Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 12.pdf/260

 An Argument for Hamlet. disguised irony became contemptuous in solence in his treatment of the King. But whatever was the cause of his strange be havior in regard to the body of Polonius he evidently desired to yield no satisfaction to the King, and he framed his speech so as to defy as well as to insult Claudius. He knew full well what he was about. Again when Hamlet met the forces of the Prince of Norway, his country's enemy, on Danish ground, he exhibited a natural curi osity and interest in their movements, and his queries were not only intelligent but framed specifically to meet important points. The spirit shown by Fortinbras, and his pro posed struggle, based on a question of honor simply, touched Hamlet on a very tender spot and led him inevitably to self-reproach. In the first part of the graveyard scene his strange philosophisings were not unnat ural to him, though at that time biased by his morbid condition of mind : and even then he carried his fantastic speculations to some end, thus showing a conscious purpose, a reasoning power. In his uncontrollable excitement at Ophelia's grave he seemed to talk irrelevantly, yet as it has been suggested elsewhere there was no real irrelevance in his wild speeches. Soon afterwards he spoke calmly and reasonably while he narrated to Horatio the story of his adventures. And in his replies to Osric he imitated and ex

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celled the latter in his euphuistic speech. His apology to Laertes was a little strange, yet in his cooler moments he might easily have recognized the apparent madness of the passion which possessed him at Ophelia's grave. Finally, when a word or two spoken by the dying Laertes revealed the King's treachery, he realized in a moment that the time for reflection and hesitation had passed, and that he must do his appointed work and satisfy the claims of vengeance quickly, or not at all. The hour had come and he was ready for it. With a stern solemnity he compassed the death of Claudius, then turned to Horatio, and, with his fast ebbing breath, bade his friend live to clear his name from infamy. Thus throughout all of these scenes where his nerves were strained to their utmost ten sion, where he was suffering constantly from suppressed excitement, he nowhere forgot himself entirely, nowhere manifested any real impairment of attention, except in the single instance of the scene at Ophelia's grave, when for once the flood-gates of passionate emotion and excitement were burst through and free rein given to his torrent of varied and inex plicable feelings. If he was insane, then (the theory of feigned insanity at that time would be untenable and revolting) how many times must the uncontrolled passions of men whom we meet daily, prove them to be insane.