#likely for Horatio to have survivors guilt but I also think he knew how badly everything was going during the play.

[crow-in-springtime]

You ever think the reason Horatio was so loyal to Hamlet was because he felt like he was responsible since he showed him the ghost in the first place?

#like Horatio showed him the ghost and then the next day (or at least soon after) Hamlet starts acting insane and scaring the entire court #and Horatio is the only person who really knows why at first. like I am sure that Horatio knew that he was the only person Hamlet could #trust. And the lack of trust is really the thing that pushes Hamlet further towards actual insanity. The thing is Hamlet is right to #distrust everyone except Horatio because ultimately they all report to his uncle the king who he’s trying to kill (some more directly #than others.) But if everyone thinks he’s insane well then why would they listen to a word he has to say? #It’s interesting though because both Hamlet and Ophelia act/go insane but their words and actions are not without meaning #especially Ophelia. Even during her mad scene she makes sense in an albeit strange way #But sadly this post is not about my favorite girl Ophelia it is about my favorite girl Horatio. So back to the point. #Wait actually we can bring fav girl Ophelia into this! #So when Ophelia does actually go insane Horatio is kinda made to be responsible for her. Go find her/follow her/look for her. And he does. #But then what happens to Ophelia regardless? She drowns perhaps on accident perhaps on purpose #It is after that that Hamlet returns. He’s had Rosencrantz and Guildenstern killed he’s killed Polonius and he still needs to kill Claudius #and yet Horatio is still there. And by this point citing the promise he made to Hamlet at the beginning of the play makes little sense #also because he simply promised to not tell anyone about the ghost. Like you don’t see Marcellus hanging around do you? #And obviously Horatio and Marcellus have very different relationships to Hamlet so I realize that last part is a flimsy argument. #But to wrap this up: seeing the ghost was the catalyst for Hamlet’s rapid decent into what I believe to be actual madness. Or at least #depression and suicidal ideation as seen in his famous soliloquy. It lead to the death of literally everyone except Horatio. I think it’s #likely for Horatio to have survivors guilt but I also think he knew how badly everything was going during the play. #and I think it makes sense that he would feel responsible in addition to just being a good friend to Hamlet. #Anyways I’m not a scholar I am not a student of Shakespeare I am not qualified to speak on anything related to this play. #hamlet #horatio #ky’s gallery