Passion is an emotion that can blind the affected individual; it reveals an animalistic execution of one’s intentions. When unbridled, this emotion can fill the mind completely and leave little space for rational thought or philosophical debate. In William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Hamlet: Prince of Denmark, Hamlet is often viewed as a character who is impassioned by his father’s ghost – a motivator to kill his uncle and newly crowned king, Claudius. Though this bare and shallow explanation of the world-renowned play is widely accepted, a deeper examination of Hamlet’s behaviour of mind and action leads us to a sad truth; Hamlet is not altogether passionate in avenging his father. He is seen pondering alone through his soliloquies, all of which reveal his ability to reason. The prince is also found contemplating his actions, placing him in a static position; his only motivating force is connected to the characters in his immediate setting. Hamlet’s driving force in killing Claudius is not the murder of his father, but rather the unintentional death of his mother at the hands of the king. Analyzing Hamlet’s behaviour in Hamlet is crucial in understanding the lack of passion he holds for avenging his father; this in turn delays the murder of Claudius until Hamlet’s true passion, namely his attachment to his mother, is revealed.

​

     One of Hamlet’s tragic flaws is his ability to dive into a philosophical debate, stopping him from materializing his revenge. Some argue that Hamlet does indeed act with passion, as only one filled with passion can delve into philosophical depth on one subject. Though this caliber of thought requires a certain amount of devotion, it cannot be equated with passion. Passion consumes one’s mind and is uncontrollable, like a forest fire in a dry climate. These moments of reason are instead indicators of the absence of passion in Hamlet’s mind. If Hamlet were truly taken by this overpowering emotion, his voice of reason would not have whispered in his ear at the chapel. 

     Now might I do it <pat,> now he is a-praying, 

     And I'll do’t. 

     And so he goes to heaven, 

     And so am I <revenged.> That would be scanned: 

     a villain kills my father, and for that, 

     I, his sole son, do this same villain send 

     To heaven. (Shakespeare 3.3.77-83)

In this passage, one can see Hamlet’s willingness to reason through the moral dilemma of his predicament. He opts out of avenging his father because he does not wish to give Claudius a free pass to heaven. When an individual is fixated on completing a task and the finish line is in sight, a passionate one will rarely take the time to examine all the consequences. The individual consumed by passion will seize the opportunity to release himself from the mind consuming clutches of passion. Hamlet’s true rendition of passion is seen in Act V when his mother is poisoned by Claudius. “O villainy! Ho! Let the door be locked. Treachery! Seek it out.” (Shakespeare 5.2.342-343). “The point envenomed too! Then, venom, to thy work. <Hurts the King>” (Shakespeare 5.2.352-353). Here, Hamlet does not patiently review his agenda nor the consequences to his actions, but he leaps at the chance to poison his mother’s murderer. This is a true act of passion. In contrast to his ponderings as to why he should not avenge his father’s death, Hamlet acts swiftly in reaction to his mother’s murder, suggesting that deeper emotions are at play.

​

     The characters of the player and Fortinbras offer a contrast to Hamlet’s lack of drive in avenging his father’s death. Hamlet clearly sees what it means to be passionate through the actions of these characters. Without the two vital demonstrations of passion by both the player and Fortinbras, Hamlet would be left static in a phase of doing nothing. After months of whining, the player's performance of Hecuba is the ignition for his so-called “passionate revenge”.  

     What would he do Had he the motive and <the cue> for passion 

     That I have? He would drown the stage with tears 

     And cleave the general ear with horrid speech, 

     Make mad the guilty and appall the free, 

     Confound the ignorant and amaze indeed 

     The very faculties of eyes and ears. Yet I, 

     A dull and muddy-mettled rascal, peak 

     Like John-a-dreams, unpregnant of my cause, 

     And can say nothing - no, not for a king 

     Upon whos property and most dear life 

     A damned defeat was made. Am I a coward? (Shakespeare 2.2.587-598)

Hamlet even says it himself. An actor performing a fictitious role has more ambition in his soul than he, one who has reason to commit the greatest sin, murder. This behaviour is repeated once again, with Fortinbras’ army reminding Hamlet of his plans to kill Claudius. 

