If you mean by "self-driven" that Hamlet is independent in
his thoughts and actions, many quotes are applicable. First of all, Hamlet is not
easily persuaded. He does not heed his mother's advice
to
Cast thy
nighted colour offAnd let thine eye look like a friend on
Denmark.
Instead, he informs
her that his clothes only reflect the melancholy he has
within:
I
have that within which passeth
show.
Neither will he listen
to Claudius's threats, insults or bribes in this same scene. In response, he ignores
Claudius.
Hamlet does not even follow the ghost's mandates
to avenge his death until he verifies Claudius' guilt himself. He himself decides to
"put an antic disposition on" and later devices the plot to determine Claudius'
guilt:
The
play's the thing to catch the conscience of the
king.
Another way to look at
your question is to examine how Hamlet must talk himself into committing a vengeful
act. No one goads him into killing Claudius; no one persuades him. Instead he
convinces himself, after hearing the ghost, that Claudius is guilty and must suffer a
fate worse than his father. He tells himself that he is ready to "drink hot blood" and
do "bitter business" in Act 3, and in Act 4, he declares that his thoughts will be
"bloody." And indeed, he does act independently when he kills Polonius, and later when
he has Rosencrantz and Guildenstern killed.
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