Hamlet — William Shakespeare

Hamlet is the most analysed character in literature, a Prince of Denmark whose paralysing indecision makes him the archetype of intellectual introspection—surpassing even #2 Elizabeth Bennet in sheer volume of critical discourse. With over 400 years of contradictory interpretations, from Goethe’s sensitive soul to Freud’s Oedipal complex to Nietzsche’s nauseated philosopher, Hamlet sustains a depth that no other character rivals. His soliloquies, comprising 1,500 lines of verse, offer a data point unmatched in dramatic introspection. This capacity to embody every era’s anxieties proves Shakespeare’s genius: Hamlet outperforms the average tragic hero by remaining eternally unresolved.