Hamlet’s egotism plays into his demise at the end of the play, and this is evident throughout. He plays word games with many people including Polonius, Ophelia, and King Claudius. This makes them all confused and enraged with Hamlet. Polonius almost seems scared of Hamlet while they are talking in the library. Hamlet begins to insult Polonius and asks about his daughter, Hamlet’s girlfriend. He taunts him leaving Polonius thinking Hamlet is going crazy. Polonius and King Claudius believe the cause for Hamlet’s oddness is his father’s death.
They then try to get Ophelia, Polonius’ daughter, to cheer him up and determine the cause of Hamlet’s madness. Ophelia tries to talk to Hamlet in sweet tongue and give him a gift, but Hamlet wants nothing of it. Hamlet had heard King Claudius and Polonius plotting earlier. He blows off Ophelia and denies his love for her in astonishing fashion, surprising everyone watching. This crushes Ophelia, leading her to depression and eventual madness after the death of her father, Polonius.
Towards the end of the play when the people of the castle learn that Hamlet had killed Polonius they begin to search for him. Suddenly Hamlet appears out of nowhere and shocks the King and his nobles. Hamlet goes on and makes a complete mockery of King Claudius comparing him to a series of vile animals and obscenities. These various encounters with people show Hamlet’s thoughts to believe that he is better and smarter than everyone else. However, all of this intelligence leads to the demise of all?
To Be Depressed or Move to Action, That Is The Question
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