Dream Replacements. How Hamlet enacts his Oedipal Desires

Transcription

1 Languages Ashley Webb Dream Replacements. How Hamlet enacts his Oedipal Desires Essay

2

3 Ashley Webb Law 634 March 4, 2013 Dream Replacements: How Hamlet Enacts His Oedipal Desires In The Interpretation of Dreams, Freud posits the theory that dreams are manifestations of unconscious and repressed desires. He further states that male children often have an unconscious Oedipal desire to kill their father and replace him by being with their mother. In Shakespeare s Hamlet, the titular character experiences this desire and it manifests itself in various dream-like ways. Since his uncle Claudius has already performed the actions that Hamlet himself desired, Hamlet struggles with anger, jealousy, and confusion as he tries to both suppress those feelings and come to terms with them. His conflicting desires manifest themselves in odd behaviors that those surrounding Hamlet take for madness. Hamlet s dream-like experiences take several forms. As his subconscious takes over, Hamlet s suppressed desires are manifested. The first instance of this is the appearance of his father s ghost and Hamlet s discussion with that ghost. Whether or not the ghost is a real ghost, it plays the role of Hamlet s subconscious for him. The ghost is able to say things that are suppressed in Hamlet s subconscious and he is unable to admit to himself until the ghost says them aloud. The ghost as a replacement for Hamlet s dreams, or as a dream-like experience for Hamlet, takes the place of his ego. Freud stated that [a]ll dreams are absolutely egotistical; in all dreams the beloved ego appears, even though in a disguised form 1

4 (Freud, 166). The ghost takes on the disguised form for Hamlet s ego, and spurs him to revenge. The ghost tells Hamlet the story of how his uncle killed his father, so that he could replace him as king and marry his wife. This story mirrors Hamlet s subconscious desire to kill his father and marry his mother. Hamlet s obsession with his mother s sexuality betrays that desire, even though Hamlet has deeply repressed it. He realizes incest is not accepted, so he turns that anger from himself for his desires, towards his mother and her actions. He said O, most wicked speed, to post/ With such dexterity to incestuous sheets! (Hamlet, 31). Instead of focusing on his uncle s evils, Hamlet is focusing on the fact that his mother is now having sexual relationship with his uncle, when she used to have one with his father. Hamlet s speech reveals his fascination with his mother s sex life, and also his own guilty conscience. He realizes that incest is wicked, so also he realizes that his desire to be with his mother is wicked as well. Since he is unable to admit that to himself, he must focus on chastising his mother for her misdeeds and her incestuous activity instead of focusing on his own desires. Freud states that [t]he wishes that are realized in dreams are invariably the wishes of this ego (Freud, 166). Since the ghost in these dream-replacing scenes is Hamlet s ego in disguise, the story the ghost tells Hamlet is a manifestation of the wishes of Hamlet s ego. But, there are many possibilities for what those wishes really mean. On the simplest level, they could merely mean that Hamlet wishes for revenge for his father s death since he is so angry about the situation. The ghost is able to provide Hamlet with a murderer, his uncle, which gives Hamlet and outlet for his anger and a path towards revenge. 2

5 His wish could also be a more innocent desire for understanding. Hamlet wants to understand the situation surrounding his father s death and his mother s remarriage to his uncle. The ghost is able to provide Hamlet with a story that makes sense of the situation, so that Hamlet no longer feels so helpless. The wish could also be the deeper Oedipal desire as described by Freud. The story the ghost tells Hamlet could be a way for Hamlet to act out his desire to kill his father and marry his mother and in this dream-like state, the story the ghost tells has Hamlet disguised as his uncle. It is clear that Hamlet has deeply suppressed those desires, since he knows that they are wrong. The wish could also be revenge, not for his father s death, but for his underlying anger at his uncle for doing what Hamlet would have liked to do, but was unable to admit to himself. His uncle usurped not only Hamlet s place on the throne, but also his place as his father s murderer and his mother s lover and husband. In this way, Hamlet s Oedipal desires become entangled: he wants not only to avenge his father s murder, but also to murder his replacement father who took his place in killing his original father, so that at last, he can take his place next to his mother. The ghost says to Hamlet, Ay, that incestuous, that adulterate beast,/ With witchcraft of his wits, with traitorous gifts-/ O wicked wit and gifts, that have the power/ So to seduce!-won to his shameful lust/ The will of my most seeming-virtuous queen (Hamlet, 59). Hamlet s guilt at his traitorous thoughts towards his father and his incestuous thoughts towards his mother and evident in the ghost s words. He is angry at his uncle for what he did, and also angry at himself for having the same desires that his uncle had. Finally, he is angry at his uncle for acting 3