What kind of person was Hamlet?

In the early stages of the narrative, Hamlet's admirable qualities are clearly in focus - his loyalty, his moral integrity, his intellect, and his sense of self. At the same time, the circumstances within which he finds himself are equally clear, as he is surrounded by morally corrupt and personally ambitious manipulators (Claudius, Polonius, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern), self-deluders (Gertrude), weaklings (Ophelia), and the intellectually limited (Horatio and just about all the other characters - only Claudius comes close to being an intellectual match).

Over the course of the narrative, Hamlet struggles with increasing intensity to hold onto his values while facing choices that directly challenge those values, eventually finding himself corrupted and ultimately destroyed. His flaw? That he is indecisive. That he delays. That he is too thoughtful. That he is a man of intellect and contemplation rather than a man of action. The point is not made to suggest that Hamlet should have done as the Ghost asks and killed Claudius immediately, but rather that the tension between Hamlet's character and his circumstances created a situation in which it was impossible, perhaps right from the beginning, for him to safely and healthily accommodate both.