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A fencing match was underway in Elsinore Castle between Prince Hamlet and Laertes. After the second round of the match, Laertes struck Hamlet illegally. The two began fighting furiously. Suddenly, our beloved Queen Gertrude collapsed after taking a sip from a glass of wine, intended for Prince Hamlet. Spectators began to quickly flee the room, leaving only the Royal family and those in close relation. King Claudius attempted to exit however Prince Hamlet stabbed his uncle, killing him. In an exchange of swords, Hamlet and Laertes by an unexpected sword with a poison tip. It is revealed, as Laertes is dying that the poisoning of the sword and wine was orchestrated by Claudius. The events come to a close with the death of Prince Hamlet leaving only his friend, Horatio alive. As Fortinbras' army enters the castle and crowns Young Fortinbras as King of Denmark, out of respect Hamlet is given a proper burial from the Norweigans.

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Horatio was once Prince Hamlet's "right-hand man". To carry on his legacy, since the tragic events which took place at Elsinore Castle, Horatio has made it his mission to speak about what really happened. And to bring glory to Prince Hamlet's legacy. I was given the opportunity to ask him some questions about everything that happened.

Interviewer: "What have you been doing since the tragic events at Elsinore Castle?"

Horatio: "Well, I've been trying my best to let the people know what really happened. So many so-called sources have twisted the story into fantasy. I want the truth to be known. That is my goal."

Interviewer: "Wow, that's great. Do you believe Prince Hamlet was insane at the time of his death?"

Horatio: "No. Absolutely not. Hamlet was simply misunderstood. His own mother, within a month of becoming a widow, married her deceased husband's brother. Hamlet was seeking revenged. And it's what he got."

Interviewer: "Oh I see. Do you see Hamlet as a hero?"

Horatio: "In his own twisted way, yes. Hamlet was a hero. However, that is only my view. Others may have a completely different perception of what a hero is. Still, to me, yes."

Interviewer: "Interesting. As we previously mentioned her, do you believe that Queen Gertrude deserved to die?"

Horatio: "Although what she did was morally wrong. She did not deserve the death that she suffered. All due to Claudius and his pathetic plan to kill Hamlet."

Interviewer: "You mention Claudius, what was his role in the whole fiasco?"

Horatio: "Claudius orchestrated the fight between Laertes and Hamlet. Both Laertes and Claudius wanted Hamlet dead. They saw this as the best way to do it. They poisoned Laertes' sword in order to poison Hamlet. Even though Laertes got what he wanted, he realized what he was doing was wrong and gave up Claudius."

Interviewer: "That's horrible. I know you're a busy man so there's one last question I have for you. What will become of Denmark?"

Horatio: "I think and hope Denmark will strive under its new leadership. Despite the Norwegians previously being our enemies, I have a newfound respect for Fortinbras after his send-off and proper burial for Hamlet."

Interviewer: "That's great to hear, thank you Horatio."

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Advice for Claudius
Although now is far too late, learning to be a better father would have been much more beneficial than the route you took. When taking up the role of a father figure, you must be open to having actual conversations and listening to your new child(ren). It is easy to understand why you were frustrated with Hamlet despite it being all your fault. However, it was your lack of communication with Hamlet which caused your relationship to strain greatly as time went on. Hamlet did not at first know it was you who orchestrated the death of his father. He disliked you solely for your wedding to his mother. There you had an opportunity to let support him and show that you cared. Doing that may have prevented the loss of your and everyone you know's lives.

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The theme/motif of revenge is prevalent throughout the whole plot. Many characters are shown to be seeking revenge including Hamlet, Laertes, and Young Fortinbras. All of which seeks revenge for the death of their fathers. Hamlet wishes to kill Claudius for killing his own brother. Laertes looks to kill Hamlet for killing his father, Polonius. Fortinbras wishes to take over Denmark for his father who was slain in battle by King Hamlet before he was killed. Each of these characters acts blindly through anger, without thinking first.

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Hamlet's Paranoia
Based on Hamlet's actions throughout the play, it is quite easy to conclude that Hamlet suffers from some type of paranoia. Paranoia is defined as the feeling that you’re being threatened in some way, such as people watching you or acting against you, even though there’s no proof that it’s true. It is proven numerous times that Hamlet experiences situations similar to that being described. Some symptoms include being defensive, hostile, and aggressive, believing you are always right and having trouble relaxing or letting your guard down, and not being able to trust or confide in other people. Hamlet unfortunately experiences all of these symptoms. Hamlet puts trust in very few people. Especially after realizing that his childhood friends turned their backs on him to work with his uncle. Hamlet also very rarely backs down/gives up his guard. He is constantly arguing his point and making sure he gets it across. He fears being wrong. The only way to rid Hamlet of paranoia would be proper, professional help.

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What Is Paranoia?

Paranoia is the feeling that you're being threatened in some way, such as people watching you or acting against you, even though there's no proof that it's true. It happens to a lot of people at some point. Even when you know that your concerns aren't based in reality, they can be troubling if they happen too often.

Clinical paranoia is more severe. It's a rare mental health condition in which you believe that others are unfair, lying, or actively trying to harm you when there's no proof. You don't think you're paranoid at all because you feel sure it's true. As the old saying goes, "It isn't paranoia if they're really out to get you."

Anxiety vs. Paranoid Thoughts

A paranoid thought is a type of anxious thought. Anxiety can cause paranoia, affecting what you're paranoid about and how long the feeling lasts. But paranoid thoughts can also make you anxious.

