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Wednesday, June 14, 2017

The Oedipal Relationship between Hamlet and Gertrude

The Oedipal Relationship between Hamlet and Gertrude
Summary: Exploration of Hamlet's oedipal complex using Freud's theories.

Throughout William Shakespeare's Hamlet, Shakespeare portrays Hamlet with the same types of behaviors and frustrations in humans that Sigmund Freud saw at a much later date. When the relationship between Hamlet and his mother is analyzed Freud's oedipal complex theory comes to mind. The oedipal complex is a theory created by Freud that states that "The child takes both of its parents, and more particularly one of them, as the object of its erotic wishes."(51) Because of this desire to be with the parent of the opposite sex, a rivalry is formed with the parent of the same sex. In the play, Hamlet shows great hostility toward his uncle Claudius because his mother's remarriage to him. Hamlet sees his mother's remarriage as disgusting and sees murdering Claudius as a way of freeing his mother of an incestuous marriage as well as avenging his father. Hamlet and his mother's relationship is also shown as more sexual than the traditional mother son relationship because of Hamlet's language and private interaction with his mother, as well as his rivalry toward Claudius for his mother's attentions. This suggests that Shakespeare saw the behavioral characteristics of the oedipal complex in humanity that Freud did and chose to display them through the relationship of Hamlet and his mother.
Hamlet's inner monologues reveal much about what he is feeling and also aid in understanding the nature of the oedipal complex within the character. Aspects of the oedipal complex can be seen and applied to Hamlet's first soliloquy. Here Hamlet speaks to himself, divulging his personal expression of torment. The main cause of Hamlet's torment is the remarriage of his mother to his uncle and not the death of his father. This is shown when Hamlet says "With such dexterity to incestuous sheets! It is not, nor it cannot come to good. / But break my heart, for I must hold my tongue." (1.2 . 157-9) He is disgusted by his mother's affection toward Claudius because he believes it is incestuous. It can also be inferred the Hamlet is more concerned with the marriage of his mother than the death of his father because Hamlet does not mention or express any concern over how his father died until he sees the ghost. This fits in with the oedipal complex because it can be said that unconsciously Hamlet believes that because his father is dead all his competition is gone and his mother should be his. Claudius marring his mother does not fit in with what Hamlet wants and takes his object of desire away from him.
Within Act three scene four the full extent of Hamlet's feelings for his mother are expressed which make the oedipal complex behaviors in the relationship apparent due to the fact Hamlet makes numerous sexually allusions. In this scene Hamlet confronts his mother about her relationship with Claudius and her involvement in the murder of King Hamlet. Here Hamlet is actually more concerned with his mother's sexual relationship than anything else including avenging his father. Throughout most of the scene, Hamlet
concentrates on his mother's sexual relationship with Claudius by making many sexual allusions and berating his mother with them. He states that she seeks out "incestuous pleasure of his bed."(3.4 . l. 90) This exploring of his mother's carnal nature is because he is sexually concerned for her. Hamlet also makes many allusions to beds and sex in the scene because beds are where most sexual activity occurs. An example of this is when Hamlet says: "In the rank sweat of an enseamented bed Stew'd (3.4 . l. 93-96)
           It is possible that here Shakespeare wanted to show how Hamlet's rage brought out all his repressed sexually desires for his mother because of Hamlet's concentration on Gertrude's sex life. All of these words come out in Hamlet's rage because before he had repressed them. It can be best explained by Freud when he sates "the complex which is thus formed is doomed to early repression" (Freud 51) but it has a "lasting influence from the unconscious."(Freud 51) It could be concluded from a Freudian point of view that in this scene Hamlet's repressed sexual desire for his mother surfaces due to his rage in a form of sexual allusions.
The significance of the "closet scene" taking place in Gertrude's bedroom is also important to look at because the privacy and intimacy of the bedroom add a new dimension when Hamlet's and Gertrude's relationship is examined. Bedrooms are very private and are usually places where sexual activity takes place. Shakespeare possibly placed Hamlet and Gertrude in these quarters to suggest the aspects of Hamlet's sexual desires for his mother and to allow Hamlet to express himself fully to his mother. The "closet scene" proves to be essential in understanding Hamlet's and Gertrude's
relationship because the bedroom allows Hamlet to have private conversation with his mother. If the scene were to take place else ware it would not seem as sexual and the conversation between the two would be different due to the lack of privacy.
At the end of the "closet scene" it is evident that Hamlet is acting jealous of his mother's attention being given to Claudius. He gives her the possessive command "Not this by no means that I bid you do: Let the bloat king tempt you again to bed, Pinch wanton on your cheek, call you his mouse."(3.4 l. 188-190) Because Hamlet tells his mother this with so many sexual references, he seems more like a jealous lover than a concerned son. This possessiveness shown in the command exhibits Hamlet's desire to have all the attentions of his mother and to restrict her from interaction with Claudius- his competition. At the end of the scene Hamlet completely abandons questioning Gertrude about his father's death and becomes more concerned with her sexual life. It can also be inferred that Hamlet went to his mother because of more integrate reasons because of his focus on stopping his mother from sleeping with Claudius.
Due to the fact that Shakespeare expresses the character Hamlet and his relationship with his mother to fit in with the oedipal complex suggest the oedipal complex was seen long before Freud. When looking at Hamlet and Gertrude's relationship indicators of the oedipal complex including Hamlet's language and private interaction with his mother which fit in with Freud's theory that "a child should take his parents as the first objects of his love." (52) Using Freudian theory to read Hamlet is something that Shakespeare never intended but it matches the theory because Shakespeare most likely saw the same behaviors and frustrations in humankind that Freud did.
Works Cited
Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. New York: Bantam Books, 1988.
Sigmund, Freud. Five Lectures on Psycho-Analysis. Trans. James Strachey. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1961.


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