Samantha Hughes

AP Language and Composition

Mrs. Kish
23 Wednesday 2015
The Stages of Hamlets Grief
At last, a little shaking of mine arm / And thrice his head thus waving up and down, /He
raised a sigh so piteous and profound /As it did seem to shatter all his bulk /And end his being,
(2. 1. 92-96). Though one of the most well-known and influential of Shakespeares plays,
Hamlet, begins three months after the untimely death of the main characters father, the viewer
experiences, first hand, the distraught Hamlets deranged stages of grief. Through denial of his
fathers death and inability to accept his mothers remarriage. Because of the anger for the
wrong-doings he believes was done to King Hamlet, he begins to bargain with his fathers ghost
who he promises to avenge in order to remember and bring peace to his spirit. Finally he settles
into depression, with his sudden bouts of madness. The play sheds light on a whole new meaning
to everyone grieves differently. Hamlet staggers through the four stages of grief only to never
accomplish the fifth.
At the start of the play, after the new king and Hamlets uncle Claudius speaks of his
speedy new marriage to Hamlets disapproval, Hamlets good friend Horatio speaks to him of a
sighting of his father. Overjoyed by his news, Hamlet asks, The king my father?! (...) For Gods
sake, let me hear it, (1. 2. 191, 196). Without meaning to, Hamlet exemplifies the first step in
the grieving process; denial. Too quick to comment, Hamlet hopes with all his might that his
fathers death had somehow been a sick joke, that perhaps he had been alive the whole time and

that the world he knew could go back to normal. The way denial helps people struck with grief is
a very odd one; unlike the following steps it allows the person grieving time to properly come to
terms with the loss. Instead of covering up emotions like anger or depression, it simply blocks
them out letting one ease into a troubling situation (Grief). However, this usually innocent step
becomes quite dangerous in Hamlets case, because he denies himself the reality of his fathers
death, he opens himself up to delusions. He creates another image of his father in order to
attempt to keep him alive in a way; as the old kings apparition.
Anger is clearly something Hamlet possesses in abundance, from the very beginning of
the play the audience can sense the underlying rage encircling his entire character arc. Though
anger, and ultimately coming to understand where the anger stems from, is another crucial part in
the grieving process (Grief). Just as any other young man would Hamlet seethes and rages, at
himself, at his mother, at his uncle, and at his new world. As his world shifts suddenly with the
death of his father and his mothers decision to remarry soon after, it is only a human reaction to
respond with rage for the world he once knew. In scene two of act one Hamlet vents, saying,
Fie on t, ah fie! 'Tis an unweeded garden/ That grows to seed. Things rank and gross in nature/
Possess it merely. That it should come to this./ But two months deadnay, not so much, not
two./ So excellent a king, that was to this/ Hyperion to a satyr, (1. 2. 135-141) and quotes such
as these appear in multiples. Hamlet constantly raising his deceased father onto a pedestal in
comparison to his uncle, highlighting the unbroken anger he holds against him. If Hamlet were
only to accept that his anguish stems from his uncle inheriting his fathers throne after his death,
and not from his uncle as a person, he would be capable of letting go of the rage that fuels his
delusions later on in the play.

The third stage of grief is bargaining, usually assumed to be bargaining for the loved
ones life over personal comfort (Grief). Though Hamlet warps this specific stage a little more
than the others, instead of bargaining with God perhaps for his fathers life or for some comfort
in his death, Hamlet bargains with his fathers ghost. Appearing as an apparition the ghost tells
him of his unrightful death, and who committed his murder, the ghost speaks of the only way he
can be given peace; to avenge his death. Hamlet, instead of rationalizing his hallucination,
agrees, thus bargaining with his fathers spirit in order to bring him peace in the afterlife. Hamlet
says in act five, It is Adieu, adieu. Remember me./ I have swornt, (5. 5. 11-12) this specific
quote has two differing though similar meanings. Literally, Hamlet is saying his father asked him
to remember him, even after he is gone, and Hamlet responds saying he promises he will.
Perhaps, signifying the goodbye the two never got to share. However, symbolically, Hamlet
having said, swornt (5. 5. 11-12), could also mean he swears to the oath of avenging his father
and killing his murderer. Either way, his resolve is set, in order to find comfort and solace in his
loss he will have to kill his uncle.
The fourth leg of Hamlets grieving process is depression, though his specific case comes
two-fold; his unending sadness for the loss of his father, and the insane bouts of madness it
provokes. Throughout the play we see them go hand in hand, Hamlet obviously distraught,
speaks of his father and then promptly loses it, often times speaking of the little regard he has for
his own life. An example of this is when, in hopes of seeing his father again, Hamlet completely
ignores the warning Horatio tells him, simply saying, Why, what should be the fear? / I do not
set my life in a pins fee, (1. 4. 67-68). Stating that he cares less for his life than a pin, he
continues on to what could have been an extremely dangerous situation with reckless

abandonment. Psychologically, the link between depression and suicidal thoughts and actions is
a strong one, especially while grieving, when life can seem to hold little meaning and become
hopeless in the looming face of death (Save.org). However, it is still an important part of healing,
as once Hamlet allows himself to succumb to his feelings, he can begin in heal.
Though he wont make it that far. The only psychological phase of grief Hamlet doesnt
go through is possibly the most important; acceptance. Hamlet never quite climbs to the point in
which he accepts and move on from his fathers death, instead he holds onto the pain letting it
fester until it ultimately boils over and results in the death of at least six people. Claudius and
Laertes, both whom Hamlet kills directly. His mother and Ophelia, whom die indirectly due to
Hamlets crazed behavior, and finally himself, who dies by Laertes swords in a duel to avenge
his own father whom Hamlet killed in a fit of anguish. A Shakespearean tragedy, Hamlet holds
true to its name. Though perhaps the greatest tragedy is the unanswered, unconsoled grief
Hamlet toils with, alone, throughout the entire play. For within the first act Hamlet himself tells
the audience just how deep his grieving runs, Seems, madam? Nay, it is. I know not seems./
'Tis not alone my inky cloak, good mother,/ Nor customary suits of solemn black,/ Nor windy
suspiration of forced breath,/ No, nor the fruitful river in the eye,/ Nor the dejected 'havior of the
visage,/ Together with all forms, moods, shapes of grief,/ That can denote me truly. These indeed
seem,/ For they are actions that a man might play./ But I have that within which passeth show,/
These but the trappings and the suits of woe, (1. 2. 76-86) and yet, the people closest to him
simply dismiss it.

Works Cited

"Five Stages of Grief by Elisabeth Kubler Ross & David Kessler." Griefcom Because LOVE
Never
Dies. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Dec. 2015.
"Save. Suicide Awareness Voices of Education." SAVE. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Dec. 2015.
Shakespeare, William, and Sylvan Barnet. The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. New
York,
NY: Penguin Group, 1998. Print.