Essential Question 7

In my opinion, Hamlet has lost his sense of reality. He is a prince and is to act as a prince. However, after meeting the ghost of his father, Hamlet transforms into something unprincipled. His mind is always thinking murderous thoughts and he burns for revenge against his uncle. Hamlet has learned to trust no one and it is evident that he believes that everyone else is in the way of his plot to kill his uncle. Hamlet's unusual behavior gets the better of the other characters, especially Claudius, Gertrude, and Ophelia. When Claudius and Gertrude try to help Hamlet, Hamlet automatically refuses to accept such help since it came from the king, who he disapproves of. When Rosencrantz and Guildenstern visit Hamlet, he assumes that they were sent by the king. When they admit to this, Hamlet is unable to accept them as he would like to. When Hamlet and Gertrude were talking about the play that he made Claudius watch, Hamlet is tempted to kill his mother, until the ghost of King Hamlet tells him to spare his mother. Hamlet then hears stirring behind some curtains, and stabs whoever was behind the curtain, hoping it was Claudius. Turns out it is Polonius, and Hamlet feels no remorse for his actions and dubs Polonius a busybody interfering with his plans. Hamlet becomes so obsessed with his plot to destroy the king that he completely loses himself.