Hamlet's Madness: Real or Feigned? Shakespeare Analysis

Hamlet tells Horatio that he will 'put an antic disposition on' and that he will 'bear myself as I perchance hereafter shall think meet to put an antic disposition on.' Hamlet explains that he will 'shake' and 'pronounce of some doubtful phrase' to make it appear that he is mad. This decision to feign madness allows Hamlet to investigate the truth about his father's death without revealing his true intentions. The 'antic disposition' becomes a key device in Hamlet's strategy, establishing the theme of performance and deception in the play.

Hamlet instructs his friends to never reveal his true intentions, even when he appears mad: 'As I perchance hereafter shall think meet To put an antic disposition on— That you, at such times seeing me, never shall, With arms encumber'd thus, or this head-shake, Or by pronouncing of some doubtful phrase, As 'Well, we know', or 'We could and if we would', Or 'If we list to speak' or 'There be and if they might', Or such ambiguous giving out, to note That you know aught of me:—this not to do.' This establishes Hamlet's plan to feign madness as a disguise, instructing his friends to never reveal his true intentions even when he appears to be acting strangely.

Hamlet makes a solemn request to Horatio and the other witnesses, asking them never to make known what they have seen that night. He refers to the experience as something that should be 'dreamt of in your philosophy.' Hamlet then decides to adopt an 'antic disposition' (a crazy or foolish behavior) as a disguise for his true intentions. He explains that he will 'bear myself' in a strange or odd manner, and that he will 'put on' this appearance to conceal his real plans for revenge. He delivers his famous line: 'The time is out of joint; O cursed spite, That ever I was born to set it right.'

Hamlet tells his friends to 'carry on as if nothing has happened' and to 'plead ignorance' regardless of how he behaves. He declares he will 'put an antic disposition on,' meaning he will feign madness. He makes his friends swear to this on his sword. This decision shows Hamlet's strategic thinking and his understanding that feigning madness will allow him to investigate Claudius without raising suspicion.

In Act Four, Hamlet continues to act crazy, which he calls his 'antic disposition.' This deception is not lessening but increasing. Hamlet will continue to put on his antic disposition as a form of performance and protection. This term refers to Hamlet's deliberate feigned madness, which he uses as a strategic tool throughout the play to conceal his true intentions and gather information.

Academic Elizabethan tragedies, such as those by Kyd, differed from popular tragedies because they strictly imitated classical models with chorus and three unities. Popular Elizabethan revenge tragedies handled violent action differently from Senecan plays - while Seneca presented violence off-stage through reports, Elizabethan revenge tragedies presented violence directly on stage. Thomas Kyd's 'The Spanish Tragedy' features a play-within-a-play structure, a ghost, revenge themes, and the violation of the unity of time. Christopher Marlowe is famous for 'The Jew of Malta' and 'Tamburlaine,' which emphasized heroic ambition and revenge plots.

Revenge tragedy became a popular dramatic genre during the late Elizabethan and Jacobean period, influenced by the works of the Roman writer Seneca whose plays featured revenge, violence, supernatural events, and intense emotions. One of the earliest English examples was 'Gorboduc' written by Thomas Sackville and Thomas Norton. Revenge tragedies usually focus on a character seeking revenge for a serious wrong, with common features including betrayal, murder, ghost appearances, madness, and violent endings. These plays also explore the psychological struggles of the avenger and questions of justice and morality. The genre was firmly established by Thomas Kyd's 'The Spanish Tragedy,' which introduced delayed revenge and a bloody climax. This work strongly influenced William Shakespeare's 'Hamlet,' which added deeper reflection on fate, justice, and moral responsibility.

The first 25-30 years of the 17th century were dominated by revenge tragedies, a genre heavily influenced by Thomas Kyd, the father of English revenge tragedies. Kyd was inspired by Seneca, the ancient Roman writer considered the father of revenge tragedies. Shakespeare's Hamlet is a classic example of this genre, directly inspired by Kyd's work. Other Jacobean playwrights including John Webster (The Duchess of Malfi), Thomas Middleton, John Ford, and Philip Massinger wrote revenge tragedies featuring themes of betrayal, murder, and supernatural revenge. The Duchess of Malfi is considered the greatest revenge tragedy of this period, exploring themes of honor, incest, and vengeance.

