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Rhetorical Devices Used In Hamlet

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Hamlet
What would you do if you discovered yourself that your very own blood relative murdered your father? Or if that same relative soon after married your newly widowed mother? Would you be able to keep your sanity or would you, too, slowly slip into madness? The novel The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, written by William Shakespeare, is about a prince that discovers the secret of the malicious murder of his father, King Hamlet. The main character of this novel, Hamlet, is seem to be quite a mentally disturbed man after he discovered his deceased fathers murder to be his uncle. Hamlets obsession of uncovering the murder mystery and exposing his uncles lead to his strive for vengeance, yet his procrastinating ways keeps him from doing so. Though he appears sane at the beginning of the novel it is truly obvious he doesn’t remain as so while the plot thickens.
Along with the many rhetorical devices used in Shakespeare’s novel, Hamlet, Sarcasm can be found …show more content…

He describes this relationship as “A little more kin and less than kind” (I.ii.67). He describes the relationship this way because his uncle is now his stepfather instead of his uncle, yet he remains unfriendly and acts as more of an enemy. The quote is said with a sarcastic tone to bring humor to the table while Hamlet talks about the issue, yet it is a true statement about the relationship. Once again showing that Shakespeare used sarcasm as a way to help the audience understand the relationship fully.
Looking from a mental illness standpoint, Hamlet seems to suffer from a mental disorder known as Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). He shows all symptoms of this illness and also fits the criteria of the known causes. It could be argued if Hamlet is acting insane or if his insanity is caused by a mental illness, but the facts show that his insanity seems to be caused by

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It is or is it not true that Hamlet was faking his insanity? I’m not saying Hamlet was faking the whole thing. The meaning for insanity on Dictionary.com is “a permanent disorder of the mind.” I don 't think Hamlet had a permanent disorder of the mind he knew what he was doing and even planned the majority of the events that happened. Most of the time anyway.

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Allusions In Hamlet

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When it is said, “Would have mourn’d longer-- married with my uncle, My father’s brother” (I, i) it is shown that Hamlet’s mother, who was said to have been as grief-stricken as Niobe just three lines prior, marries her late husband’s brother. The second part of the line says, “But [my uncle] no more like my father/ Than I to Hercules” For Hamlet, a common man, to compare himself to Hercules, the most well-known and renowned hero in all of Greek mythology, it shows that they are complete opposites. The reference that Hamlet’s father, who could be compared to a titan as wonderful as Hyperion, was as different from his brother as Hamlet from Hercules, proves that Hamlet’s uncle was not by any means a good soul. To conclude, Shakespeare uses allusions to Greek mythology to help develop characters in his soliloquy Hamlet.

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In William Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet, Hamlet assumes the disguise of a man that has lost his mind. Hamlet uses this madness to masquerade around in such a way as to not draw attention to his true plan, to avenge his murdered father. Many readers debate as to whether Hamlet is truly mad, or whether he is fully aware of his actions and what he is doing. However, both sides of the debate can agree that Hamlet’s apparent madness is a key element of the play, Hamlet. There are many reasons as to why readers debate Hamlet’s madness.

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In Hamlet, Shakespeare uses many references to sanity and insanity. Throughout the play, Hamlet goes back and forth between sanity and insanity, whether pretending to be insane just to mess with those he does not like or to save himself from getting in trouble. Hamlet is actually one of the smartest characters in the play, which is why he can pull off acting crazy so well. Shakespeare uses this idea of sanity and insanity to help the plot change and take a different directions. One of the most discussed topics of the Hamlet is whether Hamlet is insane or if he was just pretending the whole time.

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873 Words | 4 Pages

He expresses his feeling in his “heart, for I must hold my tongue” (1.2.160). This is an important quote because it is important to understand because it allows to the reader to see that Hamlet cannot speak to anyone about how he feels. As an effect to his decision of not speaking out, this allowed for rage and discomfort to grow inside him which will be one of the main reasons as to why he is legitimately going insane. With these various stressors in his life, it gives more evidence and reasoning to why he often experienced constant signs of depression and suicidal thoughts. The signs of distress he showed throughout the play are highlighted tremendously since he experienced major signs of depression.

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1053 Words | 5 Pages

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1115 Words | 5 Pages

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