The Greatest Struggle

The second half of act 4 forces the reader to consider Ophelia's madness, particularly its causes and what it represents. Now that Shakespeare has presented two characters that are considered to be "mad", it is critical that the madness Hamlet and Ophelia display be studied in order to understand the Danish idea of madness. My prevailing thoughts on the matter point to Ophelia's madness as being not so much insanity as it is realization. The verses she recites are all indicative of a realization about that world that is radically different from her preconceived notions. She has seemingly lost hope in the security and comfort of Christian life and has had an existential realization about the absurdity of the universe. One clue to this condition is her statement that "Lord, we know what we are but know not what we may be." This line relates the inherent uncertainty and doubt that fills human life, the same uncertainty that by chance took her father's life. Additionally, the hymns and songs which she quotes illustrates an apparent disillusionment with her expectations in the face of reality. She recites in act 4 scene 5 "tomorrow is Saint Valentine's day, all in the morning bedtime, and I a maid at your window, to be your Valentine." The verse is heavy with idyllic imagery and connotation, and is followed by the expression of an expectation that the love she possesses is eternal. However, the reader is aware of her failed relationship with Hamlet, and therefore can deduce that this expression is a way of grappling with her realization of the absurdity inherent in the universe. I have come to believe that the entirety of the play boils down to the greatest struggle an individual can have, that of accepting the idea of a world devoid of meaning in the face of dogmatism fostered by political and religious institutions. Hamlet and Ophelia each grapple with the problem, and the chief opponents to them are the conservative King and Queen that insist of judging behavior based on institutional, dogmatic standards.