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Assignment ID: FG133288391

Question: Do you argree or Disagree explain.

Hamlet’s madness is feigned because he makes sound plans and carries them out in a sensible way. One example of this is when he presents a play that proves Claudius’ guilt. He asks one of the actors to play “The Murder of Gonzago” with the addition of a few lines that he thinks up (Act 2, scene 2, lines 563-69). Hamlet chooses this play due to its close resemblance to the events surrounding his father’s death. He has Horatio watch Claudius while he views the play because Hamlet knows that a guilty man will react to his actions being played before him.

This is a clever way to prove Claudius’ guilt. In another smart act, Hamlet changes the document ordering his death. Hamlet’s quick thinking allows him to remember that he has his father’s signet, so he can change the royal document (Act 5, scene 2, lines 54-63). He changes it right under the nose of his traveling partners, ordering the deaths of Guildenstern and Rosencrantz instead. Someone who was mad would not be able to devise this plan. Hamlet also has the sense to kill Claudius before his death. When Laertes warns Hamlet of his death, he immediately turns to the King (Act 5, scene 2, lines 344-353). Hamlet’s quick thinking serves him again.

He quickly forces Claudius to drink the poison that he had prepared for Hamlet. This quick reasoning is incongruent with madness. For these reasons, I believe that Hamlet’s madness is not genuine.