Introduction
In Act I, Scene 2, Hamlet delivers his first soliloquy in the play. The character mainly reflects on his mother remarrying Polonius one month after the king’s death. Hamlet’s assessment of his issues is accurate in the sense that he already associates Claudius with problems, but the prince is too quick to judge his mother.
Main body
Hamlet reveals his insight in this monologue by demonstrating his negative opinion of his uncle. The Prince of Denmark makes several remarks regarding Claudius, and none of these is favorable in any sense. By comparing his uncle to the late king whom Claudius succeeded, the main character of the play demonstrates that the new ruler is inferior to the old one in every way. Thus, at the very beginning of the play, Hamlet already perceives his uncle negatively, which means that Claudius’ villainous intent did not escape the prince’s perception.
However, Hamlet also demonstrates a lack of insight when judging his mother. The Queen’s decision to marry Claudius a mere month after the late husband’s funeral affected him hard, which is understandable. However, Hamlet is quick to attribute her mother’s decision to the frailty of the female sex in general and judges the Queen harshly. He even compares her to an animal at one point, suggesting that a senseless beast would still mourn longer for a beloved than his mother did. Thus, the prince of Denmark does not even try to understand his mother or at least have pity. He swiftly judges her as unworthy, because he has a premeditated image of women as inconstant, which reveals his lack of insight.
Conclusion
Thus, in his soliloquy Hamlet demonstrates accurate perception and insufficient insight alike. He is right in viewing his uncle with suspicion and disgust. However, he is too quick to spread the same attitude to his mother, which is not insightful.