The ‘Hamlet’ tragedy by William Shakespeare is replete with the study of suicide, this being closely related to the religious and moral problems mentioned in the play and the strong internal conflicts of Hamlet. All that is set against the background of betrayal, revenge and greater questions of existence. Hamlet is fraught with this kind of conflict when he can’t decide the cause of the King’s death, the remarriage of his mother and his need for vengeance. Hamlet, a Shakespearean hero of prodigious caliber, is subjected to inner turmoil, ambivalent moral norms, and existential depression, while the playwright explores the intricate relationship between the individual conscience, societal ethos, and religious dogma as they all touch the core of the suicide concept.
Hamlet’s Internal Struggles (character vs. self)
The internal struggles of Hamlet are shown in his complex web of contrasting emotions, moral dilemmas, and existential crises that plague his soul throughout Shakespeare’s play. Confronted by his dad’s unexpected demise, his mother’s immediate remarriage to his uncle, who took the place of his father, and the weighty burden of avenging his father shows Hamlet’s struggles with internal struggles. His mind turning to suicide as a way out of his misery shows his emotional fragility and inability to bear his grief, as he queries, “To be, or not to be, that is the question” (Shakespeare 3.1.56). Even though Hamlet wants to avenge so badly, the doubt about the righteousness of the ghost’s order and moral doubts about regicide overwhelm him, and he is paralyzed by inactivity. This is the internal conflict between duty and conscience. His self-hatred and self-doubt are shown in the disparaging remarks he makes to himself. He despises himself because he is filled with insecurities and depression inside him, which are revealed by his complaint, “Why, what an ass am I” (Shakespeare 2.2.611). Besides his ambitious campaign for justice, Hamlet’s inner indecisiveness and doubt hinder him from fulfilling this goal by delaying the process of making a transparent decision and thus creating an eternal loop for him to stay in the shadow of thoughts with no determined way forward. Hamlet’s internal struggle between the urge for vengeance and his moral dilemma results in procrastination and indecision. “Hamlet still procrastinates, for which he shall pay by losing his life towards the end of Shakespeare’s play” (Al Saif 322). In spite of the fact that the inner struggle troubled him so much, Hamlet’s procrastination in the end resulted in the catastrophe, which only emphasized the depth of the internal struggles and the toll it took on his life.
Other character’s moral judgment towards Hamlet’s feelings
Other characters in Shakespearean “Hamlet” frequently look at Hamlet’s actions from their own assessment of morality, which can often be very different. Gertrude, the mother of Hamlet, first finds it impossible to comprehend her son’s behavior. She chooses to believe that he is deranged rather than deliberately acting out in response to his father’s murder. Nevertheless, his assessment of Hamlet’s behavior bounces back after the play-within-a-play, where she finds out the details of his deliberate effort to unveil Claudius’s crime. This turnaround is demonstrated when she dramatically shouts to Claudius, “O speak to me no more! / These words like daggers enter in mine ears” (Shakespeare 3.4.105-106), suggesting her growing sense of Claudius’ culpability and her conflict of loyalty towards him as her husband, and that of her motherhood duty. Likewise, Polonius identifies Hamlet’s behavior as quixotic and hazardous, causing him to come to the conclusion that Hamlet’s love for Ophelia is the trigger of his madness. Polonius’ moral judgment is marred by his attempt to safeguard the family as well as retain his place in court. Hence, he misconstrues Hamlet’s actual motives and, most unluckily, becomes one of the main factors accounting for the tragedy to happen. Hossain states that “Shakespeare depicts Hamlet’s moral decline when he kills Polonius without hesitation” (Hossain 61). This move signifies a remarkable turning point from Hamlet’s inner strife and thinking about morality and revenge.
Hamlet’s struggle on a broader topic of how people face adversity
Hamlet’s struggle encompasses a deeper theme that speaks about the watershed of how human beings tackle adversity, and it lays bare the myriads of the ways in which people respond to challenges. This is a bare truth about human nature that is full of uncertainties and complexity. Through Shakespeare’s portrayal of Hamlet, he brings to light the multitude of adversities and how the amount of weight can deplete one psychologically when going through such cases. The way Hamlet weeps upon the remembrance of the killing of his noble father and how he is legally married to his mother that leads to the union between his mother and Claudius, reveals Hamlet’s emotional trauma, much like most people experience the same type of crisis when they find out the truth of tragedies. In the same way, Hamlet is suffering intensely and says this: “O that this too too solid flesh would melt, / Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew!” (Shakespeare 1.2.129-130). Despite his beginning being thrown into despair, Hamlet’s character development progresses as he struggles with the ethical involvement in avenging his father, which is the case of many inner conflicts people have to go through when looking at both personal desires and ethics. When he offers his intimate and philosophical thoughts as an echo of the internal battle individuals confront when experiencing hardships, he portrays a precise reflection of the introspective nature of people. In the midst of his turmoil, Hamlet grapples with the age-old question posed by Sugii: “whether, in adversity, a man should resist it passionately or bear it patiently” (Sugii 806). The inscription captures the acute dilemma that Hamlet is striving to cross in confronting his own adversities, which defines the broader human conflict of figuring out the best way to handle life’s troubles—whether to fight them fiercely or endure them patiently.
