Themes, Motifs, and Symbols in Hamlet | Albert Literature Resources (2024)

Major Themes in Hamlet

Even though Shakespeare wrote this great drama for Elizabethan audiences over 400 years ago, the themes presented in this tragedy are still relevant for 21st-century audiences today. The usual themes of deception and vengeance are clearly portrayed throughout Hamlet and many of Shakespeare’s tragedies (thinkOthello,Romeo and Juliet,orTitus Andronicus).

However,Hamletstands out among the rest of Shakespeare’s tragedies in its depiction of mental illness throughout the play, even portraying the lead character as overcome with “madness” as the events of the play progress.

The Complexity of Mental Illness

The American Psychiatry Association defines mental illnesses as “health conditions involving changes in emotion, thinking or behavior (or a combination of these). Mental illnesses are associated with distress and/or problems functioning in social, work or family activities.”

Both Hamlet and Ophelia suffer from some form of mental illness, and their conditions are only exacerbated by the trauma that they experience before and during the play.

At the start of the play, Hamlet is crippled by the trauma of suddenly losing his father, and instead of comforting him, his uncle rebukes him and calls his grief “unmanly” (Shakespeare 14). Because he is under emotional distress, Hamlet reacts to his uncle’s words drastically but still in private, seeing life as pointless and wishing for death (Shakespeare 15). Even though Hamlet feigns “madness” to manipulate those around him, the reality of his mental illness becomes clearly apparent, especially as the tragedy progresses.

On the other hand, Ophelia is traumatized by two separate events; first, Hamlet’s rejection of her love, and secondly, the murder of her father by Hamlet’s careless hand. Ophelia’s mental illness, likely depression, is clearly visible to all in her unkempt hair and inability to hold meaningful conversation.

It is unusual that Shakespeare would include both male and female characters in his depiction of mental illness, especially since women were perceived as primarily prone to this type of illness. Additionally, mental illness in women was typically misdiagnosed and mistreated. For example, a woman who disobeyed her husband was quickly labeled as mad and sometimes even sent away for harsh and ineffective “treatment.” Shakespeare treads carefully by first introducing Hamlet’s “madness” as an act, but as the play progresses, the reader can clearly see the reality of his affliction.

In her essay, “Shakespeare’s Madwomen: How Elizabethan Theatre Challenged the Perception of Mental Afflictions,” Hannah Dhue explains that Shakespeare “endeavors to prove that madness in women can be a perfectly legitimate, logically explained affliction that is not specific to gender” (2). In his play, Shakespeare radically redefined mental illness for both men and women through his portrayal of both Hamlet and Ophelia.

The Danger of Deception and Manipulation

Deception and manipulation run rampant in Shakespeare’sHamlet, beginning with the murder of the late king by his brother. Hamlet and his mother have both been deceived as to the actual cause of the king’s death. Even when Hamlet learns the true reason from his father’s ghost, Horatio and Marcellus still warn him against so quickly believing the ghost’s words, as they fear some demon is manipulating him.

Hamlet’s closest friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, arrive in Denmark and appear to be concerned with Hamlet’s well-being; however, Hamlet quickly determines that these friends are merely spying on him at the request of his uncle.

However, Hamlet is not just a victim but also a perpetrator of deception. Hamlet also puts on a play that reenacts his father’s murder as a means to catch his uncle as soon as he shows any signs of guilt. Additionally, Hamlet plays with Ophelia’s emotions and leads her to believe that he is genuinely interested in her, but he also manipulates her and others by pretending to be mad.

In a weak attempt to be a helpful father, Polonius decides that the best way to confront Hamlet is by concealing himself behind a tapestry, using his own daughter to attempt to entrap him. This is not the first time Polonius is deceptive; earlier in the play, he snuck around behind his son Laertes’ back and sent Reynaldo to spy on him in Paris.

Every instance of deception in this play causes lasting damage: Polonius is mistaken for the king and murdered by Hamlet. Ophelia takes her own life, while Hamlet has his best friends murdered, and Laertes dies after becoming entangled in Hamlet and Claudius’ dispute.

The Futility of Revenge

Hamlet is a prime candidate for manipulation after his father’s sudden death. He knows something is wrong, but he cannot quite place a finger on it. Upon seeing the ghost and recognizing his father, he abandons his fears that the ghost is a demon and never questions whether the ghost is real or whether the ghost’s words are true.

Even Horatio describes his friend as “desperate with imagination” (Shakespeare 32). When the ghost confirms Hamlet’s fears that his uncle murdered his father, Hamlet is more than willing to swear to avenge his father.

