any disruption in this chain is believed to cause chaos in society. In William Shakespeare's Hamlet, Denmark is thrown into chaos by the reckless actions of several characters that fail to follow the moral order. Hamlet is instructed by the ghost of his beloved father to restore order to Denmark and seek revenge on Claudius, the present king of Denmark and murderer of his father. By identifying the various levels of disorder in Denmark an evaluation of the effectiveness of Hamlet's "antic disposition" as a plan to restore order will be made.

Throughout the play there are various factors that contribute to the disorder in Denmark. Chaos is even evident in the relationships and friendships Hamlet is involved with during the course of the play. In Act 1.Scene 3, Polonius ends the relationship between Hamlet and his daughter Ophelia. His reasoning is that Hamlet is merely flirting with Ophelia for the sake of his own amus

Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Toronto: Harcourt Brace & Company Canada, Ltd., 1988.

"The time is out of joint; O cursed spite, /That ever I was born to set it right!" (Hamlet. 1.5, l.190-191) At the end of Act 1, Hamlet is aware of Claudius' treachery and has promised to avenge the murder of his father. He is aware of the various levels of disorder in Denmark and takes the responsibility of planning to restore order to the state. He decides to feign madness to gain more freedom of action and to escape the too-close observation of those whom he himself wishes to watch. By examining the chaos within the supernatural, moral and political aspects of Denmark's society and the corrupt relationships of Hamlet's life it has been proven that thus far Hamlet's antic disposition has not been effective in his plan to restore order to the state. In fact, he is defeating his own purpose because his eccentricities have caused the king to regard him with fear and suspicion, and to spy on his actions. His "antic disposition" is drawing a lot of negative attention to him, which isn't helping in his plan to restore order to Denmark.

As the play opens, the reader learns that "all is not well" in the state of Denmark. The appearance of the ghost of the late king is a strange and ominous sign that "the time is out of joint." (Hamlet. 1.5, l.190) When Hamlet first hears of his father's ghost, he remarks: "My father's spirit in arms! All is not well; / I doubt some foul play."

ement and he will not maintain anything more than a temporary at

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Approximate Word count = 1037
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)