Hamlet: Jungian PerspectivesThe term consciousness refers to "awareness of internal and external stimuli. The unconscious contains thoughts, memories, and desires that are well below the surface of awareness but which nevertheless exert great influence on behavior." (Weiten) According to the Jungian analyst, there are two forces that guide Hamlet. One is his soul, which is the "personification of the feminine nature of man's unconscious" (Platania). The second is Hamlet's desire to achieve individuation, which we will discuss later. Referring to the Soul, Platania states that "we experience the opposite sex as the lost part of ourselves". There is a feminine side in every man hidden beneath his masculinity. The mystery of Shakespeare's Hamlet is a ghost of literary debate that has haunted readers throughout the ages. Hamlet is a complete enigma; a puzzle that scholars have tried to reconstruct since its introduction to the literary world. Throughout Hamlet, the reader constantly tries to rationalize his strange behavior, especially through the written text of the play. Thus, many readers mistakenly draw their conclusions based on the superficial content of Hamlet's statements and actions. When questioning Hamlet's actions and his reasons for acting, many assume that Hamlet himself is fully aware of his own motivations. This assumption in itself produces the very question at hand. Take for example Hamlet's hesitation to kill the king. Hamlet believes that his desire to kill King Claudius is driven by his fathers' demand for revenge. If this were true, Hamlet would kill Claudius as soon as he had the chance, except when he knew for sure that Claudius was guilty of killing his father. Why does Hamlet hesitate? What Hamlet believes to be true must be questioned. If the motivation given by Hamlet for killing the king is legitimate, then Claudius should die around Act 3. Since Hamlet's actions do not match his reasoning, one is forced to look for an alternative explanation for Hamlet's behavior. In doing so, one will come to the conclusion that Hamlet is driven by forces other than what is obvious to the reader, as is Hamlet himself. Given this example, we must denounce the assumption that Hamlet is aware of the forces that motivate him and understand that Hamlet's true motivation is unconscious. This unconscious force is the real reason behind Hamlet's mysterious behavior.