At the very beginning of the play, Hamlet is a very clever and cunning character, who despises his uncle, the new King Claudius. Hamlet’s fatal flaw is  over thinking.  Hamlet starts to plot against the King as soon as the ghost tells Hamlet of the poisoning that King Claudius orchestrated. Hamlet also attributes Claudius with taking his mother away from him. Hamlet plans to act crazy in order to wait for the best time to kill Claudius. The only person who could actually pose a threat to Hamlet’s plans is fooled by Hamlet’s guise. Polonius our CIA equivalent, believes Hamlet is going crazy for his daughter Ophelia. However Hamlet has it in his mind that he will wait for the best time. He becomes so enveloped in his act that he forgets how much time has elapsed since his father died. He suggest its has been days, while Ophelia corrects him and says its months. At that point it doesn’t seem like Hamlet is in an act anymore. Hamlet literally forgets the lapse of time and at that point he seems to be no longer acting.

Hamlet becomes intrigued by the actors and their natural sense of acting. He seems to be even jealous of it. He wonders how they can cry as though they have lost kin. At this point I also get a sense that Hamlet isn’t as great an actor as he thinks he is. Being a good actor is becoming a part of your role, while staying true to yourself. Hamlet starts out on this dangerous pathway and becomes what he’s supposed to act as. The climax for Hamlet’s madness is when he passes Claudius’ room to Gertrude and strikes Polonius killing him. At this point Hamlet finally has made the first action while plotting for the past months. The unfortunate part is it’s the wrong person. Hamlet causes ruin in the lives of Polonius’ children, Laertes and Ophelia, in which Laertes shows what Hamlet could have done, which is, plot to kill his father’s murder, but actually follow through with it. Hamlet’s over thinking is the end of him, but his madness is the narrow edge that leads him to his fall.