Hamlet's Classic War Between Passion and Responsibility

A common theme in literature is the classic war between a passion and responsibility. In a literary work, the main character often faces the demands of a passion, but deals with contemplation due to a conflict with his/her own responsibilities. In the play Hamlet, Hamlet grapples with this theme after the murder of his father. Hamlet faces the desire for revenge on the murderer of his father, but also must comply with the duties of being both a son and a Prince.

Hamlet's conflict between his desire to avenge his father's murder along with his role as a son and Prince has many costly effects on him. This conflict effects Hamlet physiologically. After Hamlet's father's death, Hamlet has a hard time dealing with the loss of his father and his emotions change constantly, which are caused, among other things, by his conflicting duties. Hamlet's uncertainty of how to proceed after his encounter with the ghost provides the basis of the cause of his turbulent emotions. Frequently in the play Hamlet feels depressed about his previous inaction in not obeying the ghost's "commandment". Because of his conflicting duties, Hamlet is uncertain how to proceed with the immediate future and his emotional turmoil does nothing to boost his confidence and self-respect. The social expectations of him in his role as a noble son and his role as a worthy Prince cause Hamlet to feel disorderly emotions throughout the play. His indecision causes him to withdraw from society because of how he tries to come to terms with the situation. On one hand, his adoption of an impression of him being mad isolates him from society, and on the other hand the confusion he feels results in him withdrawing so as to not show his shame and anger to others. This conflict causes a great deal of disorder in Hamlet's psychological emotions.