“This is the most important thing, to your own truth” (1.3.88). Polonius, in his advice to Laertes as his father, also mentions one of its defining principles, existentialism. Existentialism promotes responsibility and asserts that man is only what he makes of it. This paradigm is strongly grounded in the individual experience. Shakespeare’s Hamlet follows Jean-Paul Sartre’s ideals. This is a character who suffers existential pain after the premature death and hasty marriage of his mother. Hamlet, a God-fearing 16th-century man, finds himself at odds to Sartre’s strong atheism. Sren Kierkegaard’s father in existentialism proposes a diversion. Hamlet is a religious man with the devoutly existentialist qualities of individuality, personal responsibility.
Sartre’s philosophy has one principle that is fundamental: Anguish.
According to existentialists, all men are anguish. This means that the man who takes responsibility for himself and realizes that he can’t help but feel his deep and total responsibility cannot escape the guilt. (18).
Hamlet is a close mirror of this sentiment. Laertes describes Hamlet’s distressing situation to Ophelia, his sister and love-struck sibling: “He may/ Not, as unvalued persons/ Carve for him; for it depends/ The safety & health of this entire state” (1.3.19-21). His responsibility for the health and well-being his subjects is a major factor in his decision. Denmark may not want to see his father killed and his mother embarrassed. God and personal conviction push Hamlet to rescue his father from hell, and unleash his vengeance at an incestuous monarchy. Sartre’s notion of nonexistence of an a priori ethic (24-27) further complicates the situation. Hamlet doesn’t have a book or someone to guide him. He must look within and find the answer, then act upon it. Hamlet expressly mentions that idea in a conversation to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. This illustrates the truth that ethics questions are subjective and cannot be formulated in a rational way. It is impossible to help anyone in their own personal journey without affecting the future of the country.
Sartre’s philosophy also includes the absurdity and lack of an a posteriori meaning for life. There is no clear goal that can be considered the end of the struggle for life. Nor can there be any immediate meaning. Each person must find their own meaning in this brief and brutal existence (49). This is Hamlet’s speech on Alexander.
Alexander died, Alexander was buried,
Alexander returns to dust; dust is earth; earth We make loam. And why was he so happy with the loam he had?
Converted might the beer barrel not be stopped? (5.1.211-214).
These demoralizing thoughts regarding Alexander the Great’s exploits, which are well-known around the world, show the futility Hamlet has. We might end up as a cork that blocks the flow. In Act Three, the dramatic soliloquy in Act One is a reflection on life’s meaninglessness and barbaric occurrences. It also examines the role conscience plays in determining our actions. “To Be, or Not to Be: That is The Question” is an inquiry into whether life is worth living. “The thousand natural shocks/ That flesh has heir to!” is one of the questions, while “To grunt in the weary life” is another. Hamlet’s Christian faith is able to repel these suicidal and punitive tendencies. He immediately doubts the viability of waking up on the morrow. Then he examines his options and decides to take revenge. This lugubrious theme reflects utter despair in a lot of existential literature. Hamlet is like Atlas. He must always search for meaning in the face of all the pressures and be careful with his conscience and faith.
Sartre’s philosophy does not match Hamlet, but Hamlet is still able to hold firm to his belief in God. Here he takes a turn towards Kierkegaard who is a zealous Christian. Kierkegaard was concerned about the lack of faith among his religious community. He believed that the truth was in the minority, and that deep faith was the foundation for salvation. (Gaarder 372-384). Hamlet is upset at Claudius’ and Gertrude’s actions, as well as the possible damnation. Hamlet tells Gertrude, his mother, that:
Heaven’s faces do glow
This solidity is combined with a compound mass
You are threatening to die.
You are thoughstick in the act. (3.4.49-52)
Ninety eight lines later, Hamlet tells Gertrude: “Confess to heaven/ Repent for what’s gone before, and avoid the future” (3.4.150-151). This angry advice is a reflection of Hamlet’s concern about the eternal. This also explains Hamlet’s thought on “what dreams might come” in the famous soliloquy. Suicide is not an option for devout Christians (3.1.66). Hamlet can also be described as a Kierkegaardian figure in that his ghost gives him a task to murder his father – a common theme in Senecan tragedy archetypal – but he must trust himself to do what is right. The truth lies in Claudius, Hamlet’s dead father. These men aren’t utterly reliable so it is up to each individual to make the decision.
Hamlet needs faith to execute his revenge. Faith in himself and faith the ghost wasn’t an apparition of demonic demons, but rather a tortured soul seeking redemption, is what Hamlet requires. A cadaverous relative’s appearance is more than a call to logos. Faith is necessary to soothe one’s conscience. Hamlet’s faith is evident in his devotion to God. This is the scene where Hamlet tries and fails to kill Claudius because he believes Claudius was praying. Hamlet could be seen as an existentialist. He is concerned only about his eternal salvation, and troubled only by the absurdity surrounding his world.
This is how Shakespeare’s Hamlet describes the protagonist. His sense of responsibility and inability of making decisions are two reasons why he may be called an existentialist. These could explain Hamlet’s reluctance in the play to act. Hamlet’s understanding that all his answers lie within him and that no one can help him further illustrates the existential nature the character. Sren Kierkegaard is the father of existialism and this allows Hamlet to accept his belief that he has a Christian God. This explains Hamlet’s continued belief in salvation and his faith and trust in God. Hamlet is a mysterious individual who displays an existential philosophy.
