Hamlet's Mental Disorder Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Hamlet's Mental Disorder - Essay Example He broods about a lot of things and he has enough reasons to do so. When he comes after knowing that his father died, he finds his mother Gertrude and Uncle Claudius married within months after his father's death (Act I, scene ii (129-158). To make matters worse, instead of confronting his mother and demanding for an explanation, he just keeps his miserable feelings and doubts to himself. He seeks for justification but does not let it out so he becomes all the more burdened with so many questions and no answers. In addition, he also feels antagonism towards his mother and his uncle's decision to let him stay in Denmark. It was in these depressing moments that he first thinks of committing suicide In the foregoing scenarios, Hamlet appears to be suffering from bipolar disorder. His continued melancholy and depression that even leads to his thinking of committing suicide are the major characteristics of the mental illness. The very familiar line, "To be, or not to be: that is the question," speaks of Hamlet's reflection on whether he would choose to live (to be) or to commit suicide (not to be). To die means to end one's sufferings and pains on earth: He likens death to sleep which means inactivity and rest. ... In the foregoing scenarios, Hamlet appears to be suffering from bipolar disorder. His continued melancholy and depression that even leads to his thinking of committing suicide are the major characteristics of the mental illness. The most famous soliloquy of Hamlet in Act III, scene i (58-90) displays his mental confusion and indecision. The very familiar line, "To be, or not to be: that is the question," speaks of Hamlet's reflection on whether he would choose to live (to be) or to commit suicide (not to be). To die means to end one's sufferings and pains on earth: Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them-To die,-to sleep,- No more; and by a sleep to say we end The heartache, and the thousand natural shocks That flesh is heir to,-'tis a consummation He likens death to sleep which means inactivity and rest. By dying, he perceives that he would be freed from all the difficulties that living entails. In this manner he is showing his loss of interest or pleasure, which is stated to be the second major symptom of bipolar disorder. In thinking of death as an escape, he pauses to remember the possible consequences of dying. He thinks of what kind of dream that he would have when he sleeps or the things that await him in the after-death Devoutly to be wish'd. To die,-to sleep;- To sleep: perchance to dream:-ay, there's the rub; For in that sleep of death what dreams may come, Even in the possible dreams that would lie in death's sleep, he feels more depressed for he does not know what lies ahead. He seems to be afraid that the after-death experience may not be better than the present life, how ever unbearable it may seem.