Another character who suffers from a disorder is Claudius. Claudius clearly has Narcissistic Personality Disorder. We are all familiar with the Greek Myth of Narcissus and how he was forced to stare at his reflection in the lake forever until he died. Narcissistic Personality Disorder is a personality disorder in which the individuals who have it are all about themselves, lack empathy for others , and obsess over power.If this isn't Claudius then I don't know what is !!!!! Claudius definitely cares only for himself. He lacks empathy for Hamlet when Hamlet is grieving the death of his father. He also obsesses over power . This is evident because he kills his own brother !!! HIS OWN FLESH AND BLOOD! Lastly, in the final death scene when he gets stabbed with the sword he tries to brush it off like he's invisible. Ugh!!!!! The nerve of this guy !!!
What do you ladies think? Do you agree with me? Do you disagree? Why or Why not? Do you think any other characters have disorders?
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Wow! Alyssa I really love your post! I think it's really amazing with the knowledge that we have of various psychological disorders that Hamlet can be classified into many of them. I wonder if Shakespeare had any knowledge of these conditions since they have existed for centuries! I never thought about Claudius as having Narcissistic Personality Disorder but it really makes so much sense how his love for himself could cause him to commit such evil deeds!
ReplyDeleteI definitely see the narcissism in Claudius. Claudius does not care for his brother, Hamlet, or Gertrude. He also did not really care about the death of Polonius, instead he used Polonius' death as an opportunity to have Laertes kill Hamlet. Everything Claudius does was to benefit himself in the end, which is very narcissistic. This was an amazing blog post Alyssa.
ReplyDeleteI agree!! Claudius is narcissistic!!! He only cares about himself and his own personal gain. He never considers anyone else. He also doesn't mind how much blood is shed in order to accomplish his goal.
ReplyDeleteWow! It is amazing how you could be able to connect Hamlet with Psychology class Alyssa. Good job! With the information presented above, I do believe that Claudius does have Narcissistic Personality Disorder. In the scene where Claudius has his soliloquy, he shows that he does feel a bit guilty for killing his own brother,but he does not regret performing the crime. Also, as he tried to pray he could not because at the end he states that his words mean nothing and he would not give up what he has, so he does not even feel one ounce of remorse for his evil deed. Claudius wants all the power to himself, so in turn is when he killed King Hamlet to become the new king of Denmark. I also do believe that Hamlet is bipolar. He would mention in one scene that he is going to kill Claudius with no mercy and in the next scene he backs out. He even goes on a ship to England after the fact of seeing Fortinbras's army for inspiration and he states that he will not procrastinate anymore and will finally avenge his father's death. I find it intriguing that as much as these characters want something to be done or feel guilty for what they have done, it turns out the opposite way for the next scene. It really keeps you on your feet to find out what will happen next.
ReplyDeleteGood job Alyssa! I like the way you matched them with the personality disorders perfectly. Narcissism is a perfect match for Claudius because of the lust for control. This kind of reminds me of the disease imagery concept, you pointed out Hamlet's change in mental state. How it seemed as though he went from a type of depression and then seemed to develop a disorder similar to bipolar disorder. That kind of decay is like the decay happening in Hamlets life and family. His father is dead, his uncle is mad with power, and Hamlet's mind is deteriorating. Great post Alyssa, it was an eye opener.
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