Hamlet Essay

I don't usually use the 5 paragraph essay format, but when I was typing, my essay ended up in 5 paragraphs. Sorry, that was not my intention. 

What Did I Just Say?

Think about how you use words. Even in this essay, think about how I am using words. Shakespeare used words to write the whole play of Hamlet. But, let us dive in deeper in between each word. Hamlet, the character, and every other character in this play always have something to say because the play is written in a dialogue format. But when you read closer, you notice that each word used has a special meaning. When I read, I look at how the words were used to finally get a well-rounded understanding of the play. In this play, we read that Hamlet’s father was killed by his own uncle. Throughout this whole play, Hamlet displays disgust and grief, but Hamlet keeps talking about getting revenge for his father. Hamlet speaks about plotting to kill his uncle in his soliloquies and at other times. Let’s focus more on his soliloquies because his soliloquies display performative utterances that we can analyze to get a better grasp on who and what Hamlet is.

In the play, I’ve noticed that he talks about his plot to kill his uncle. But you know what else I have noticed? I’ve noticed that he hasn’t done it yet until the very last moment before he dies. With this play, the saying “It’s easier said than done” because Hamlet keeps talking about killing his uncle, but he never does it. I have a feeling that talking about it out loud has helped Hamlet to calm down. I don’t talk about killing, but when I say my thoughts out loud, even when I’m by myself, I have a sense of calmness and assurance. If I am worried and am anxious about something, then I tend to say it out loud. Some people say that it is quite odd that I do that, but for me, it gives me a sense of calmness, assurance, and the “I can do it!” feeling. I feel it is the same thing with Hamlet. It is truly easier said than done.

Now let’s branch out to something even deeper. Why do we say things out loud that were initially in our minds? This is where we come to learn the term “self-overhearing”.  Not only does it apply in Hamlet, but it also applies to us in real life situations. For the time period that we were given to memorize “To Be or Not To Be”, I kept telling myself from day one that I need to memorize it, and I did. Every day, I list out things I need to do before I go to bed that same night. Sometimes, I’ll just list them in my head, but I’ve noticed that when I make a checklist out loud, I tend to act on it and accomplish the task. Speaking out loud not only helps you remember things and helps you memorize things, but it also starts to make things seem much more understandable than it was when you read it or say it in your head, at least with me. When saying each line out loud, I started to get a better understanding of what Hamlet was trying to say in his “To Be or not To Be” soliloquy. Saying these words out loud not only helped me to memorize this piece, but these words also helped me to understand Hamlet’s conflict about suicide and the unclear purpose of his father’s murder. Allowing to hear himself say those things in his soliloquy, he then learns of what he needs to do and what he has become.

What does all of this have to do with performative utterances? Well in class, we talked about “the locutionary force, the illocutionary force, and the percolutionary force” as stated in deBoer’s work about Performative Utterances in Hamlet. First, Hamlet uses the locutionary force when he talks about killing his uncle. Next, Hamlet uses the illocutionary force when he kills his uncle because of his obligation to from what he said before. Finally, Hamlet uses the perlocutionary force because he then does what he said he was going to do; he acted on what he said. "The central problem of the play is that people represent their feelings and their intentions in ways that are contrary to reality” as stated in deBoer’s work is right. Hamlet represented his feelings and intentions through his use of words, but in reality those feelings and intentions were not displayed outside of his persona. The problem is, life cannot always be based on the saying “it’s easier said than done” because then we won’t accomplish anything in life. If I were to base my life on that saying, then I wouldn’t be in this class today. I told myself that I will challenge myself in order to prepare myself for something huge that will greatly impact my life. Killing someone is bad, but the main point is that we must say things in life and do them in order to take those giant steps towards the true reality, the real life outside of our comfort zone. But, self-overhearing could change our thought process and our feelings because then when we self-overhear, we might realize that what we are saying should not constitute any action because it could be morally wrong.

When reading Hamlet, we see the way Hamlet talks, thinks, and acts. For the most part we see the way he talks and thinks through his soliloquies and his conversations with the other people. We see that he is disgusted by what his uncle had done to his father, and we see his grief over the loss of his father. The disgust and the grief mixed together which ultimately overwhelmed Hamlet. From being overwhelmed, Hamlet starts to plot things out loud which then helps him to calm down and think straight. Some say that Hamlet is mad, but really, we see that Hamlet is using his words to express his deep emotions about the conflict. We see that the use of self-overhearing helps him to keep sane and to function better when he hears himself speak and think out loud. My point in saying all of this is that we must speak in order to act. We must self-overhear in order to keep sane, make sure what we are doing is morally right, and that our words must constitute the right action or else we will lose touch with reality.