Welcome to Jimena’s Mental Manual, where we discuss mental health portrayals in classic and modern literature. The topic of mental health has become more widespread and is exponentially less taboo to discuss in Western society. Because of this, it has largely been seen that mental illness or struggles are much more common within the general population and aren’t things that people should be ashamed of admitting. Within the literature, there is this perception that mental health has only been portrayed or described in recent works or stories meant for younger demographics. However, the reality is that mental struggles have always been shown in classic works of literature and the authors behind them.
Literature and mental health are two things I am very passionate about, especially in destigmatizing the conversations surrounding living with mental illnesses. I have had many years of struggling with depression, anxiety, and ADHD and often used reading as a way to cope. I always felt misunderstood growing up and believed that no one would ever be able to understand the struggles that I faced day to day. I constantly found it comforting to see movie or book characters fighting the challenges I faced portrayed in literature works or on screen. As a kid growing up in a Hispanic household where mental health is a topic that isn’t taken as seriously, I felt validated through certain pieces of writing or film.
One of the most recognizable authors, playwrights, and poets is William Shakespeare. He is often regarded as one of the greatest writers in the English language and is certainly one of the most recognizable. Many of Shakespeare’s characters exhibited signs of mental distress or illness, in this case, I will be discussing “Hamlet”. Hamlet’s mental health portrayal in Shakespeare’s play is very complex, multifaceted, and has a wide range of psychological struggles.
The famous soliloquy is the main aspect that can be pinpointed in this play. After the death of Hamlet’s father, there is a description of his intense grief and sadness. This then triggers feelings of existential questioning and his importance without his father in life. This is where the famous quote “To be, or not to be” stems from in which Hamlet contemplates life and death. I feel as though most people with depression, especially individuals who have experienced a close loss can deeply connect with this turmoil. I feel as though when this was initially performed back in the original times of this play, there wasn’t a strong emphasis on this aspect of Hamlet’s character. In more recent times, stage actors put more emotion and heightened the grief aspect of this soliloquy. Most notably, Andrew Scotts’ reading of the soliloquy, in which the turmoil someone experiences, and the magnitude of grief, can be visibly seen.
The part that was most interesting to me was how throughout the story, there are blurred lines with the madness and distress that is portrayed by Hamlet. Part of Hamlet’s strategy and plan to investigate Claudius for the murder of his father is to fake madness. However, with the erratic actions Hamlet portrays becomes difficult to tell what is a performance and what is real. An example would be when Hamlet confronts Ophelia in the first scene of the third act. Where Hamlet works himself into a rage and denounces her and marriage in general. And he wonders if his madness is due to being in love with Ophelia. I believe this is why it is most effective to watch performances of “Hamlet” live to be able to physically see these distinctions. Although people in real life don’t typically “go mad” as is said in literature pieces, they still experience internal distress that if left unchecked, can be seen from the outside. I think that’s an important aspect of mental health and why people often feel scared to speak out about such problems. It’s common to have silent battles, but these internal struggles can lead to outward consequences that people fail to understand.
Because of this, it’s common to feel isolated and alone in dealing with mental illness. It can be seen throughout the play that Hamlet becomes increasingly isolated from everyone as he has trouble connecting with those around him such as Ophelia and his friends. This further heightens the despair he portrays throughout the play and reveals how grief can become very lonely. Overall, Hamlet is one of the most profound characters when it comes to portraying mental health in literature. He is an exploration of grief, existential dread, and the trauma of losing someone close. Although this play was written over 400 years ago, it’s still a crucial piece for not only mental health explorations now but also the history of how they came to be.
Jimena Araiza – Asst. Prose Editor, Asst. Layout Editor & Blogger: Jimena is a junior at Lewis University majoring in English with a concentration in Literature and Language. She has a passion for creative fiction and is working to pursue a career in publishing. Outside of school, she works part-time as a cashier at Aldi. Her free time is spent watching movies and is currently into reading lots of dystopian novels. In addition to being a huge bookworm, she has a love for running and participates in road races.