Hamlet's Procrastination: a Study on His Unwillingness to Act

William Shakespeare's play Hamlet is a painting of two roads that never met. This play introduces the human condition lost in its own fantasies constantly rejecting the unwanted reality. In the play, Shakespeare highlights Hamlet's own figments of imagination as a tragic flaw that results in inaction. Justified by his own imagination, Shakespeare elaborates work on conciseness. Hamlet's inaction is a way to prolong as a way to prolong Hamlet's revenge only to reject the uncertain future. Lastly, Shakespeare paints Hamlet’s identity crisis as an infinite circle with no end. Shakespeare develops that Hamlet’s willingness to reject an uncertain future is impacted by his overthinking and traumatic experiences which drives his identity crisis. This is an aspect of how individuals perceive Hamlet and how Hamlet perceives himself. It revolves around his overthinking and indecisive attributes.

To begin with, Shakespeare develops Hamlet's imagination as a tragic flaw that results in inaction. Driven by the motivation to kill Claudius, Hamlet is never able to face his own shortcomings in fear of seeing his cowardly reflection. His overthinking is what leads to his demise and ultimately his inaction. Shakespeare amplifies Hamlet's overthinking as he switches back and forth between his medieval role as a 'prince'. Constantly calling himself a 'peasant', Hamlet is lost in his understanding of identity and what it means to be a man. This presents the theme of manliness and depicts Hamlet's inner turmoil. This is one aspect of how Hamlet perceives himself. Shakespeare characterizes Hamlet's growing thirst for revenge that comes with absolutely no course of action. Given the chance to kill Claudius, Hamlet refuses to do so, as his overthinking comes back, which inevitably justifies his inaction. Although, Hamlet attempts to “catch the conscience of the King”, this course of action is only a way to prolong his revenge. Moreover, Shakespeare elucidates to Hamlet’s trauma through his “too too sullied flesh” using disease imagery to elaborate on his inner turmoil. Hamlet is broken by his closest ones, therefore, deception and hypocrisy becomes his facade. Left “alone” figuratively and literally, Hamlet toys between his epiphanies only to return to where he started. Shakespeare explains that “conscience” and overthinking makes humans “cowards” and this is Hamlet’s reality. His loneliness, fear of being a coward, and his duty as a prince establishes how he perceives him, which conflicts the state of his mind. Hamlet rejects his uncertain future because he overthinks and his inaction becomes his ultimate downfall. Thus Hamlet’s imagination is a factor of how his future might turn out to be.

Secondly, Shakespeare elaborates that Hamlet’s inaction is justified by his epiphanies and thus Hamlet prolongs his revenge only to reject the uncertain future. Hamlet’s imagination is like a rabbit going down a bottomless hole; it descends into darkness and keeps falling to come to no answers. Shakespeare emphasizes this through Hamlet’s analogous soliloquies questioning the existence and purpose of man. The most popular soliloquy, “To be or not to be” underlines his question in every one of his soliloquies. Hamlet questions his inaction, his cowardliness, his inevitable death, his madness, his hypocrisy, and his suicidal depressive state stressing on the theme of action vs inaction. The truth is, Hamlet is boiling in his own emotions, and Shakespeare illustrates this through Hamlet’s bitter feelings, and lack of emotional intelligence in his soliloquies. He plans his revenge, motivates himself of his purpose, and yet comes to no action. Even the play used to catch the “conscience” of the King is there to prolong revenge. His epiphanies present his inaction because his imagination is lost in its way to find a base to a bottomless hole. Hamlet ultimately rejects his uncertain future believing his doubtful self instead of his rational intellect. Shakespeare draws attention to Hamlet’s emotions to exemplify his irrationality, also to prolong revenge. Hamlet can question life and revenge, but never does anything to act upon it. His epiphanies are completely useless because this is Hamlet's excuse to reject his uncertain future; “am I then revenged, To take him in the purging of his soul” proving that his overthinking ultimately destroys his future. Had Hamlet taken the decision to kill Claudius from the start, he would have ended up alive. Had Hamlet placed his self-doubt about the ghost on the side, he would have never prolonged his revenge. Had Hamlet not put on an antic disposition he would have never fooled himself and killed Polonius. Thus, Hamlet’s rejection of the uncertain future is impacted by his imagination. This affects how others perceive him, as they thought that he had gone mad because of Ophelia, but little did they know, this madness was caused by his own imagination.

Lastly, Shakespeare depicts Hamlet’s identity crisis as an infinite circle with no end. In the play, it mentions how Hamlet is relieved to be “alone”, highlighting his fear of vulnerability as he is unable to convey his depressive thoughts publicly. Hamlet immediately begins ridiculing himself after that; “what a rogue and peasant slave am I”. This illustrates Hamlet’s inner turmoil caused by his consistent inability to act. His situation traumatizes him, causing him to feel like a, “peasant slave”. This is ironic because Hamlet is far from being a peasant, he is a prince. Hamlet’s difficulty of being able to take revenge develops the theme of action vs inaction and madness as he attempts to satisfy his justifications. Furthermore, his loneliness is meant literally and figuratively, and because his inaction is a result of overthinking, Hamlet’s loneliness is detrimental to his indecision as it foreshadows his tragic death. Hamlet spins on his own traumatic experiences only to end what he should have started with from the beginning. The quote “To be or not to be” exemplifies Hamlet’s inner struggles and self-loath demonstrating his descent into madness. Hamlet is in an identity crisis and he can never answer his own questions. Hamlet is trying to walk on two parallel roads at the same time; attempting to meet two extremes. He is trying to connect the impossible. Hamlet's overthinking will only drown him in his inaction and lead to his tragic death. An actor with no meaning can cry “all for nothing” and yet, Hamlet mourns about avenging his father's death, as he is unable to do so. This not only represents Hamlet’s fear of vulnerability however also encapsulates his purposeless existence. Shakespeare is explaining that Hamlet is merely an existing body - he does not have a life because he is void of purpose. He is in confusion with his role as a prince, let alone trying to understand his purpose in life. Shakespeare displays Hamlet’s imagination an identity crisis, a confusion of morals, a lack of understanding and a road with no definitive outcome. A journey of self-discovery becomes impossible for Hamlet as his epiphanies, overthinking and imagination prevent him from taking action. Therefore, Shakespeare develops Hamlet’s imagination a cause of his rejection of an uncertain future ultimately resulting in an identity crisis.

The play Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare presents the idea that too much of anything can cause problems. Hamlet's overthinking causes his insanity, he loses all purpose and become the suicidal, self-loathing individual. The willingness to reject an uncertain future is impacted by imagination and traumatic experiences which all contribute to an identity crisis. Hamlet’s imagination is his tragic flaw and this results in inaction. Although justified through his epiphanies, Shakespeare proves that Hamlet’s inaction is a prolonging of revenge. This ultimately leads to Hamlet’s tragic downfall and identity crisis. This play encapsulates the idea that thinking too much about simple matters results in even more complex outcomes. To conclude, the way Hamlet perceives himself affects his surroundings to a great extent.