Frank Zonars

To Dream or To Act: The Significance of Dream in Hamlet

            When Hamlet was written, dream carried much the same meaning as it does today.  The primary and most historically consistent definition of dream is “a train of thoughts, images, or fancies passing through the mind during sleep... A vision of the fancy voluntarily or consciously indulged in when awake (esp. as being unreal or idle) (OED, 2nd ed., s.v. “dream,” 1a, 2).  The connotations of the word convey a sense of the fantastical or unreal – Hamlet says “a dream itself is but a shadow,” emphasizing the tenuousness of a dream (II, ii, 261).  There is thus an inherent implication of ignorance within a dream; a sense of the ephemeral which is uncertain and unenduring.  This aspect of dreams is a central theme in Hamlet, and informs our understanding of the theme of ignorance which pervades the play.

            Hamlet demonstrates the uncertainty of dreams in the famous soliloquy in Act III.  He calls death a kind of sleep in which we might dream: “To sleep, perchance to dream.  Ay, there’s the rub,/ For in that sleep of death what dreams may come,/… Must give us pause” (III.i.66-69).  Hamlet observes that all humans are ignorant in the matter of death, and compares death to sleep and death’s risks to dreams.  He thus creates a strong connection between the theme of ignorance and the image of the dream, which symbolizes the uncertainties of death. 

            Continuing, Hamlet considers why anyone would bear the trials of life if not for fear of what might happen after death, concluding that the conscience which restricts our decisions to the realm of the familiar “makes cowards of us all” and dulls the vibrant “hue of resolution” (III.i.84-85).  Thus, the ignorance and fear of death (which Hamlet equates to a dream) prevents us from acting with resolution when it matters most. 

            This effect of dream has strong implications for the psychology as well as the plot of Hamlet.  Dreams and ignorance cause characters to be irresolute, and judgment clouds quick action.  This observation directly parallels Hamlet’s consistent failure to avenge his father, especially in the scene where Hamlet spares Claudius when he is praying – Claudius later tells Laertes “No place indeed should murder sanctuarize;/ Revenge should have no bounds” (V.i.128-9).  Hamlet’s failure to reason in this way prolongs his melancholy and delays the action of the play.   

            The conversation between Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern makes further use of the dream image and introduces the idea of perception.  Hamlet contends that “there is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so,” emphasizing the difference between his perception of Denmark (a prison) and that of his friends (II.ii.250-51).  Such fundamental differences in perception create strong divisions between the characters.  These divisions block communication and create dramatic irony, which in turn drives the characters farther apart and makes them utterly ignorant of one another – they each exist in an isolated, almost dreamlike state of obliviousness.  This ignorance is apparent in the many espionage scenes within Hamlet: Polonius sends a servant to check up on his son’s reputation in France, Gertrude and Claudius entreat Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to find out what is wrong with Hamlet, Hamlet stages a play in order to guilt Claudius into confessing – these events all indicate a fundamental lack of knowledge and the desire to gain that knowledge.

            One such scene occurs after Hamlet hears the player recite a soliloquy: “Is it not monstrous that this player here,/ But in a fiction, in a dream of passion,/ Could force his soul so to his own conceit/ That from her working all his visage waned…” (II.ii.551-4).  Hamlet is moved by the player’s ability to be emotionally charged even though he is not personally connected to the tragedy of the soliloquy.  Hamlet decides to use this “dream of passion” to test the dreamlike message of the ghost, and determine if Claudius is really guilty by observing his response to a play.  Dreams, perception, ignorance, and action are thus all combined in this scene, in which two dreamlike experiences are used to heighten Hamlet’s perception and remove his ignorance.  He is ultimately drawn to action by the clear sign of Claudius’ guilt which he shows during the play. 

            The meaning of dream evolves a great deal in Hamlet.  Its first few uses are quite literal and carry no hidden meaning.  By the end of the play, dream is connected to weighty themes of ignorance and perception, action versus inaction, death, and the literal metaphor of the play.  Its opposition to action and knowledge make it a striking image of the irony and inaction found throughout Hamlet.