ime in which the subtleties of mood in a person are not so easily recognized. A person is not mildly upset or slightly distressed; they are labeled as either happy or sad. As perceived by the people of Hamlets time the towering hero with only a simple [...] flaw is unreal. The nasty and nice piece of work that is man and the ambiguous world in which he lives are compounded of large parts of both good and evil.14 Hamlets situation is somewhat unique in that Hamletis dominated by an emotion which is inexpressible, because it is in excess of the facts as they appear.15 Along with feelings being categorized in laymens terms, one could only feel one simple emotion at a time, unlike Hamlet who could not help but be encompassed with many feelings at once, all seemingly complex. This preconceived notion is dealt with in the levity of Hamlet, his repetition of phrase, his puns, are not part of a deliberate plan of dissimulation, but a form of emotional relief for Hamlet.16 Hamlet must become a type of comic relief to himself so as not to lose hold of himself and his aspirations. The need for emotional relief is brought about by Hamlets need to face his problems and deal with his anger and hatred for the world on his own, with few real confidants. For example, Hamlet is up against the difficulty that his disgust is occasioned by his mother, but that his mother is not an adequate equivalent for it; his disgust envelopes and exceeds her.17 Hamlets state of mind is incomprehensible to other characters in Hamlet and it is thus a feeling which he cannot understand; he cannot objectify it, and therefore remains to poison life and obstruct action.18 This recurring theme of Hamlets removing himself by objectifying the situation continues throughout the remainder of the play. In Hamlets case there is a gap between what he would like to do/say and what he feels forced to do/say. When this gap between self-image and reality becomes apparent to him [the mal...
