Hamlet a 1990s adolescent
Hamlet - a 1990s adolescentHamlet identifies with an adolescent of the 1990’s more than
he does with the youth of his own time. Hamlet is immature,
sarcastic, and takes action during the heat of passion which is very
much like the behavior of the youth in the 1990’s.
Love, control over action, and the ability to overcome
depression are just a few ways to prove maturity. It is obvious
Hamlet loves Ophelia in his own way “. . . the celestial and my
soul’s idol, the most beautified Ophelia . . .” (Hamlet. II, ii, 109-
110), but his way is not mature enough to include trust toward his
lover. The trust that Hamlet should have given her was the key of
his madness. This madness that Hamlet cannot trust his love with
is the same madness that he loses total control over because of his
immaturity; it then causes him to do things, such as kill Polonius,
that a person that was mature could stop. The madness that Hamlet
assumes is understandable but he can never get over the actual
death of his father by still wearing black a year later, and the hasty marriage of his mother to Claudius. Compared to Horatio who is
calm and cool throughout the play, and Fortinbras who collected
an army to fight for his uncle’s land and honor, Hamlet’s maturity
level for his time is low, especially for being a prince. Today
Hamlet’s age group is more immature than during his own time so
he relates to the youth of the 1990’s better than he does with the
adolescents of his own time.
Sarcasm, and blunt rudeness is often used by Hamlet in order
to offend people that, during his time, he should not have
offended. Hamlet often used the hasty marriage of his mother to
offend Claudius. The first time that Hamlet offends Claudius in
the company of another person is when Claudius is supposed to be
helping cheer Hamlet up. “A little more than kin, and less than
kind.” (Hamlet. I, ii, 65) is just as rude during Hamlet’s time as
almost anything that a person could say today, it just takes a little
thinking for the people of today to get what Hamlet means.
The second person that Hamlet is openly rude to is Polonius.
Hamlet, in front of Claudius and Gertrude, insults Polonius by
calling him “. . . a fishmonger.” (Hamlet. II, ii, 174) This is not the only way that Hamlet offended Polonius. Hamlet offended
Polonius by insulting his daughter. Hamlet is crude in his own day
by asking Ophelia “Lady, shall I lie in your lap?” (Hamlet. III, ii,
115) What is strange about Hamlet’s ability to use his mouth is
that the youth of today is able to use the same kinds of sarcasm
and rudeness effectively, just as Hamlet does, but with Hamlet’s
political position he should not have offended the people such as
his stepfather.
Being radical and acting on impulse is something that
Hamlet had to use in order to get his work finished. Hamlet,
having a hard time getting revenge, applied his anger from the
judgment of his mother to kill who he thought was Claudius.
Hamlet also needed to be on his own deathbed in order to finally
get angry enough to kill Claudius. The way that Hamlet uses his
anger to take action is very much like the youth today in the fact
that if someone has a problem with log cutting, for example, they
hold protests and take action against that problem.
The second way that Hamlet is extreme is when he goes with
the ghost that looks like his father even though his friends warn
him that the ghost may be evil and “. . .tempt you toward the
flood . . . Or to the dreadful summit of the cliff . . .” (Hamlet. I, iv,
69-70). If the prince was thinking right he would not have gone
with the ghost that resembled the old “. . . King, father, royal
Dane . . .” (Hamlet. I, iv, 45) Hamlet’s radical actions do not just
prove that he is immature but also proves that he needs action
from outside sources in order to get a reaction from himself. This
is just like the youth of the 1990’s in the respect that if something
is wrong, such as the cutting of an old growth forest, then they
usually act against it in dramatic ways.
An immature, mouthy, extremist is what adolescents of the
1990’s are compared to the youth of Hamlet’s time. The inability
to love maturely, rudeness towards authority, and reacting to anger
is what the youth of the 1990’s and Hamlet have in common.
Hamlet would have a much easier time living during these times
than his own. Hamlet’s immaturity, rudeness, and radical behavior
is just like today’s youth and that is the insight that Hamlet has
towards the youth of the 1990’s.