Question

In act II of Hamlet, what does the queen believe caused Hamlet to go insane?

A. the death of his father
B. the attack of Fortinbras
C. Ophelia's suicide
D. the accidental murder of Polonius

Answer 1

In act II, scene II, the queen says to the king: "I doubt it is no other but the main, / His father's death and our o'erhasty marriage." Hamlet's mad state of mind is attributed to his father's death. In spite of the queen's ignorance of Hamlet having seen his father's ghost, she is able to sense the distress in her son. The queen tries several things to make Hamlet forget and mourn his father properly, such as seeing old friendships. The queen might also feel guilty for the marriage with the old king's brother, which could be considered adultery according to biblical principles.

Answer 2

The right answer is A “the death of his father”. One of the main themes of Hamlet is that “Death Conquers all”, meaning that death plays an important role in the play. The queen says to Claudius, her ex husband’s brother and his following husband after becoming a widow, "I doubt it is no other but the main: His father’s death and our o'erhasty marriage". With this line we can see how she clearly thinks her son’s madness is because of the death of his father.