Hamlet, a play considered by some to be William Shakespeare's most popular play, is easily more than just a play. It is a timeless piece of literature that evaluates some of the most human parts of humanity and deals with topics that are still relevant in today's political climate. One of the topics touched upon is the concept of mental illness, in Shakespeare's terms "Madness". This is a very obvious and crucial part of the plot as without the characters' personal struggles, especially Hamlet's, the events that occurred in the play would never have happened. This is addressed very early on when Hamlet finds himself contemplating death after the sudden passing of his father. This sort of mental malaise that he experiences only worsens as the story unfolds and we learn more about the true nature of how his father's death actually came about. Regardless, though, Hamlet is still presented as an almost sane character for much of the play, which raises the question: how much of his behavior is genuine? Through in-depth examination, it can be said that in Shakespeare's Hamlet, unexpected events can cause feelings of emotional turmoil resulting in a chain of actions that could only be enacted by a highly emotionally melancholic person. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay To properly evaluate Hamlet's mental state during the time of the play, one must first evaluate all that he endured not only during but also before the main events. The first and most important incident of these would be the death of his father, the reigning king of Denmark. After the loss of his father, Hamlet is noticeably different and in a conversation with his mother Gertrude in which she questions his stability. Hamlet tells her: “It seems, madam, no, it is. I don't know 'it seems'./ 'It is not only my inky cloak, good mother,/ Nor the customary robes of solemn black,.../ Along with all forms, moods, forms of pain.” This blatant confession of his pain is understandable considering the circumstances, but, rather, the depth of his pain and his change in behavior are what leads this to be the first warning of his potential mental illness, as is noted by those who surround. Continuing, although losing his father is hard enough, Hamlet is also faced with the ghost of his father who claims that his uncle Claudius, a man who just married his mother and took the throne, was the one who killed him . His father's spirit confesses this to him in private; “A snake stung me. Thus the whole ear of Denmark/ Was for a process forged by my death/ Violently insulted. But know, noble youth, / the serpent that stung your father's life / now wears his crown. This sudden betrayal only further burdens Hamlet with anguish over the circumstances, as well as undeniable anger. This feeling of anger is further pushed over the edge when, during the same conversation, the spirit of his father asks Hamlet to take revenge on his uncle and kill him to get justice for the king. The ghost of his father asks him "Vengeance for his foul and unnatural murder". This request awakens something in Hamlet and fills him with bloodlust as he is willing to do anything to complete this task. However, it can be said that a man who believes the word of a ghost to the point of being willing to commit murder against his uncle is not a man who could be considered sane. These events together build the underlying madness that Hamlet experiencesduring the show and what drives his actions. Furthermore, mental illness could not be called mental illness without the sufferer experiencing a myriad of symptoms. The first symptom that Hamlet exhibits is his suicidal tendencies. After a previously noted conversation in which he is confronted by his mother and uncle about changes in his behavior, Hamlet speaks to himself expressing his desire to kill himself and his struggle with the religious aspects related to such an act. He exclaims “His canon 'against self-murder!' Oh God! God!. This outburst is a clear cry for help and a very clear statement of his suicidal feelings. The second obvious symptom we see from Hamlet is his self-destructive actions. Take, for example, the scene in which he decides to tell his lover Ophelia that he never actually loved her. In a conversation with her father, Ophelia recounts the interaction with Hamlet, telling him "My lord, while I sewed in my cupboard,/Lord Hamlet,.../As if he had been delivered from hell/To speak of horrors - comes first of me.” No rational person would behave this way towards their loved one, and to so recklessly hurt someone close to them demonstrates the self-destruction that Hamlet's illness has unleashed within him. Another example of these symptoms we see in Hamlet it is his paranoia. Although he is right to think so, considering the truth, he believes he is being spied on baselessly. He is also believing the word of a ghost that his uncle killed his brother. Hamlet decides to do something to finalize the paranoia and speculation he feels towards his uncle and decides to do so by putting on a show that re-enacts the events of the alleged murder. His logic is that if his uncle is found guilty, he will leave the show. He explains this plan to his trusted friends by saying “so that my measure towards the actors, which, I tell you, must show itself honestly on the outside, no longer appears as entertainment than yours. Please. But my uncle-father and my aunt-mother were deceived." To conclude, the symptoms Hamlet experiences, from his early suicidal feelings to the development of self-destructive behavior and paranoia, are clear examples of symptoms caused by mental illness. Putting it all together, it is important to discuss how much of Hamlet's actions were motivated by his emotional turmoil. It could be argued that his behavior was a carefully planned act intended to deceive and get revenge on his uncle, and while this view may have some decent points, it is also so strongly clear that Hamlet suffers from madness, so none of them his acts could be considered completed acts, since they were spurred by authentic suffering. During a scene in which Hamlet talks to two gravediggers in a cemetery he performs a series of dark deeds and the gravediggers also discuss his madness, the first stating “Can't you tell? Any fool can say that. It was the very day young Hamlet, the madman, was born." This response shows how clear Hamlet's bizarre actions are to those around him. He promotes this by talking to a skull and speaking gibberish. Another example of this is when Hamlet first starts this behavior and Ophelia's father comes to talk to him about his behavior towards her. Hamlet's treatment of him is so obviously strange that it perplexes him and says “How do you say this? I'm still pushing my daughter. /Yet he didn't know me at first. He said I was a fishmonger./ He went far, far away.” While this action may have been designed to represent madness, it is also an act he is performing to convince those around him that he is mad in an attempt to hide his intention to kill his uncle. Now, while it may be difficult to decipher the.