     How stand I, then, 

     That have a father killed, a mother stained, 

     Excitements of my reason and my blood, 

     And let all sleep, while to my shame I see 

     The imminent death of twenty thousand men 

     That for a fantasy and trick of fame 

     Go to their graves like beds, fight for a plot 

     Whereon the numbers cannot try the cause, 

     Which is not tomb enough and continent 

     To hide the slain? O, from this time forth 

     My thoughts be bloody or nothing be worth! (Shakespeare 4.4.59-69) 

Though these are vital turning points in Hamlet’s trajectory, if he had been blinded by passion making his actions blunt and reckless, he would have never been in these positions of realization. Hamlet’s admiration of both these characters, namely the player and Fortinbras, shows us that he lacks the passion to avenge his father. Hamlet seeks the quality he knows he does not possess.

​

     Hamlet's Oedipal relationship with his mother allows for a viewing of what Hamlet’s actions are truly like under the influence of passion.  The Oedipus complex is a behaviour studied by Sigmund Freud where a boy becomes, unconsciously, sexually attached to his mother. This need for attention causes the boy to become hostile to the father figure. Freud observed that most males move past this psychosexual stage of childhood and grow to be well-adjusted adults, while a small percentage never do. By examining Hamlet’s motivation and actions, one can deduce that his character is under the unconscious hold of an Oedipal complex. Being a victim of this complex, Hamlet’s reaction to his mother’s murder is impulsive and uncontrolled. “Here, thou incestuous, <murdurous,> damned Dane, Drink of this potion. Is <thy union> here? Follow my mother.” (Shakespeare 5.2.356-358). This passionate act of spontaneous murder can be linked to Hamlet’s dialogue with his mother earlier on in Act 3. 

     Not this by no means that I bid you do: 

     Let the bloat king tempt you again to bed, 

     Pinch wonton on your cheek, call you his mouse, 

     And let him, for a pair of reechy kisses 

     Or paddling in your neck with his damned fingers, 

     Make you ravel all this out 

     That I essentially am not in madness, 

     But mad in craft (Shakespeare 3.4.203-210) 

He uses Claudius as a portal to his Oedipal fantasy, so naturally, when Hamlet sees the man his mother is married to treat her unjustly, he is thrown into a state of blind action. This magnified act of passion gives us a clear contrast between Hamlet’s strong emotions linked to his mother compared to the weaker, mind slipping emotions he holds for his father.

​

     By analyzing Hamlet’s actions, one can conclude that Hamlet lacks a passion for achieving his father’s vengeance. His soliloquies depict his ability to reason, a clear sign that he is not swept by his emotions. Even with said ability to reason, he puts himself in a deadlocked position, unable to compose a plan without the surrounding demonstrations of passion shown by the player and Fortinbras. Finally, a contrast is shown between Hamlet’s so-called passion for his father's vengeance and the sudden end of his Oedipal relationship with his mother. Having examined these three pillars of evidence, the reality of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet is revealed; Hamlet is not impassioned by his father’s revenge. He is instead of sound mind, needing affirmation of his victim’s guilt: “O good Horatio, I’ll take the ghost’s word for a thousand pound. Didst perceive?... Upon the talk of the poisoning” (Shakespeare 3.2.312-315). Without Claudius’ confession, Hamlet would never continue with his plans to murder the king, proving that he is not held captive by passions' blinding effect. The deeper motivating force that leads Hamlet to murderous revenge, is his attatchement to his mother; As a result of his mother’s murder, he acheives revenge nearly instantly. The act that seemed almost impossible to him when it concerned his father is swiftly executed when it concerns his mother. Thus, one can conclude that Hamlet is not impassioned to avenge his father.