However, Hamlet is so much in his own head that he fails to put action to his promise until the play’s very end. When he has a prime opportunity to murder Claudius while he is praying, Hamlet hesitates, fearful that Claudius might go to heaven. His father’s ghost even appears midway through the play to remind Hamlet of his oath to avenge his murder.

However, throughout the course of the play, one by one, the people around Hamlet serve as casualties to his plan. Hamlet impulsively kills Polonius behind a tapestry, and Hamlet’s rejection of Ophelia leads her to die. Laertes becomes involved because both his father and sister are dead, but he too ends up dying at Hamlet’s hand, as well as Hamlet’s mother and Hamlet himself. Even though vengeance is served by the end of the play, it is futile, and no one wins.

Motifs and Symbols in Hamlet

Death

Death is a regular motif in Shakespeare’sHamlet. A murder occurs even before the play begins, and many more follow as the play progresses. However, death appears as a motif in several different instances, primarily on the topic of suicide. Overcome with grief at his father’s sudden death, Hamlet wishes he could die, saying,“O, that this too too solid flesh would melt, thaw, and resolve itself into a dew!”(Shakespeare 15). He sees life as pointless but refuses to take his own life because he fears eternal repercussions (the church preached that those who took their own lives could not enter heaven).

When Hamlet is given the order to avenge his father’s death, his life has a new purpose; however, those heavy thoughts still remain. In Act 3, Hamlet gives his famous soliloquy, asking whether it is better“to be”(to live) or“not to be”(to die) (Shakespeare 77). However, once Hamlet is assured of Claudius’ guilt, his will to live is renewed, and his ideas about death are disguised as irreverent jokes.

When he murders Polonius, he has no compassion and feels no remorse for his actions. Instead, he jokes about Polonius being “at supper; not where he eats, but where he is eaten” (Shakespeare 119). Later, when Ophelia dies, whether by suicide or by accident, the grave diggers argue back and forth whether or not Ophelia deserves a “Christian burial” since it is possible that she killed herself. Hamlet makes light of the grave scene, picking up skulls and talking to them. However, his mood quickly changes when Ophelia is brought to be buried. Hamlet seems to snap out of his feigned madness by expressing his love for Ophelia; however, her death clearly has exacerbated his mental illness, as shown by his fighting with Laertes in Ophelia’s grave.

The play both begins and ends with death; even though Hamlet’s father is avenged and Claudius dies, so does Hamlet’s mother, Polonius, Laertes, Ophelia, Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, and Hamlet. Fortinbras overtake Denmark, and even though Fortinbras honors Hamlet as a hero, he is also astounded at the scene before him, likening it to a battlefield.

Ears and Hearing

When Claudius kills Hamlet’s father by pouring poison into his ear, this act incites the play’s action and is also highly symbolic. The ghost enforces that the spread of the lie that a snake killed him “rankly abus[es} the whole ear of Denmark” (Shakespeare 34). Later in the play, when Hamlet attacks his mother for marrying his uncle, his mother cries out that “these words, like daggers, enter in mine ears,” symbolizing the judgment and hurt she feels (Shakespeare 109).

However, hearing is also a common motif throughout the play, specifically overhearing and eavesdropping. Multiple characters spy on one another: Polonius spies on both Laertes and Hamlet, Hamlet spies on the king, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are commanded to spy on Hamlet. None of these situations end well, as they all enforce distrust within the kingdom.

Sexuality

It is more than a little strange that Hamlet is obsessed with his mother’s, ahem, love life. He is disgusted that his mother married and was intimate so quickly with Claudius after her husband’s death. He even dares to command his mother not to sleep with Claudius anymore. In Act 3, scene 4, Hamlet goes directly against the ghost’s words and attacks his mother, likening her marriage bed to a pigsty.

In a previous scene, Laertes tells his sister Ophelia not to sleep with Hamlet because he fears Hamlet is not genuine. He is correct, but Ophelia sleeps with him anyway. When Ophelia realizes that Hamlet does not care about her, she is devastated. She sings, “before you tumbled me, you promised me to wed” (Shakespeare 128). Ophelia feels heartbreak but also shame, especially considering Laertes’ previous warnings about retaining her honor.

Conclusion

Hamlet carries with it both heavy themes and symbols. It is not a light read by any means! However, with a mature group of students, there are plenty of opportunities for meaningful discussion on any of these themes or motifs.

Works Cited

American Psychiatric Association. What Is Mental Illness?, www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/what-is-mental-illness.

Dhue, Hannah, and Dani Snyder. “Shakespeare’s Madwomen: How Elizabethan Theatre Challenged the Perception of Mental Afflictions.” Digital Commons @ IWU, digitalcommons.iwu.edu/jwprc/2014/oralpres9/1/.

Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy of Hamlet: with Connections. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2000.