Hamlet Essay Topics
- Tragic hero: Is Hamlet a tragic hero? What are some of his faults or short-comings? Do these constitute a “fatal flaw” (to use the concept and terminology of Aristotle or Bradley)? Does he progress toward self-realization — a fuller understanding of himself and his situation?
2) Madness: Hamlet claims that his madness is feigned, an “antic disposition” which he puts on for his own purposes (I.v.172). Why would Hamlet want to feign madness? How can an appearance of insanity help him achieve his ends? Is he really sane throughout the play, or does he ever cross the line into madness? What about Ophelia’s mad scene? Is it real or feigned? Is there “method in her madness” as well, or is she entirely irrational? Why has she gone mad? (What two reasons do her songs suggest?)
- Poison: Some critics have seen poison as the master metaphor in this play. What is its role, literally and figuratively, in the play? For you, does it seem a central theme?
- Women: “Frailty, thy name is woman,” says Hamlet in Act I scene ii. Pay attention to the treatment of the women characters Gertrude and Ophelia. Does Shakespeare’s play reinforce patriarchal stereotypes for women or does it undermine or critique such stereotypes? Is it possible that it does both?
- Acting: Hamlet is a play in which nothing can be taken at face value: appearances are frequently deceptive, and many characters engage in play-acting, spying and pretense. What deliberate attempts are made at deception? Are the intended audiences deceived? While some deceptions are perpetrated in order to conceal secrets, others aim to uncover hidden truths. Which are which? To what extent are they successful? Note references to appearances, disguises, pretense, seeming, masks, acting, etc.
- Hamlet and Oedipus: Examine Hamlet for the likelihood of Hamlet’s having an Oedipus complex. This point has been argued ever since Freud raised this question, but the question has never been completely solved. Examine Hamlet’s scenes with his mother and the scenes in which he contemplates his father and his uncle. How accurate was Freud in his estimation of Hamlet’s state of mind? Would Freud’s view have an impact on the question of whether Hamlet was mad?
