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With the last question, "is there a limit to love," Hamlet's reach of damage helps explain the very clear limit. Whether it's from the damage he caused by murdering Polonius or the damage he caused by driving Ophelia mad, Hamlet's obsession with both his late father and Ophelia causes more damage than necessary and leads us to the limit of the sacrifices to love.

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I agree with Dani, I think we can see Hamlet spiraling into madness and less of him always being crazy. We can see his mental state decaying.

Erika Imdieke

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I think another thing that shows decay and deteriation in Hamlet, is when he talks to the gravedigger and realizes the skull is Yerrick ¨Alas poor yorick i knew him¨ the court jester, and talks about the joy he brought him and than juxtaposted with his decaying skull shows the change. - Ella Goodrum

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I agree with Mia saying there are a lot of underlying motifs of decay woven into the play. When Hamlet picks up Yorick’s skull he talks about decomposition. He reacts to it by saying “My Gorge rises at it”. These help illustrate the underlying conditions of decay and decomposition of Denmark.

Erika Imdieke

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Connecting to Camryn's point of decay, this quotes also connects to the claim, "This too too solid flesh would melt, Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew!" - Act 1, Scene 2

Annika D

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I find it disheartening that the majority of characters in Hamlet end up betraying each other one way or another. Whether its remarrying, denying one's feelings or outright just plotting against somebody. Though all of these betrayals does not come out of the blue. There is a reason behide these betrays. Whether it's love, vengeance, or for honor. There is so much betrayal that everyone ends up hurting and ultimately dying. Which begs the question. Is betraying worth it in the end? Is throwing away life for honor and love worth it?

AidenE

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With everyone's mind decaying into madness, Denmark is also, in a sense, deteriorating. Is that why Fortinbras wants to take over? He is portrayed as a character who is very put together, and who knows exactly what he wants/needs to do. It's possible that news that there was an army coming could be foreshadowing the decaying of the country, and how Fortinbras could possibly come and "save" it. - Ryann H

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It was talked about how Hamlet was betrayed by so many people, and that led him to question Rosencrantz and Guildenstern's intentions when they came to visit him. He didn't even give them a chance, and he automatically just started questioning them. Do they not usually come visit him and that was why he was suspicious? Or were they acting strangely? What made him so cautious? -Ryann H

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Betrayal is depicted as a persistent force that corrupts relationships and undermines loyalty resulting in destruction. This is shown in many different characters’ thoughts and actions, such as Claudius’s when he kills King Hamlet. This betrayal is shown in Act 1, Scene 5, when the Ghost states: “The serpent that did sting thy father’s life / Now wears his crown” (59). This is significant because betrayal is depicted as a driving force for self interest and individuals own ambition. Also, it sets the foundation for subsequent betrayals within the play such as Rosencrantz and Guildenstern and illustrates how Claudius while he is King Hamlet’s brother still ends up betraying him and shows how loyalty, once it is betrayed, can result in a person’s demise. - Hannah Kuhn

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I got too nervous during the discussion to finish my thoughts so I'll finish them here. Focusing on the topic of love; there had been a weird relationship between Gertrude and Hamlet. While researching the topic there was much commentary on how Gertrude and Hamlet present similar to Freud's Oedipus complex. Where the child (typically the son) during their phallic stage of psychosexual development will act out in aggression to their father due to repressed incestuous feelings towards their mother. Sigmund Freud fathered this psychology term and at a point compared Hamlet's relationship with his mother to be similar to his terminology. There have been many books published on the topic of the incestuous relation between Hamlet and his Mother.

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I think the idea that Hamlet never truly loved Ophelia is very interesting, but could also makes sense. Hamlet's relationship with women throughout the book is complicated, partially because of his mother's actions with King Claudius and how Hamlet believes his mother's actions are "incestuous". Hamlets feelings toward his mother may reflect on his relationship with Ophelia in that the way Hamlet sees his mother makes him unable to love Ophelia.

