"Feel, don't think. Trust your instincts"

It is often said that someone is his or her “own worst enemy” through counterproductive thoughts and actions. In reading Hamlet thus far, it has become clear that Hamlet –through his constant wavering in character, decision, and relative sanity- serves as the embodiment of this phrase.

Hamlet’s mistakes are mostly due to the fact that he is himself an intellectual and “over-thinks” his circumstances, thereby complicating them. This complication is shown best in Act III Scene III where Hamlet stays his hand in slaying Claudius for the sole reason that Claudius is praying and therefore “seasoned for his passage.” It does not occur to Hamlet that if he were to confront Claudius, an unforgivable vice would soon manifest itself. Hamlet, in this situation, thinks his way out of his responsibilities and leaves with so much haste that he does not hear that Claudius’s repentance was far from sincere (“Words without thoughts never to heaven go”). Moreover, instead of simply gathering sufficient evidence of the king’s guilt and then confronting him quickly, Hamlet desires to know every last piece of information before taking action. His analytical abilities and tireless mind causes him to question and find flaws in everything and therefore, he believes in nothing –including himself. This trait is what sets him apart from Oedipus, who was confident in both his abilities and the righteousness of his cause due to his faith in the gods, since Hamlet at some point doubts everything in his life: love, loyalty, and even instructions from a supernatural realm. Hamlet’s suspicions are what make him so dangerous, as he is able to disconnect from anyone or anything at will –as shown by his sudden and cold detachment from Ophelia, a woman to whom he had consistently sworn his love prior to the start of the play.

Eventually, Hamlet’s charade of insanity gets the better of him. When confronting his mother, Hamlet sees the ghost of his father another time. On this occasion, the ghost is not visible to then other characters and is most likely an illusion that he created in his own mind. Hamlet at this point has lost control, after the doubt he had experienced in the king’s chambers he then switched entirely –not wanting to miss another opportunity deliberating over the circumstances- and strikes out rashly at the figure in the curtain. It is the shock of this act that changes him; he is horrified by his own actions and then at this point allows the insanity to no longer be just an act, but an aspect of his personality (429).