From its premiere at the turn of the 17th century, Hamlet has been one of Shakespeare's best-known, most-imitated, and most-analyzed plays. The character of Hamlet played a critical role in Sigmund Freud's explanation of the Oedipus complex and thus profoundly influenced modern psychology. Even within the narrower field of literature, the play's influence has been profound. As Foakes writes, "No other character's name in Shakespeares plays, and f...
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From its premiere at the turn of the 17th century, Hamlet has been one of Shakespeare's best-known, most-imitated, and most-analyzed plays. The character of Hamlet played a critical role in Sigmund Freud's explanation of the Oedipus complex and thus profoundly influenced modern psychology. Even within the narrower field of literature, the play's influence has been profound. As Foakes writes, "No other character's name in Shakespeares plays, and few in literature, have come to embody an attitude to life [...] and been converted into a noun in this way."
Interpretations of Hamlet in Shakespeare's day were very concerned with the play's portrayal of madness. The play was also often portrayed more violently than in later times. The play's contemporary popularity is suggested both by the five quartos that appeared in Shakespeare's lifetime and by frequent contemporary references (though at least some of these could be to the so-called ur-Hamlet). These allusions suggest that by the early...
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