Introduction

Apart from providing a short description of each contribution, this introduction suggests some connections among the essays. An independent question is raised, regarding whether or not Hamlet’s philosophizing should be regarded by philosophers as serious abstract analysis, or, rather, as pseudophilosophy via which Hamlet evades his pressing circumstances. Where, in short, should Hamlet’s philosophy be located (in his words or in what he shows)? It is suggested that while Hamlet is not a philosopher, he nevertheless embodies some of the more important qualities that non-artificial philosophizing involves. The volume’s essays are then discussed in relation to themes such as knowledge, authenticity, response, roleplaying, and time.