The Oedipus Complex, In Hamlet, by William Shakespeare.

Paper Instructions- Requirements

1. You must use one of the Literary Theories by which to analyze and then write about HAMLET:

Marxist/Worker’s/Socioeconomic
Feminist
Psychoanalytic/Freudian/Jungian
Reader-Response
Historical
New Critical/Formalist
Structuralist/Archetype/Mythological

2. You must read all relevant information (articles, uploads, links, assignments) pertaining to HAMLET. That is, at least, all of the information that directly relates to Classroom and Classwork.

3. You must access the school’s database to find additional information that pertains to your topic. Access these databases through the IMC homepage. I have included a list of those databases either as a hard copy or as link to Classroom

4. You must adhere to the MLA Guidelines; Times New Roman, twelve-point font, double-spaced, one inch margins. Please double check that you are using the proper head, that your pages are numbered, and that your WORKS CITED page follows the correct format. This includes in-text citations (quotes). Remember, too, that you will be quoting from Shakespeare’s poetry and that poetry is quoted differently than prose, using the forward slash to indicate the separation of lines.

owl.purdue. edu/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide

5. Plagiarized papers will be given a zero and a failure for the fourth marking period. Authenticity reports will be enabled, thus you don’t need to submit via turnitin.com

6. Submit your final papers via CLASSWORK, directly to the assignment, only!

7. Papers must be a minimum of 2400 words, not including title or WORKS CITED page.

8. Your WORKS CITED page should include a total of seven sources, one of which is the play itself. These can also include critical articles, information on the theories, other works of literature including the sonnets, and additional supplemental sources — biographical and/or historical information, psychological and other sources, etc. Find and use credible sources. Sparknotes, Shmoop, Wiki, No. Ask if you’re unsure of the credibility of a source.

9. You must have your computers charged and ready to use for writing days.

10. Between now and the due date (perhaps you might even use your time during the break) you will spend time researching and writing. WEEKLY PARTICIPATION points will be awarded as your studious and industrious behavior warrant.

11. Small assignment progress-check grades will be given during the duration of the work on this paper. In addition, thesis statement, independent work, self-assessment, an introductory paragraph including thesis, etc. will be collected and or conferenced prior to the due date.

What I have written so far-

Mary Kate Cassidy
Mr. Woodworth
English 4
19 May 2022
The Oedipus Complex, In Hamlet, by William Shakespeare.
Madness is the act of repeatedly doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. In the play, Hamlet, by William Shakespeare the character Hamlets sanity or insanity, is undoubtedly one of the most argued discussions in literature. In the beginning of the play, Hamlet falls under the guise of false insanity, but as time progresses his thoughts get more skewed and his deception of madness becomes what seems to be his new state of reality. No action is ever considered to be an accidental behavior, thus making Hamlet an intriguing subject of analysis. Based on its popularity, critics alike have taken various viewpoints and theories in order to explain Hamlets questionable actions and cognitive processes throughout the play. The psychoanalytic point of view is one of the most notorious positions taken on Hamlet. The theory of Psychoanalytic criticism is a type of literary criticism, created by renown Psychologist Signmund Freud, that analyzes and classifies many of the forms of psychoanalysis in the interpretation of literature. Freuds theories on repression most directly parallel Hamlet’s behavior throughout the play. This theory states that much of what lies in the unconscious mind has been put there by consciousness, which acts as a censor, driving underground unconscious or conscious thoughts or instincts that it deems unacceptable. Censored materials often involve infantile sexual desires (Murfin ). These unconscious desires are seen in dreams, in language, in creative activity, and in neurotic behavior (Murfin ). This theory of repression also is directly correlated to Freuds Oedipus complex which Hamlet suffers from. The Oedipus complex is a psychoanalytic theory which encompasses the idea of unconsciously desiring the parent of the opposite sex, while desiring to eliminate the parent of the same sex. Using Freuds theory of the Oedipus complex to examine Shakespeare’s Hamlet concludes that the marriage of Gertrude and Claudius, the love he has for Ophelia, and the murder of his father by Claudius causes Hamlet to blur the lines between sanity and insanity.
Death of His Father/Remarrying of his Mother
When Hamlets father dies and his mother re-marries, the independency of the idea of sexuality with his mother, concealed since infancy, can no longer be hidden from his consciousness. Emotions which were favorable and pleasing at infancy are now emotions of abhorrence and disgust because of his repressions (Jones). In the beginning of the play he becomes extremely derisive and contemptuous to his mother. Seems, madam? Nay, it is, I know not seems. (1. 2. 76). When Hamlet says this, he is mocking his mothers question about why he is still mourning his fathers death. Ironically, out of the love he still has for his mother, he yields her request to remain at the court. The long repressed need to take his fathers place, by gaining his mothers devotion is first stimulated to unconscious activity by the marriage of his mother to Claudius. Claudius has usurped the position of husband to Gertrude, a position that Hamlet had once longed for. The fact that Claudius was not only the victor to his mothers affections, but also his uncle, aggravated the situation. Their incestuous marriage thus resembles Hamlets imaginary idea of having a sexual relationship with his mother. As the play goes on, In act 1 scene 5, Hamlet is visited by the apparition of his father King Hamlet. During this long revealing conversation the ghost declared that he reached his final stage of life when a villain poured poisen into his ear, as he slept in his garden. Upon discovering the cruel and unnatural nature of his fathers death, Hamlet says with much feeling that Haste me to knowt, that I with wings as swift/ As meditation, or the thoughts of love,/ May sweep to my revenge (1. 5. 29-31). the ghost declares that Claudius murdered him, taking his wife and throne in the process. The ghost exhorts Hamlet to seek revenge, repeating the foul ways of Claudiuss corruption of Gertrude and Denmark. His father appearing as a ghost is the physical manifestation of his anger towards Claudius for his incestuous union with Gertrude. The whole concept of Hamlet and the guards catching a glimpse of the recently departed King Hamlet seems way too far-fetched. In Hamlets time of confusion and desperation it looks as though he manifested this unrealistic situation to come to reality. His mental state was already on the verge of corruption so who says that Hamlet, on the brink of insanity, did not become a vitcim of schizophrenic hallucinations. He subconsciously blames him for murdering his father so he has a reason for killing him. The two recent events, the fathers death and the mothers second marriage, seemed to the world to, have no inner causal relation to-each other, but they represented ideas “which in Hamlets unconscious fantasy had for many years been closely associated. These ideas now in a moment forced their way to conscious recognition in spite of all repressing forces, and found immediate, expression in his almost reflex cry: O my prophetic soul! My uncle?Hamlet is furious and seething with rage with the news of his fathers suposed murder.

—–Hamlets physical manifestation of the ghost of his father proves that his mind is subconsciously blaming Claudius as the murderer and therefore his insanity.

Supposed love for Ophelia

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