I wrote a paper and did a presentation on Hamlet’s influence over modern day diagnosis of bipolar disorder. I had to do a writeup for my presentation and have attached it here. I found it interesting because I was comparing the past to the future, but not in a history class. I had to find ways to prove that history created an aspect of the modern world.

Hamlet’s Influence on Modern Diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder

Today’s diagnosis of bipolar disorder did not come from nowhere; Hamlet and modern diagnosis of this illness have many similarities. When Hamlet and Neil Hilborn’s stories are compared bipolar disorder is an obvious factor because they both tell a story which connects depression, suicide, and mania. They speak of their struggles with this illness and how it outcasts them since their brain is constantly speaking to them in ways the average person does not experience. Looking into the past establishes more than a simple understanding of bipolar disorder, but also how a person with this illness acts; therefore, we have something to compare people to today– “by expanding our experience to the lives of men and women in different times and places, history teaches us valuable things both about others and ourselves” (Sheehan). If Hamlet did not exist “the link between mania and depression [which was] largely unnoticed for many centuries” (Cherney and Krans) may have never been recognized, because there would be nothing to compare the characteristics to. We can learn a lot from the past, and by comparing Hamlet to Hilborn’s speech it is clear that todays diagnosis for bipolar disorder could have been derived from Hamlet’s character.

Hamlet states multiple times that he is miserable with his life and that he would take his life if the church did not forbid it. He desires to rewrite his life and this is a relatable feeling. It takes a lot to fight through unjust situations and this is where many depressed people fail; they decide to quit rather than pursue life– like Ophelia. The people who are not influenced to take their life are often thought to be strong, but Hamlet proves this is not the case if you suffer with bipolar disorder. Hamlet does not recover from suicide because his father’s ghost gives him a purpose: kill Claudius. His choice to pursue life is influenced by manic episodes, which are known today as command hallucinations; therefore his suicidal state of mind is simply bypassed. He is goal-directed and feels powerful, and this is relatable to Hilborn’s speech.

Hilborn gives the modern diagnosis of bipolar disorder through a speech that includes his life experiences. He speaks of his struggle with suicide and outlines his reasons for why he does not pursue killing himself: “I think a lot about killing myself, not like a point on a map, but rather like a glowing exit sign at a show that’s never been quite bad enough to make me want to leave. See, when I’m up I don’t kill myself because holy! there’s so much left to do! And when I’m down, I don’t kill myself because then the sadness would be over and the sadness is the old paint under the new. I’d still be me without it, but I’d be so boring!” (Hilborn. “The Future”). This is similar to Hamlet because he also does not kill himself; they both feel a pressure to stay alive. Hilborn continues on stating that people began to recognize his actions as abnormal, and from there concluded he had bipolar disorder. This diagnosis was a shock to him because he thought he was normal; therefore, the fact that all people did not think like him was a shock: “When they first told me I had bipolar disorder, I was somehow still surprised like, “You mean not everyone sees demons and feels as though they are covered in insects several times a day?” As it turns out, seeing and feeling things that aren’t technically there is called “disordered cognitive functioning”.  I call it “having a superpower” (Hilborn, “The Future”). The term ‘disordered cognitive thinking’ was derived from the past, which happens to be present in Hamlet. Hamlet did not disclose where his pressure to kill Claudius came from because he did not think people would understand. Hamlet is aware that people will not accept his explanation of a ghost directing him to kill Claudius, yet he insists he is sane despite it. There is a connection of misinterpreted sanity by both Hamlet and Hilborn, although both of them suffer with disordered cognitive thinking they both convince themselves they are not crazy. We can also link Hilborn’s notion of superpowers to Hamlet because he holds himself higher than the majority; this is shown when he feels he is the only one worthy to lead the people to Denmark. Hilborn and Hamlet’s stories are relatable in many ways, which proves that society has learned from the past to create a diagnosis for bipolar disorder.

In the past depression, suicide, and mania were not linked to an illness, but rather seen as punishments from God or signs from God: “Mental illness has been known throughout human history, and the symptoms have always been recognized as something different—an abnormal behavior. In ancient times, madness was considered a punishment of the gods but also as the distinctive characteristics of the chosen ones; the manifestation of the symptoms was seen as a sign of a divine message” (Quintanilla). This quote discerns many similarities between Hamlet and Hilborn’s stories, but primarily abnormality and purpose. Hamlet and Hilborn have a purpose to stay alive, despite their fluctuating emotional states, in the end they both choose life presenting the connection of suicide of mania. Both are persuaded to do things by their minds which “influence [them] to engage in behavior that is dangerous to [themselves and] others.” (Farlex Partner Medical Dictionary); for instance, Hamlet kills Polonius, is aggressive towards Ophelia, and is an influence on Ophelia’s death; Hilborn, on the other hand, has been told by his brain to “join a cult, start a cult, become a cabinet maker, kill [himself], so in essence, become a cabinet maker, break into and then paint other peoples’ houses, have sex with literally everyone who reminds [him] of [his] mother, [and] fight people who are much… fightier than [him], like the cops” (Hilborn, “The Future”). There is a clear struggle by both to maintain a sane state of mind. They are heavily influenced by what their minds tell them– presenting the manic stage of bipolar disorder. Hilborn’s mind may not be influencing him to the same extremes of Hamlet, but they are comparable because they both connect depression, suicide and mania. The similarities between these actions and states of mind show that bipolar disorder may not have been recognized in the seventeenth century, but the attributes of it have continued to modern day; therefore, we have been able to diagnose this illness and use the past to help derive a legitimate understanding of its characteristics.

Hamlet is a play built upon tragic events that create an aura of madness. Throughout the play we are not only exposed to tragic events in Hamlet’s life, but also his inauguration to bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder is recognized in Hamlet’s character because he displays three attributes that delineate this illness: depression, suicide, and mania. Neil Hilborn’s speech recognizes these three characteristics as the diagnosis of bipolar disorder today; connecting the seventeenth century to the twenty-first century, thus proving that our knowledge has expanded from the past, and clarifying that Hamlet could be an outline for modern understanding of bipolar disorder.

Works Cited

Cherney, Kristeen and Krans, Brian. “The History of Bipolar Disorder.” Healthline Media.

January 28, 2016. http://www.healthline.com/health/bipolar-disorder/history-bipolar

“Command Hallucinations.” The Free Dictionary. Farlex Partner Medical Dictionary 2012.

http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/command+hallucination

Hilborn, Neil. “The Future.” 2013. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xUEg2WxGqQ

Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Edited by Robert S. Miola, Norton & Company Inc, 2011.

Sheehan, James. “How Do We Learn From History?” The Newsmagazine of the American

Historical Association. January 2005. https://www.historians.org/publications-and-

directories/perspectives-on-history/january-2005/how-do-we-learn-from-history

Quintanilla, Beatriz. “Witchcraft or Mental Illness?” Psychiatric Times. June 21, 2010.

http://www.psychiatrictimes.com/schizoaffective/witchcraft-or-mental-illness