Kansas City daily journal., 1896-11-28
HAMLET WAS NOT INSANE.
OPINION OF PROFESSOR MORRISON,
OF THE HIGH SCHOOL.
Paper Before the Greenwood Club
Last Night-The Ghost Not a Mere
Creation of the Mind-AnnI-
ysfs of Other Characters.

At the meeting of the Greenwood Club
last night Professor Gilbert B. Morrison.
OF the high school, read an exhaustive and
interesting paper on Shakespeare's play OF
Hamlet" In his conception OF the char
acter of the melancholy Dane himself, Pro-
fessor Morrison differed from those critics
who believed him to have been insane or
to have feigned insanity. He rather. ac-
ccrding to the essayist. acted to suit his
own purposes regardless Of any intended
or desired effect to be produced upon che
other characters Of the play. He knew
that he would be regarded as insane by
those about him hut he spoke In u philoso-
ply which was beyond the comprehension
of those with whom he came in contact.
Professor Morrison advanced the theory
that Hamlet killed PoIonius under the i'm
preston that the crafty counselor Of state
was the fratricidal king. The act was
committed in the evaporation OF despera-
ton by a man who was beset by the viii
lainies with which he was surrounded. Pro-
fessor Morrison challenged the production
of single quotation from Hamlet's words
which was not logical or connected He
argued that throughout the play Hamlet
could not be achieved by direction. He
suspected from the first that the king had
killed the elder Hamlet, but not until the
king had been "frighted by the false fire.
Of the fictitious tragedy presented by the
players and written by Hamlet himself
did suspicion become crystaliized into con-
yiction.
In the opinion of the essayist ophelia
was a simpIe-minded and conventional girl
who failed in two things: to understand
Hamlet and to trust him. This failure was
fatal to his continued attentions and led
to their estrangement and her own insan-
ity. The queen was a woman Of no very
great strength of character, whose con-
science had been calloused over by her In
fatuation for her husbands brother. She
was not an accomplice in the elder Ham
let's murder. though she must have at
least had a well defined suspicion that the
king was the murderer. Her conscience,
which had been scared by her infatuation
for the king, was quickened into repent
ance and remorse by the sorrowfHl and
earnest reproaches OF Hamlet.
Professor Morrison thought that the
ghost was intended by Shakespeare to be
regarded as a creation Of the mind, though
he intimated that II might have been a
touch Of local color, ,necessitated by consist
ency in dealing witha historical event which
took place in an age when n belief in
ghosts was widespread. He believed that
the queen was in Il sense hypnotiZed bX
the king. being dominated by the stronger
masculine mind and, therefore, the ghost
was not visible to her. This theory. how
ever, does not explain why the ghost should
have been visible TO HOTatio and the SOL
diers who comprised the palace guards
There is also nothing disclosed in the play
which would show that the king should
have had any intellectual supremacy over
the queen. Hamlet in reality so mastered
his mithers mind that he induced her to
abandon her guilty love. at least for a
time The ghost was not the creation Of
HamIets mind alone, for it was seen by
Others and was not seen by the very per
son to whom remorse should have made 1t
visible.
Professor Morrison did not believe that
the play was intended to represent a con-
flct between the human will and the hu-
man conscience. He differed from those
who think that Hamlet failed to act be-
cause he reasoned too closely He was too
little of brute to kill the king in cold
blood. and did not accomplish his revenge
until he was coaded to desperation
The paper was discussed by Professor
Buchanan Professor Wolfe and others
present all OF whom warmly complimented
the paper as one OF the best ever read be-
fore the club.