DRJ #3 - Hamlet, Act 3

Act 3 is the pivot point and the jelling of the whole play. This is the Act that reveals to me that it is not Hamlet that is mad, it is everyone around him and that he and Horatio are likely the only sane people in his circle of people. In Scene 1 it becomes evident that there is no sense of guilt or sensitivity toward Hamlet or his father’s memory by his family or friends. Hamlet is likely feeling crazy because frankly, it seems as though everyone around him is living in an altered reality. What kind of mother would not feel any sense of propriety toward the memory of her child’s father or the son’s mourning the loss of his father much less his mother forgetting her husband so soon that she was able to remarry?

Hamlet presents the play to try to see if his uncle is guilty by portraying the story of his father’s killing that the ghost had told him. Sure enough, the King’s guilt leads him to leave in anger confirming for Hamlet that he is indeed guilty. Now Hamlet knows that he is bound by the love and memory of his beloved father to avenge his death. He also uses the occasion to convey to Ophelia his angst toward his mother for her apparent disregard for her husband’s memory by marrying so soon after his death. By this it seems that he is pondering in his mind whether love is real or not.

Additionally, Ophelia is indifferent to his gestures and returns the things Hamlet has given her yet, she “loves” him. Through this Hamlet realizes that a women’s love is fickle and therefore does a woman really have the capacity to truly love or is love even real? Again, he is confused about the reality of love.

When he comes upon Claudius he finds him praying and decides not to kill him because he wants to kill him when he is unable to repent first just the way Claudius robbed Hamlet’s father of his ability to repent of his sins before his death. This shows that Hamlet’s sense of compassion for anyone is waning and he is turning more toward vengeance and his anger and distrust is building.

As Act 3 moves through Scene 4 we see very plainly his bitterness toward his mother. He is now voicing to her directly how he angry he is at her for marrying so soon after his father’s death. Also, he is trying to explain to her that Claudius killed her husband. It is as if he is trying one last time to bring her along in a way while rebuking her for her behavior.

Overall, this Act revealed the nature of the first two scenes and built the excitement and set the tone for the remainder of the play, especially with the killing of Polonius. Do you think Hamlet or most everyone around him is crazy, or both?