Essay: Comparing the Motif of Madness in Hamlet and Othello

Madness is a recurring motif in Shakespearean plays, and in many situations, it is the reason that a play becomes a tragedy. Shakespeare is eminent for toying with the frailty of the human mind in his many plays, and subjects the characters to a series of events that could tamper with anyone’s rationality. The most notable use of the motif of madness occurs in the plays Hamlet and Othello, where the downfall of our tragic heroes comes as a result of their lunacy. In the characters of Hamlet and Othello, the madness was triggered by a personal loss, and their grief is what fueled their obsession to return to some state of normalcy. For Hamlet, losing his father and discovering that his uncle is the murderer is what caused the mental turbulence, and resulted in the deaths of several characters in the play, including his beloved Ophelia, his own mother, and himself. Likewise, Othello, in his own way, felt grief as well, as he was grieving the purity and innocence of his dear wife Desdemona, whom he believes has betrayed him by having an affair with his best friend, Cassio. This grief and betrayal felt by both these characters ultimately leads to an obsession over the deed that corrupted their lives. Both Hamlet and Othello become fixated upon what ruined their lives, with Hamlet dedicating his life to revenge, and Othello’s obsessive jealousy. Despite having similar reasons for their mental instability, the characters of Othello and Hamlet differ in the sense that their madness is characterized differently in each person. Comparing Hamlet to Othello, Hamlet is an extremely rational yet indecisive man, who is driven by his commitment to revenge, while Othello on the other hand is irrational and assertive, making rash decisions because of his consuming jealousy. Although the frailty of mind is portrayed differently in the characters of Hamlet and Othello, the madness that is depicted in these characters is driven by grief, which causes self destructive behaviour, that ultimately leads to the demise of themselves, and other significant characters in the plays.
In many of Shakespeare’s play where madness is a recurring theme, the tragic hero typically experiences some sort of grief, that triggers their mind to become frail. This is especially evident in the character of Othello and Hamlet, who both experience a personal loss on their journey through the play. In the case of Hamlet, our protagonist Prince Hamlet is suffering through times of difficulty because of his father’s death and the aftermath of it, where his mother Gertrude remarried to her own husband’s brother, King Claudius. It is apparent that Hamlet is grieving the death of his father, King Hamlet, and even the “inky cloak” (Shakespeare, Hamlet 1.2.77) that he is dressed in cannot describe the sadness he feels, going as far to say that “nor windy suspiration of forc’d breath, no, nor the fruitful river in the eye, nor the dejected havior of the visage, together with all forms, moods, shapes of grief, than can denote me truly”(Hamlet 1.2.79-83). This feeling of grief is intensified for Hamlet, upon discovering that his own uncle, his father’s successor and brother, King Claudius is the one who murdered his father so mercilessly. As Hamlet is burdened with knowing the truth of what happened to his father, and held authority for avenging his death, Hamlet begins to debate his own existence, of whether “to be, or not to be” (Hamlet 3.1.56) as he is incredibly overwhelmed with his duty to his father. Hamlet, ultimately lost part of himself as the once prominent and independent figure becomes a slave to the truth, a slave to his birthright as Prince, a slave to King Claudius, and most importantly, a slave to his commitment to revenge which triggers an element of madness in his character. Like Hamlet, Othello deals with his own grief, where he has to handle the loss of his wife’s innocence. As Iago continues to plant suspicion in Othello’s mind regarding Desdemona’s faithfulness, Othello feels that the once innocent and pure Desdemona he loved is slipping away from him. In an effort to preserve her innocence, Othello feels that murdering her would be a sacrifice he is willing to make, saying “Yet she must die, else she’ll betray more men.” (Shakespeare, Othello 5.2.6). Othello is reluctant to kill Desdemona, as he would not give her up for the sea, despite the sea being his entire life as mentioned Act 1 “But that I love the gentle Desdemona, I would not my unhousèd free condition put into circumscription and confine for the sea’s worth.”(Othello 1.2.26-28) but he is willing to make that sacrifice for the greater good. The decision to kill Desdemona shows the frailty of mind in Othello’s character as the grief he is experiencing over losing the innocence of his wife is causing him to murder the person he loves the most. Othello and Hamlet’s grief intensifies the feelings that they feel regarding the situation that they are in, and it is making their mental state decline.
