What's So Good About Hamlet?

In Shakespeare’s time, the Renaissance period of theatre, audiences were intrigued by the plays portrayal of madness. The play became famous for the ghost, and its portrayal of insanity and melancholy. In Jacobean and Caroline theatre, insane courtiers were a common sight, and this seems to be indebted to ‘Hamlet.’ After the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, ‘Hamlet’ became one of the most popular and profitable plays of the time, despite some top critics (such as John Evelyn and Jeremy Collier) lambasting Shakespeare as un-educated and condemning his ignorance of Aristotle’s rules of unity and decorum. In the 18^th Century the play was criticised for being confusing, due to the irregularities and discontinuities within the play, which modern scholars argue over whether these discontinuities were by accident or to re-enforce the themes of dilemma and duality. However the ghost scenes were still very popular amongst audiences. Hamlet breaks a lot of the accepted rules of playwrighting, such as action over character. In fact Hamlet has more lines than any other Shakespeare character, and the main focus of the play is Hamlet’s monologues, rather than any action in the play. It is currently the most performed play by the Royal Shakespeare Company.

The play has sparked great debate amongst scholars and left many questions to pick over. Is Hamlet really as insane as he say’s he is? Why does Hamlet not kill his uncle praying when he has the chance? Why does it take Hamlet so long to decide to kill his uncle? Does Hamlet have repressed sexual feelings for his mother Gertrude? Is Hamlet a misogynist or are his actions towards Ophelia down to his state of mind? Some of the most famous minds in the world have considered the play, including Sigmeund Freud, who analysed Hamlet as if he was a real person and diagnosed him with Oedipus Complex.

The play is rumoured to have been based on the true story of Prince Amleth, adding another dimension to the play. The play has in effect 5 strands, with five different sons trying to avenge the death of their father, Hamlet’s story being the most prominent of course. Death plays a huge part in the play, with Hamlet, in Shakespeare’s most famous soliloquy, discussing the concept of suicide, and whether it is better “to be or not to be.” Despite being a very serious play there are some comic sequences, such as the gravedigger’s scene, which was seen as hilarious by audiences in Shakespeare’s time.

The play is considered, melodramatically, to be fairly run-of-the-mill, with the sword fighting finale and death of most of the main characters, including the titular character, but the Shakespearean language of the play, complexity of Hamlet’s character and the huge moral dilemma’s he is faced with make this play stand out for many people.