It's normal to be anxious sometimes, especially if you're going through something hard like losing a job or the end of a relationship. When in large groups of people, you may worry that others will judge the things you say or the way you dress or behave. You might walk into a party by yourself and think, "Everyone is wondering why I'm alone."

Some call this paranoid, but we all have thoughts like this from time to time. Just because you're worried that people might be talking about you doesn't mean you have a mental illness. Clinical paranoia happens when you're 100% convinced of it, even when facts prove that it isn't true.

If you worry that your thoughts are paranoid, you probably have some anxiety rather than paranoia. If your anxiety isn't linked to anything obvious and it never seems to get better or go away, you may need to talk to a doctor about it. Feelings of anxiety and panic that last a long time or get in the way of your daily life might be signs of an anxiety disorder. Symptoms of paranoia may be more severe.

Symptoms of Paranoia

The symptoms of paranoia can include:

Being defensive, hostile, and aggressive

Being easily offended

Believing you are always right and having trouble relaxing or letting your guard down

Not being able to compromise, forgive, or accept criticism

Not being able to trust or confide in other people

Reading hidden meanings into people's normal behaviors

Causes of Paranoia

A single restless night probably won't cause paranoid thoughts. But if you often go without sleep, it can start to take a toll. You might not think as clearly, and you're more likely to clash with others or have misunderstandings with them. It may start to look like people are working against you when they're just acting like they always do. If you go without sleep for long enough, you could even start to see and hear things that aren't there (your doctor will call them hallucinations).

Adults should shoot for 7 to 9 hours of sleep a night to stay alert and mentally healthy.

When the tension ratchets up in your life, you could start to feel more suspicious of other people. And the stress doesn't have to be something negative like illness or job loss. Even a happy occasion, like a wedding, can create a kind of stress that brings out paranoid thoughts along with the joy.

To help ease the tension, you can:

Take time to relax and try to forget about what's stressing you out

Spend time with friends

Find something to smile and laugh about

Get plenty of exercise

Meditate to clear your mind

Psychiatric Disorders
One condition, paranoid personality disorder, can make it hard to trust others. It can cause negative thoughts about people that just aren't true, like "They don't like me," "They're making fun of me," or even "They're plotting against me." In some cases, no amount of evidence will convince you otherwise. This can lead to true clinical paranoia. Though you might not believe every unrealistic thought that enters your head, you believe some of them.

Schizophrenia, another serious disorder, can make it hard to tell what's real and what's imagined. Most of the time, you simply don't know when your thoughts have become paranoid. Friends, loved ones, or medical professionals often have to point it out and try to help you get treatment.

Borderline personality disorder, in which you have fast emotional swings where you can worship someone one moment and hate them the next, can also cause paranoid thoughts and even clinical paranoia in some people.

Just because you feel paranoid or worry about what others think about you from time to time doesn't mean you have a psychiatric disorder. The fact that you know your thoughts don't make sense could be a sign of good mental health. But if these paranoid feelings happen all the time or start to get in the way of your home or work life, you might want to talk to your doctor or a mental health care provider.

Drug Use
Drugs like marijuana, hallucinogens (LSD, psychotropic mushrooms), and stimulants (cocaine, methamphetamine) have chemicals that make some people paranoid for short periods. Once the chemicals leave your system, the paranoia goes away, too. Days or weeks of intense alcohol abuse also can cause short-term paranoia, and over the long term, it can lead to ongoing paranoia and even hallucinations.

If paranoid thoughts are making you anxious or if you have minor symptoms of depression, drugs can make them much worse. In some people, they can trigger a psychiatric disorder with true clinical paranoia as a symptom.

Alcohol can also worsen paranoia. Plus, it makes us less inhibited, which makes it harder to control these feelings.

Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia, which are more likely as you age, can change your brain in ways that make you more suspicious of others. You might notice that a loved one with dementia starts to hide things like jewelry or money, or becomes convinced that people have bad intentions toward them. This is part of the disease. Their doctor might be able to help you manage these symptoms.

Paranoia Treatments

If you feel that you're losing touch with reality, a doctor or mental health professional is the best place to start. Because you can still tell that your thoughts aren't reasonable, there are things you can do to help.

To start with, it's important to eat a healthy balanced diet, exercise, and get plenty of sleep. All these things are part of a mental balance that can help keep paranoid thoughts at bay.

After that, it can actually help to talk to yourself about paranoid thoughts. This works only while you can still tell that your thoughts are not reasonable. Keep it realistic. Instead of thinking to yourself "I'm crazy" or "I'm paranoid," try something like: "I'm worried about something that's highly unlikely to be true."

Even if you don't have a mental illness, if your paranoid or irrational thoughts get in the way of doing things you want to do, talk to a social worker, psychologist, or psychiatrist. T alk therapy or some kind of medication could help you feel better.

Often, people who feel paranoid don't get treatment because they don't realize their thoughts are unrealistic. If you're worried about a friend or family member, talk to a health professional or use a resource such as the National Alliance on Mental Illness (www.nami.org, 800-950-NAMI) or the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (www.samhsa.gov/find-treatment, 800-662-HELP).

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Paranoia is the feeling that you're being threatened in some way, such as people watching you or acting against you, even though there's no proof that it's true. It happens to a lot of people at some point. Even when you know that your concerns aren't based in reality, they can be troubling if they happen too often.