Question

In Act I, Scene 5, Hamlet receives a visit from who he thinks is the ghost of his father. The ghost tells Hamlet that Claudius, Hamlet's uncle and current king, is responsible for his father's murder. The ghost then urges Hamlet to avenge his father's death.

If the brain is responsible for a character's reactions to stimuli, both internal and external, what affect would the ghost have on Hamlet's brain?

Answer 1

The ghost has the affect on the Hamlet’s brain in the negative manner. The ghost appears in front of him and gives him the suggestions of the murderer of his father and how could he take the revenge for his father’s death. The changes in the action shows both the internal and the external conflicts hamlet is going through. Moreover, his reactions represents his suspicious nature against the characters who have been accused of murdering his father. The ghost helps in the recognition of the tragic flaw in Hamlet.

Answer 2

The ghost would influence Hamlet so as he reacts and kill his uncle by making him fight internally against his impulses caused by this tragedy and produced by his heart that is what he feels, and against what his use of reason says says that, eventhough his father his dead and he wants revenge, he knows that killing is a crime and he would have to deal with with the consecuences in case that he commits the crime. He would have to choose between follwing his feelings or his use of reason, and that is a real battle.