An analysis of the character of Shakespeare’s Hamlet and an interpretation of his psychological state of mind.
An analysis in terms of modern psychological principles of how Shakespeare reveals in two of Hamlet’s major soliloquies the complexities of the character that make him a tragic hero.
“Analysis by a modern psychotherapist of Hamlet’s tragic complexity of character might begin with a diagnosis of manic depression. Hamlet has a mania for revenging his father’s death and righting the wrongs of the world. Yet he is so depressed by the overwhelming corruption of the world that he is unable to act. He is bipolar in that often his speech is full of frenzied enthusiasm for what he must do and just as often he is incapacitated by tortured doubts and introspective melancholy. Hamlet’s character cannot however be analyzed with such simplicity.”