The main idea of the play Hamlet by Shakespeare - Essay Example

Abdulrahman Alshehri ENGL 102 Dr. Michael Milam 7/30 The main idea of the play Hamlet by Shakespeare Hamlet is the tragedy by Shakespeare the main idea of which is too difficult to be explained. This makes the work both outstanding and controversial at the same time. Many critics have still been trying to find the answer to different questions: if Hamlet was sane or insane; if the ghost was real. Every expert as well as every reader has his own opinion concerning these questions and the question of what idea the great dramatist wanted to share with readers.

There are many soliloquies and simple phrases from the play, which are widely discussed and carefully considered by the critics and the readers of the play. This paper will be focused on the phrase “the time is out of joint, I cursed spite. The ever I was born to set it right!” to prove that this phrase is one that can explain the main idea of the play (Shakespeare 8). The idea of the play Hamlet is closely connected with the epoch the play was written in. The critics state, and their opinion is unanimous, that the real time, when the tragedy Hamlet could take place, is the Shakespearian epoch.

Hamlet is a student of a Protestant University that was founded in the sixteenth century in Wittenberg. The world perception of Hamlet is connected with the epoch he lives in. The crisis of humanism, which can be traced in the second half of the sixteenth century, is reflected in Hamlet’s mental state (Blits 21). At the end of the epoch of the Renaissance there was a deep crisis when religious morality was already lost, but individual or social morality was not yet formed. This is a problem in Hamlet.

The words “the time is out of joint, I cursed spite. The ever I was born to set it right!” are the key words, which can explain the behavior of Shakespeare’s hero. The phrase shows that Hamlet realizes the main problem of his epoch. The realization of the decay is the familiar phenomenon that could be traced in the Shakespearian epoch. This realization reflects the essence of the mental state of people, who lived in the epoch of the late Renaissance. The tragedy of Hamlet cannot be explained only by the external circumstances: “something is rotten in the state of Denmark” (Shakespeare 5).

Hamlet has to commit revenge and he is not ready for that. Shakespeare deliberately makes his hero a student, who is an adult but still very young: he was brought up in one epoch and has to live during the period of change. It is not easy to imagine a young man, who has to set things right, but is not mature enough to really do right, and is not ready for such a serious and hard mission. He is still full of illusions, and he has a beloved woman. Certainly, he is irritated by the fact that his mother celebrated her wedding and forgot about his father’s death so quickly, but he is still naive (Bloom 20).

The phrase under consideration reveals Hamlet’s mission imposed by the ghost of his father. It shows that Hamlet accepts his mission and is not afraid of it, which testifies that Hamlet is not insane, but a strong and developed personality. Certainly, he is too young to be able to commit revenge in cold blood and without emotions. Young people usually have ideals the sudden destruction of which may lead to mental trauma. However, Hamlet remained sane to finish his mission, notwithstanding that he went through deep and serious mental trauma that testifies to his mental vulnerability due to the pureness of his own soul.

He realizes that “the time is out of joint” and the people like him are to bring things in order (MacCary 8). The phrase under consideration shows the Hamlet realizes his mission and accepts it. If to analyze the play with as much deep meaning as Hamlet has, it is essential to consider every phrase from different perspectives, both internal and external, in order not to miss any element that may be essential. Shakespeare provided his plays with deep meanings, which can be understood only by the people with certain knowledge and life experience.

If Hamlet is considered insane, the discussion will end with such a statement. Sane Hamlet is a deep and interesting personality with an inner world that is very interesting to investigate. Hamlet lives in a difficult epoch that should be taken into consideration together with his personal circumstances, while discussing his motives. Works cited Blits, Jan H. Introduction. In Deadly Thought: "Hamlet" and the Human Soul: 3–22. Langham, MD: Lexington Books, 2001. Bloom, Harold. Shakespeare: The Invention of the Human.

Open Market ed. Harlow, Essex: Longman., 2001. MacCary, W. Thomas. "Hamlet": A Guide to the Play. Greenwood Guides to Shakespeare ser. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1998. Shakespeare William. Hamlet, Norton Critical Edition, 2010.