The Internal State of HamletAbstract: This essay uses psychoanalytic criticism, new historicism, and deconstructive methods to expose the scene in which Hamlet stands before Claudius and Gertrude after killing Polonius. The goal is to provide a better understanding of how Shakespeare uses the events of the play as a means to shape or change Hamlet's actions or emotions. Hamlet is a character with such complex and intriguing emotions that we, as readers or viewers, are drawn to him. this story until Hamlet's situations, actions, and feelings become things we can understand and relate to, as if his emotions were as human as ours. This genuineness that Hamlet maintains creates an audience for this play that wants to examine Hamlet's character in hopes of better understanding how Shakespeare uses events in the play as a means to shape or change Hamlet's actions or emotions. The scene in which Hamlet stands before Claudius and Gertrude after killing Polonius is a scene particularly worth examining in this regard, because it allows us to see one of the most interesting changes Hamlet undergoes in the play and how his inner emotions oi thoughts influence his behavior. To explore this compelling scene I will employ the use of psychoanalysis, new historicism, and deconstructive critical methods. In scene three of act 4 Hamlet has already confronted his mother about his father's murder, he has killed Polonius and taken Polonius' body. This scene has Hamlet standing before Claudius and Gertrude the next day. When asked where Polonius' body is, Hamlet calmly, but strangely, replies, "At dinner" (4.3.17). Hamlet explains this simple answer... half the paper... otherwise I would have overlooked it. In a scene like the one examined here we are able to think more intently about the complexity of Hamlet and how the situations and events presented in this play may have shaped this character's actions. We hope that this examination can make reading or viewing this work more pleasant and profound. Works Cited Adelman, Janet. "'Man and wife are one flesh': Hamlet and the comparison with the mother's body." Hamlet: William Shakespeare. Ed. Susanne L. Wofford. Case studies in contemporary criticism. New York: Bedford, 1994. 256-279. Murfin, Ross C. "Deconstruction and Hamlet." Wofford. 283-293.---. "Feminist Criticism and Hamlet". Wofford. 208-215.---. "Psychoanalytic Criticism and Hamlet". Wofford. 241-251.Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Ed. TJB Spencer. New York: Penguin, 1996.