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Unlike most of the characters in this play, Hamlet displays unique ways of thinking, as well as a strange mentality towards loved ones. His reactions towards his mother, Claudius, and Ophelia are expressed with deep emotion, however, Hamlet chooses to release his emotions with immaturity and lack of self-control. Although his decisions are child-like, perhaps his most tragic flaw is the way he consistently argues with himself over how to accomplish the murder of Claudius. Throughout most of the play, Hamlet struggles to achieve his goal of killing Claudius, and avenging his fathers death. Although his intensions are clear, he constantly delays when the opportunities arise, ultimately driving himself into insanity. Why does he continue to wait, whereas Laertes and Fortinbras show no hesitation in avenging their fathers death?
Hamlet is not a killer. He is what you would consider a gentle soul, who is having mixed emotions over the trauma that he has endured as a result of his fathers death. Ophelia adds to these mixed emotions, mainly because she is the love of his life, however she will not accept his offer. His mother, who he feels has turned on him, is another factor that influences his behavior and mentality. As he continues to lose grip on reality, he condemns all women after his mothers decision to marry Claudius: Frailty, thy name is women. (1. 2. 146) As these factors become more influential on Hamlet, he drifts further into insanity and his thoughts to kill Claudius become more realistic and achievable. When Hamlet is visited at the beginning of the play by Old Hamlet, he is informed on how his father died, although he does not entirely believe everything the ghost said.
As the play continues, his emotional stress increases and there is a significant change in his behavior. As he becomes more deranged, his intentions for murder grow stronger: Contagion to this world: now could I drink hot blood, and do such bitter business as the day would quake to look on. (3. 2. 381 - 383) Eventually Hamlet becomes so insane that even after killing Polonius in an act of rage, he feels no remorse over the loss of human life. Hamlet is actually able to make fun of the situation, by responding to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern about the location of Polonius body: The body is with the king, but the king is not with the body. The king is a thing. As the ongoing trauma continues, other characters in play also begin to slip into a state of insanity.
Ophelia for example, begins to lose her mind over the death of her father, as well as the mixed feelings she has for Hamlet, which eventually leads to her death. For Hamlet to be able to kill another person, he had to be mentally insane. This is why it took him so long to convince himself that killing Claudius was the right thing to do. The more insane he became, the easier it was to kill Claudius, and not feel bad about it. It was also easier to believe his fathers ghost, rather then believe that it was nothing more than a figment of his imagination. When Hamlet was still relatively sane, he was able to think clearly enough to plot out a play based on his fathers death in an attempt to shake up Claudius.
This did however work, but since Hamlet is not the killing type, it would have taken more then Claudius outburst during the play to convince him that killing Claudius would be the right choice. When Hamlet sees how quick Laertes was to avenge the death of his father, he then realizes how much of a coward he has been the entire time. He also compares himself to Fortinbras army, noticing that they were able to kill men they have never met before, for no reason at all. These two comparisons are what drove Hamlet over the edge, and gave him the extra inspiration he needed to kill Claudius. Ultimately, Hamlets behavior was influenced not only by the murder of his father, but also by other strong impacts on his life.
When these factors are implied onto Hamlet at the same time, he becomes very confused and consistently argues with himself. Of coarse, his major flaw is that he cannot avenge his fathers death, regardless of the situation. When repeatedly exposed to reasons why he should kill Claudius, he can never seem to bring himself to do it, which is what drives him over the edge.
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