Sanity, or Insanity?

sanity,or insanity?

Throughout the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare, one of the large controversies present throughout the play is the question of Hamlet's sanity, whether he is in reality sane or insane. One theory that is present is that Hamlet got too in character and had difficulty pulling himself out of the mindset of psychotic behavior. In society there are several celebrities, movie stars, singers, and comedians that all go through this. As they have been “in character” for months they suddenly believe that they actually are that person, these actors and actresses are better known as “method actors.” They are very similar to Hamlet, as he could not escape the character he was playing.This is the stance that I would take on the subject. At first Hamlet was perfectly sane and rational. I believe that the death of Polonius was his turning point. However, I think he pulled out of it slightly at the end as he was dying of poison. I think he realized that he had gone too deep and should have taken care of his uncle sooner, rather than later. Several others believe that during his “psychotic breakdown,” that he sparingly went crazy. There is evidence seen throughout the play of this as he kills Polonius without considering the act at all. He seems to irrationally act, though throughout the previous parts of the play, he was known to act rationally. Many would say this is the perfect example to prove true insanity in Hamlet. Others though, argue that hamlet never really was crazy. They reason that he felt the need to kill Polonius in order to completely sell his insanity. 

Boasting, Good or Bad?

Boasting, Good or Bad? 

One of the questions which I found rather interesting during the Beowulf socratic seminar was question fifteen. Question fifteen of the Beowulf socratic seminar asks "How is boasting seen in the poem as opposed to how it is seen today." In the Pagan culture during the time of Beowulf, boasting was something seen as acceptable by society. Boasting was practically common and expected in society. Individuals in Beowulf's society would want other members of society to know what great things they have accomplished and how well they were doing at the time. As seen in Beowulf, whenever Beowulf has successfully accomplished something he boasts about it. One example of Beowulf's boasting is when he came back to the mead hall and he boasts about how he had just killed Grendel. This was acceptable during the time and seen as a good thing for Beowulf to celebrate and announce his accomplishments. Boasting was a characteristic of a Pagan hero existing in their culture during the time. 

In modern society, boasting is something that can be described as ugly. Boasting is practiced by those one may argue as the cocky, conceited, egoistical members of society. Boasting has not always had a negative connotation associated with it, but I believe that as the stereotype of a "hero" has developed over time, modern society has revised the characteristics of a hero through the use of media, books, and life experiences. A hero in modern society is one who is humble and modest, one who could care less about whether or not they receive recognition for their good deeds and accomplishments. For example, through the eyes of modern society a firefighter who saves a cat from a tree and goes without telling others of his good deed may be seen as "more" or a hero as opposed to the war hero from Iraq that saves the day but doesn't shut up about his good deeds and accomplishment. I believe that Society has boundaries set for those who chose to boast, there is a certain point to how much one can celebrate their accomplishments. 

Personally, I believe that it is okay to say "Guess what? I got an "A" on Mrs.Burnett's test!," but as soon as one takes it out of proportion and begins to literally cheer themselves on and make others either feel worse or annoyed by bragging about their accomplishments, it not only becomes looked down upon by society  but also annoying. Personally from life experience sometimes when I put hard work and dedication towards something and do well, generally I do like to tell my mom or a friend about how well I did, but there is a difference between telling someone and making it your Facebook status. There are certain accomplishments which deserve their recognition but it all depends on how one chooses to celebrate their accomplishment which will determine if it is seen as boasting or not. 

Individuality

in·di·vid·u·al·i·ty

  [in-duh-vij-oo-al-i-tee]

noun, plural in·di·vid·u·al·i·ties.

1.

the particular character, or aggregate of qualities, that distinguishes one person or thing fromothers; sole and personal nature: a person of marked individuality.

2.

individualities, individual characteristics.

3.

a person or thing of individual or distinctive character.

4.

state or quality of being individual; existence as a distinct individual.

5.

the interests of the individual as distinguished from the interests of the community.

There is nothing more important than being yourself, a unique individual. As defined by the dictionary, individuality is basically a character that distinguishes one person from another. An individual is a person or thing of individual or distinctive character. As seen throughout The Power of One by written by Bryce Courtenay, protagonist Peekay finds it necessary to conform and hide behind a camouflage in order to become a functional member of society. Peekay strugles to find his true identity and become an individual. From the start Peekay's conformance to the South African culture shows his need for a camoflauge, hiding away his true identity and individuality. The fact that we never learn Peekay's real name throughout the whole novel shows how much he has hidden his true identity lacking individuality. True individuality comes from a person of a distinctive, unique, and individual character. The interests of the individual are distinguished from the interests of the community. Although Peekay does face several obstacles throughout the novel keeping his true identity from society, Peekay does not take much interest in who he should be as an individual as opposed to who he feels he truly is as an individual in society and the purpose he serves in society. As the novel progresses, Peekay aims to stop seeking a camouflage and become the best thing you can be in society, an individual. Unaware of it, Peekay has developed a new camouflage. This camouflage forfeits his individuality and turns him into someone who constantly wins and always feels the need to be the best. He believes that people like winners so that is what his camouflage turns him into so he can be accepted by his peers.  Peekay strives to be the best at everything he does and eventually does achieves this goal towards the end of the novel. As Peekay grows older throughout the novel, he finally realizes the existence of his new camouflage and tries to destroy it so he can follow his life guided by the morals, ideas, and values that make up individuality which is what he has been seeking throughout the entire course of the novel. Peekay just wants to be accepted by society for who he is and in order to do this he must destroy the camouflage he has created for himself and find his true individual identity. Courtney surrounds Peekay with very distinguishing characters each with an expressive vivid individual identity in hope that Peekay may act like a sponge and soak up an identity. Several of the characters which surround Peekay during the course of the novel have an important lesson to teach Peekay and regardless of the lesson they have to teach and its importance/impact which it holds Courtenay has placed her characters around Peekay in order to show that he basically takes different components from each of the different characters in the novel to almost create his own true identity. Courtenay does a good job of characterizing her main characters in the novel, most of them being of good moral and character they all provide their own special component to the individual identity that is Peekay. Peekay teaches an important lesson that one can overcome their camouflage and reveal their true identity to society, most of the time one just needs support and time. Throughout the novel The Power of One Peekay struggles to find his true identity but with help from others and time he finds his true identity and is accepted by society for who he truly is.