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In my opinion we love people more after they're dead because we can keep our unchecked expectations and opinions about what that person was like and convince ourselves that they were better than they were. This might have contributed to the beginning of Hamlet's madness since he had such high opinions of his father before his death and those just increased after his death.

- Cicely k

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I think that the point of view that Hamlet never really loved Ophelia is interesting. I think that at one point, Hamlet loved her, but towards the end, I think it was more of a lustful type of feeling. I think that because she could not love him, and then died, he has convinced himself that he really does love her. I think that his confusion when it comes to Ophelia really ties into his madness.

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I think it's interesting how the death of just about every major character in the play facilitates the solution to the decay that has fallen upon Denmark after King Hamlet's death. Like only with the mass tragedy and death of the court can stability return.

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During the time period of Hamlet the women are generally subservient to men. So is Ophelia really seen as being manipulated by Hamlet and Polonius or is it just considered her purpose as a daughter and woman to be a tool for the men around her? If women had a higher social standing would Polonius and Hamlet still use her as a pawn? Especially since Polonius clearly cared enough about his daughter to warn her against falling for Hamlet's lies.

- Cicely K

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A interesting thing I found about revenged was that while Hamlet was told who the murderer of his father he hestiatas and looks for concrete evidence. While his foil lerates when he found out who killed his father he wasted no time to try to kill the murderer.

AidenE

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I find it ironic that Hamlet precedes his revenge by killing Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Claudius presents the most justified reason for revenge whereas Hamlet's friends "betrayed" Hamlet personally. Therefore, Hamlet's revenge seems to be based on emotion and madness rather than honor or duty.

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Towards the end it's revealed that Hamet ordered Rosencrantz & Guildenstern death in Claudius' handwriting, I assume doing this was his reaction/ revenge for the men spying on him for the king. Do you think this could've been at all justified or just a brash, emotional reaction to his friends' betrayal?

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In the play madness is seen as a response to grief, Hamlets madness begins with him grieving his fathers death. What's left up to our interpretation is if his grief is too much, at what point(if there is a point) does his grief make him crazy?-Sophia W

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Something small I noticed during Hamlet was the focus on the loss of honor of Hamlet's mother Gertrude, because of her choice to remarry. There's also an odd focus on her sexual relations. Multiple times throughout Hamlet, Hamlet makes comments about his mothers choices on who she marries. As if she's lost her honor for sleeping with a new man even though she's been remarried and abided by all religious rules. He even outright tells her to stop her relations with Claudius. (3.4.168)

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All of the justice gotten, from Laertes killing Hamlet to Hamlet killing his uncle, was incredibly short lived. This helps support the idea that revenge is not the best avenue for justice.

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Going back to rosencrants and gildenstern, who definitley display betrayal, when they choose to spy on hamlet, they represent the corruption of their loyalty to hamlet

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Claudius isn't liable or loyal to his own country, either. By murdering his brother and and attempting to murder his nephew, he betrays his own bloodline and country for his own gain. This emphasizes the selfishness and immorality that fully connects his character with Hamlet's.

Kaia Davlin

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I agree with what Mae said in that Gertrude had a tiny but of responsibility of her ultimate situation because she was insincere to Hamlet's feelings. The lines, "Do not forever with thy vailèd lids / Seek for thy noble father in the dust,” (1.2.72-73) is her telling Hamlet that he has to move on like she did. This event, along with the ghost of Hamlet's father, is what motivates Hamlet to do what he did.

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Ophelia is almost defined as someone who is overrun by the men in her life and as soon as they became absent, she had her descent into madness.

Emily Manhart

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Like what Mae was saying, Hamlet's obsession with revenge in the name of honor ends up warping his reality to the point that his actions are no longer honorable but he is so blinded that he can't see the truth of his own actions.

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Post your name at the bottom of each post.

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Building off of Devon, I think that the quote that Mae used: "Let come what comes, only I'll be revenged," (4.5.153) emphasizes that Laertes does not care what happens to him as long as he avenges his father. -Emily