Hamlet the madman??

Do you think Hamlet's nuts? After our discussions today I reflected back on all the commentary and all the productions I could remember, and it seems like the overwhelming majority talk about Hamlet being mad. But I still wonder whether his ability to see the ghost is commentary on Gertrude's blindness to the truth and Hamlet's ability to see right and wrong. In fact, I wonder if it;s the sanest thing in the world to be freaked out by feeling obligated to kill someone, and I also still wonder about Hamlet's ability to plan and say the right things (with double meanings!) under pressure. I guess he could be an endearingly fiendish sociopath, but he seems  too self-critical for that. What do you think, and what is your evidence? Especially curious about your perspectives after you read DeBoer's paper.

         Hamlet is not a madman! I believe he is like any person, he is trying to make sense of what is happening and how to deal with the problems he encounters. But when Shakespeare writes it down the way he does it kind of makes it seem like he is nuts. I bet if we all wrote out our life story or maybe just a problem that we have encountered in life, it would seem like we are crazy especially with our inner thoughts!

         I believe Hamlet could see the ghost because he has so much love and respect for his father unlike his mother, Gertrude. This is where your own preferences come into play, do you believe in ghosts? I actually have never been in contact with "ghosts" but I haven't thrown out the idea that there are ghosts in this world. My thought on that is because movies, shows, and stories come about sometimes through experience, not always but sometimes. Hamlet is not a madman for seeing his father because other's have seen him too and I bet they saw him because they have respect for him.

         When it comes to getting revenge for his father's death. I wouldn't blame him for wanting that! In life people have the feeling to get revenge and sometimes that revenge isn't the right thing or it might not even make them feel better. In Hamlet's case killing his father's killer seemed ideal, I always hear if someone killed one of their family members they would kill them. But how do we really know if we would? I wouldn't know so I don't have any expertise on that. Hamlet could be a nuts but he could just be looking for a way to express his feelings like any human being.

         Hamlet's ability to plan and say the right things under pressure is weird, but don't we all do that sometimes, like sarcasm. We all use it and it has double meanings. I don't think Hamlet is a madman or nuts, he is just trying to figure out what the right thing to do for him is and his actions might make him seem crazy but that's just life.