As the grief escalates their mental instability, both Hamlet and Othello portray obsessive qualities by fixating on the deed that ruined their lives, which drives them mad enough to not only take down themselves, but other characters in the play along with them. Hamlet’s obsession with avenging his father’s murder is instantaneous, as he tells King Hamlet that he will “wipe away all trivial fond records, all saws of books, all forms, and pressures past that youth and observation copied there, and thy commandment all alone shall live”(Hamlet 1.5. 99-102). Hamlet is committed to his plan of revenge that he wipes his mind of everything before the moment he finds out the true nature of his father’s death, which includes his relationship with Ophelia. Comparably, Othello also develops a similar attitude towards his situation, where he becomes is plagued by the idea that Desdemona is having an affair with his right hand man. When Othello receives the slightest confirmation of Desdemona’s adulterous behaviours, upon the discovery of his handkerchief in Cassio’s possession, he admits that has lost his peace of mind and happiness “Farewell the tranquil mind! Farewell content!”(Othello 3.3.358). In the same scene, he even goes as far as saying “Farewell! Othello’s occupation’s gone”(Othello III.III.368) which suggests that like Hamlet, Othello’s mind will forever be preoccupied with these thoughts. Hamlet’s obsession with avenging his father’s death contributes greatly to his madness it begins to affect his mental state, and it is actively shown through his actions and appearance. Hamlet even goes as far as to describe his mental state as “antic disposition” (Hamlet 1.5.180), which is seen through the comedic encounters with Ophelia, Polonius, the King and Queen. The frailty of Hamlet’s mind becomes evident through his encounters with Ophelia, as they make him seem truly mentally ill as he leaves Ophelia fearful due to his crazy demeanor and appearance. Ophelia describes Hamlet “Pale as his shirt, his knees knocking each other, and with a look so piteous in purport as if he had been loosed out of hell to speak of horrors, he comes before me” (Hamlet 2.1.81-84). Hamlet’s dedication to revenge is apparent through his willingness to destroy the relationship he had with someone he loved, as he was able to use her as a pawn in his plan. Similarly, the effect of Othello’s obsession and madness is obvious when he has two seizures, after being overwhelmed with jealousy. Prior to his epileptic episode, Othello even says “First to be hanged, and then to confess — I tremble at it” (Othello 4.1.28-29). The unhealthy obsession with their issues that Hamlet and Othello share affects all aspects of their lives, especially their relationships with their significant others, and their appearance.
Despite the fact that Othello and Hamlet shared the same grief and obsession over the deeds that ruined their lives, they differ in their character, which affects the way their madness is portrayed in each person. Hamlet’s madness is rooted in his commitment to revenge, unlike Othello, who’s madness is fueled by jealousy and his own deep rooted insecurities pertaining to his race. Hamlet’s drive is the fact that he was summoned by both heaven and hell to avenge his father’s death, so the entire obsession revolves around his obligation to his father to carry out his wishes. “This is most brave, that I, the son of a dear father murder’d, Prompted to my revenge by heaven and hell, Must like a whore unpack my heart with words and fall a-cursing like a very drab”(Hamlet 2.2.569-573). Hamlet is incredibly indecisive, due to his logical and analytical thinking as he struggled to figure out a way to approach his unique situation because of his need to over analyze everything, which remains consistent in his character throughout the play. Hamlet considers multiple factors, and proves his theory before jumping into revenge, which is different from Othello. Hamlet desires “ground more relative than this” (Hamlet 2.2.63) showing that he understands that there is a possibility that he could be wrong. Othello, unlike Hamlet, is irrational and decisive, and his self-racialization contributes to his jealousy and madness. Othello’s character varies from Hamlet in the sense that he goes from a seemingly confident general to an insecure unstable man, as opposed to Hamlet who remains consistent in his character throughout the play. Othello in the beginning of the play, was seemingly confident, as he stood up for himself as a black man, in a predominantly white society, in a Ventian court against another prominent figure, who had the advantage of being white, defending his love to a white woman. As the play progressed, Othello’s own insecurities about his race become revealed more and more, which only contributes to the frailty of his mind “Her name, that was as fresh as Dian’s visage, is now begrimed and black as mine own face.” (Othello 3. 3. 396-398). Othello also immediately believes that Desdemona is having an affair with Cassio due to her handkerchief being found in his room, which is arguably not the most solid piece of evidence that proves that she is an adulterer.
Despite the varying portrayals of madness and rationality between Hamlet and Othello, they shared the grief and obsession that lead to them into a spiral self destructive behaviour that not only impacted themselves, but also the other characters in the play. The unique, but similar situations of Hamlet and Othello goes to show that the common denominator between their madness is that it was triggered by their grief, which displays the frailty of mind in times of difficulty. Hamlet lost his father through the murder that Claudius committed, and in a way lost his mother Gertrude in this act of betrayal, while Othello grieves the purity of his wife Desdemona. This grief, then turns into an obsession for both characters, which quickly consumes their lives and becomes fatal for all that were involved. Hamlet, becomes fixated on his revenge, and Othello on his jealousy, which both lead to their demise. However, both characters differ in the sense of their portrayal of madness, as Hamlet is very rational with his “antic disposition”(Hamlet 1.5.180), and Othello is irrationally consumed with jealousy. Nevertheless, irrationality and rationality become fatal when mixed with a frail mind. Despite the fact that both characters were concerned with their reputation in their final moments, it appears that they were indifferent about what people thought of them as their madness escalated, which shows that both characters may have had a moment of remorse regarding their actions that lead them up to that point. The frailty of mind is the hamartia of many tragic heroes that leads many Shakespearean plays to become tragedies, which unfortunately, happened in Othello and Hamlet.