Effects of external influences on Hamlet
External factors are paramount in determining the legacy of Hamlet’s character and his activities during the play. One of the most important external influences is the fact that the ghost of Hamlet’s father, King Hamlet, is making a revelation. When the spirit reveals to Hamlet the very fact that his father was killed by Uncle Claudius, Hamlet’s soul becomes furious, and he drives into revenge. This external influence creates internal turmoil and mental chaos that is compelled by the morality and practical aspects of taking revenge for the death of his father. In the soliloquy of Hamlet, he wonders, “Haste me to know’t, that I, with wings as swift / As meditation or the thoughts of love, / May sweep to my revenge” (Shakespeare 1.5.29-31). This sums up how critical and impetuous Hamlet is about his expeditious action upon an external disclosure made by the ghost. Moreover, external factors encompassing Claudius’s schemes to undermine Hamlet and Polonius’s intrusive behavior cause the protagonist’s internal fights and, ultimately, push him to go insane. As Hamlet goes along in the maze of external pressures and influences, he gets into trouble questioning himself, his values, and his life’s meaning. According to Bahri, “Hamlet gets angry with his mother and tells her that his mother has his father much offended and he supposes his mother is almost as bad as a King Claudius who murders his father” (359). This illustrates Hamlet’s deep feeling of betrayal and emphasizes that external events definitely play an important role in shaping his emotions and reactions.
Religious outlook on suicide and how it plays a role in Hamlet’s decisions
The religious outlook about suicide, which was guiding Hamlet’s line of action during the entire play, was very crucial. From a Christian point of view, suicide is regarded as a grave sin that will lead to everlasting damnation of the soul, which is very fundamental for Hamlet’s soul. The plight of his mind is revealed in Act I, scene 2 when he laments and says, “His canon ‘gainst self-slaughter. O God, O God, how weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable seem to me all the uses of this world” (Shakespeare 1.2.136-138). In this place, Hamlet struggles to choose between the desire for a deathly freedom from the burden of life and the religion that forbids killing oneself. This inner conflict points to a Christian belief that life is a sacred present from God and that suicide is an act of resistance to divine will. This aligns with the viewpoint arguing for Hamlet’s acceptance of God’s edict against “self-slaughter” and their wish to ease his pain (Heinz 54). Hamlet’s indecision in dying stems not only from his conflict about his religious beliefs but also from the concept of society being deeply affected by Christian moral norms. The social stigma accompanying suicide is obvious at the burial of Ophelia, which shows the negative consequences of that kind of action in Shakespearean society.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” is an everlasting masterpiece that is a reflection of the complications of human nature where the depth of the soul is displayed through uncertainty and adversities. In a similar way, as Hamlet struggles with his internal dilemmas, social nonconformities, and spiritual convictions, readers are influenced to scratch their heads at the eternal problems of morality, destiny, and the quest for truth in a realm loaded with confusion. Playing down the subject of suicide and its infinite implications, “Hamlet” still has this effect of bringing to light the notion of existence and the ability of the human spirit to prevail even in the most dire circumstances.
Works Cited
Al, Saif Al Deen Lutfi Ali. “William J. Shakespeare’s Hamlet: An Analysis of Revenge Quest & Procrastination.” World Journal of English Language 13.2 (2023): 317-323.https://www.researchgate.net/publication/368567285_William_J_Shakespeare’ s_Hamlet_An_Analysis_of_Revenge_Quest_Procrastination
Bahri, Syamsul. “The Conflicts in Shakespeare’s Drama Hamlet.” Jurnal Bahas Unimed 26.3 (2015): 76534. https://media.neliti.com/media/publications/76534-EN-the-conflicts-in-shakespeares-drama-haml.pdf
Heinz, Kate. “The Space for Will: Suicide and the Reformation in Shakespeare’s Hamlet.” University of Michigan, 2018, pp. 1-83. https://lsa.umich.edu/content/dam/english-assets/migrated/honors_files/Heinz,%20Kate%20Thesis.pdf
Hossain, Md Rakib. “Duality in Hamlet’s Character: Good and Evil Nature.” International Journal of English Language Studies 5.1 2023: 59–63. https://www.al-kindipublisher.com/index.php/ijels/article/download/4746/4095
Shakespeare, William. “Hamlet.” One-Hour Shakespeare. Routledge, 2019. 19–89. https://www.folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/hamlet/read/
Sugii, Masashi. “A study of Hamlet.” Studies in the humanities: Bulletin of the Graduate School of Literature and Human Sciences, Osaka City University/. 52 2020: 803-814.https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/35263378.pdf
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