Thomas Kyd, one of the University Wits, is best known for The Spanish Tragedy, which borrows heavily from Seneca and helped launch the revenge tragedy craze. This play had a strong influence on Shakespeare's Hamlet. Kyd's work demonstrates how classical influences combined with native dramatic traditions to create new genres that would define English Renaissance theater.

The Jacobean period (1603-1625) followed Elizabeth I's death when James I ascended the throne, unifying England and Scotland. The theater was politically significant, with groups like the King's Men indicating royal patronage. Elizabethan and Jacobian English was undergoing rapid development, with Shakespeare contributing over 100 words to the language. Plays mixed verse and prose, incorporating diverse elements. Revenge tragedies occupied a blood-soaked niche, popularized by Thomas Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy and followed by Middleton's The Revenger's Tragedy. These plays drew upon Seneca's stoic philosophy and featured Italian court settings with elaborate plots driven by ambition and lust, questioning feudal corruption and noble greed.

The Four Humors theory, originating from ancient Greek medicine and accepted in Western medicine until the 19th century, classified human temperament into four types based on bodily fluids: Choleric (yellow bile, associated with fire and summer, characterized by ambition and quick temper), Sanguine (blood, associated with air and spring, characterized by sociability and optimism), Phlegmatic (phlegm, associated with water and winter, characterized by calmness and patience), and Melancholic (black bile, associated with earth and autumn, characterized by introspection and sadness). Shakespeare incorporated this theory into his plays, using it to explain character behavior and creating references that his contemporary audience would recognize, such as Hamlet's melancholic disposition reflecting an imbalance of black bile.

The four humors theory, derived from ancient Greek medicine, classified human temperament based on four bodily fluids: black bile (melancholic), phlegm (phlegmatic), blood (sanguine), and yellow bile (choleric). Each humor was associated with specific physical characteristics and personality traits. Melancholics were introverted, pensive, pessimistic, and depressed; phlegmatics were calm, rational, and tranquil; sanguines were charismatic and active; choleric individuals were aggressive, dominant, and energetic. Shakespeare and other Elizabethan playwrights used this theory to characterize their characters, with Hamlet famously being described as melancholic. This system reflects how contemporary medical and psychological understanding shaped literary character development.

Renaissance Neoplatonists combined melancholic temperament with Plato's theory of manic states, where a person could perceive what ordinary people cannot. This made melancholy not just a temperament but a state enabling extraordinary achievements. Iconographic representations like Dürer's 'Melancholia' and Titian's 'Madonna of the Rocks' became famous. In the 17th century, melancholy became fashionable among aristocracy, even becoming a subject of comedy. By the end of the century, the term disappeared from everyday language and remained primarily in medical terminology.

Shakespeare is studied through Freud's references, with Freud viewing him and Dostoevsky as the two greatest classical authors. A classical text is one read not to know what happens but to discover who you are—it never finishes saying what it has to say because readers change with age and era. Hamlet, the greatest Western literary character, embodies melancholy: the melancholic suffers from themselves because they know more than others. This knowledge demands moral action, creating torment. Melancholy has been understood since ancient Greek philosophy as a temperament characterized by excess black bile, creating a contemplative disposition that allows observation of what others miss. By the Renaissance, melancholy was associated with Saturn, a sinister planet representing depths, complex souls, and great transformations. The prophet Jeremiah's idea that Hamlet could have been killed in the womb avoids the need to take action and make what he did.

The ancient Greek medical theory of the four humors provided a naturalistic explanation for melancholy as a psychological and behavioral state. Christianity introduced the concept of guilt, transforming melancholy from purely physiological to moral and spiritual dimensions. Melancholy represents a state of paralysis in the present, characterized by the belief that the past was better and the future is impossible. Dürer's engraving 'Melencolia I' depicts the melancholic as someone who does not live in time, with their existence suspended between past and future. In the Renaissance, melancholy became associated with the creative genius—the artist and philosopher who experiences tragic awareness of human finitude.