Ham-omelet

I'm about half-way through reading Hamlet and I've already seen multiple correlations with the Brothers Karamozov. Fydor Karamozov and King Claudius could easily be siblings separated at birth based on their overwhelming egos embodied by the "trickster" archetype. Each character is so self-involved, that the majority of their family has turned against them. In the following exchange, King Claudius deviously pokes fun at his new relationship with his son/nephew and is "baffled" why Hamlet would be unsettled.

KING CLAUDIUS

Take thy fair hour, Laertes; time be thine,
And thy best graces spend it at thy will!
But now, my cousin Hamlet, and my son,--

HAMLET

[Aside] A little more than kin, and less than kind.

KING CLAUDIUS

How is it that the clouds still hang on you?

HAMLET

Not so, my lord; I am too much i' the sun.

Unfortunately for Hamlet, he has somewhat of a "Devouring Mother" that has been blinded by her recent husband's death and has chosen her brother-in-law as her new husband. Queen Gertrude "consumes" her son with psychological and emotional mind games early on in the play:

QUEEN GERTRUDE

Good Hamlet, cast thy nighted colour off,
And let thine eye look like a friend on Denmark.
Do not for ever with thy vailed lids
Seek for thy noble father in the dust:
Thou know'st 'tis common; all that lives must die,
Passing through nature to eternity.

She has gone from a mother whom Hamlet knew to a deranged incestuous being overnight. Hamlet seems to be suffering from a few "bad days" throughout the play. His closet friend is the spirit of his dead father, so naturally Hamlet trusts NO ONE; not his mother, uncle, his girlfriend, or anyone else who presents themselves to Hamlet as "friends." And why should he trust anyone? They're all scheming and planning out Hamlet's life without his consent. Nearly every character claims they know Hamlet's best interests and THEIR plans are best fit for him. No wonder Hamlet is brooding all of the time, his life is out of control and he can't right the ship without stabbing some royalty.