...Analysis: Hamlet In the tragedy Hamlet, the prince of Denmark, Hamlet is this young man who experiences close relation death which was his father. He later finds out it was his uncle who murdered his father just to take heir to the throne. Hamlet constant brooding about death and humanity comes ahead. (Tennen) Hamlet is arguably the greatest dramatic character ever created from the moment we meet the crestfallen prince we are enraptured by his elegant intensity. (Mabillard) William Shakespeare hamlet follows the young prince Hamlet home to Denmark to attend his father’s funeral. (Stockton) In “Hamlet” the tragedy hamlet the prince holds a great internal conflict throughout the play. (Studymode) On a dark winter night a ghost walks the ramparts of Elsinore castle in Denmark. (Sparknotes)The first edition of hamlet was published in 1603 from a previous sketch composed several years earlier the second one following 1604. (Bates) Shakespeare’s most famous tragedy Bernado’s question betrays the mood of uncertainty that prevails throughout the play. (George) So speaks Shakespeare’s prince hamlet of the transient nature of all mankind throughout the play humanity and frailty is a common theme. (Mortensen) In Hamlet the tragedy, hamlet, the prince of Demark with holds a great internal conflict throughout the play. (Directessays) Hamlet is Shakespeare’s longest play and the play responsible for the immortal lines “to be or not to be that is the question” (Taylor) The story hamlet is set...
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...Kim Nguyen Hamlet Act 1 Logs Act 1 Scene 1 Summary: The act opens with Bernardo, Marcellus, Horatio, and Francisco seeing the ghost king while on watch duty. The ghost appeared dressed in his armor and suddenly disappears. Because the ghost appeared, Horatio thinks it’s an omen of bad luck. He thinks the ghost king was trying to warn them that something bad would happen to Denmark soon, perhaps in the form of a military attack. The ghost then appears again and Horatio tries to talk to it. It would respond back and just disappears again. Horatio decides to tell Hamlet to try to talk to it because Hamlet was the ghost son so he can’t refuse to talk to his son. Quote Analysis: “No fairy takes, nor witch hath power to charm” Marcellus said this when the ghost appears. When the cock crowed at the first break of dawn, it was believed that it has the power to get rid of the evil powers. The morning light compels all evil because the light was believed to be good. Character Comment: Horatio – Horatio believed in thing s like ghost and witches. He believed in the world beyond ours. When Old King Hamlet came to visit in his ghost form, Horatio thought it was a bad omen for Denmark and the oncoming war with Fortinbras’ army. Act 1 Scene 2 Summary: Claudius and Gertrude get married and they have a feast to celebrate their new marriage and new life together. Claudius’ excuse for marrying Gertrude was to balance out the sadness toward Old King Hamlet’s death...
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...Hamlet Many of Shakespeare’s plays tend to have focus on many common themes between each other. Like in Titus Andronicus, where revenge is the main purpose of the entire play, Hamlet also primarily focuses on revenge. Death is the only reason in Shakespeare’s play that the characters get vengeance. Hamlet, known to be one of Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies, brings together the idea of both death and revenge through the main character, Hamlet. From the moment the play begins, the first encounter of death that the audience sees is the death of the Hamlet’s father. In this play, we see how the death of King Hamlet affects his son who is also named Hamlet, through his own ghost. The ghost is the character that reveals the information to Hamlet causing the other events to take place. Through the ghost, we can see how both death and revenge merge together. When Hamlet has an encounter with his dead father’s ghost, the ghost reveals to Hamlet how he was murdered demonstrating how death turns into vengeance. Not only is Hamlet the only one with intentions to seek vengeance for his fathers death, but the ghost its self tells Hamlet to “revenge his foul and most unnatural murder” (1.5.25). The ghost was already the representation for death, now he shows the representation and the true motivation for Hamlet’s vengeance. The ghost is the primary reason for Hamlet’s desire to kill King Claudius, the new King of Denmark. Continuously throughout the play, death and revenge seem...
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...thereafter, Bernardo is joined by Marcellus, another watchman, and Horatio, a friend of Prince Hamlet. Bernardo and Marcellus have urged Horatio to stand watch with them, because they believe they have something shocking to show him. In hushed tones, they discuss the apparition they have seen for the past two nights, and which they now hope to show Horatio: the ghost of the recently deceased King Hamlet, which they claim has appeared before them on the castle ramparts in the late hours of the night. Horatio is skeptical, but then the ghost suddenly appears before the men and just as suddenly vanishes. Terrified, Horatio acknowledges that the specter does indeed resemble the dead King of Denmark, that it even wears the armor King Hamlet wore when he battled against the armies of Norway, and the same frown he wore when he fought against the Poles. Horatio declares that the ghost must bring warning of impending misfortune for Denmark, perhaps in the form of a military attack. He recounts the story of King Hamlet’s conquest of certain lands once belonging to Norway, saying that Fortinbras, the young Prince of Norway, now seeks to reconquer those forfeited lands. The ghost materializes for a second time, and Horatio tries to speak to it. The ghost remains silent, however, and disappears again just as the cock crows at the first hint of dawn. Horatio suggests that they tell Prince Hamlet, the dead...
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...Shakespeare’s Hamlet is one of the most famously problematic plays ever written. It has inspired critics to argue over it, since it first appeared on the stage in 1601. • John Dennis implies that there is no clear moral lesson in the play, since both good and bad characters die, but he refers to Hamlet as the best of Shakespeare’s tragedies. • Samuel Johnson generally praises Hamlet for its entertaining variety and balance but he dislikes its resolution. • Johann von Goethe sees the character of Hamlet as lacking in heroism. • T.S. Eliot felt that Hamlet was an artistic failure. • A.C Bradley says “It was not that Hamlet is Shakespeare's greatest tragedy or most perfect work of art; it was that Hamlet most brings home to us at once the sense of the soul's infinity, and the sense of the doom which not only circumscribes that infinity but appears to be its offspring”. The layers of Hamlet seem endless. Even after more than four hundred years of critical debates, there is no consensus about the play. Interestingly, Hamlet begins with a question and it remains infinitely open to interpretation. It is therefore a play of mystery. One of the central concerns of the play is the nature and the role of the Ghost who takes the form of Hamlet’s dead father. In order to understand it, we firstly ought to consider the theatrical impact of ghosts and spirits on Shakespeare’s audience. Ghosts in Shakespeare’s Time Shakespeare’s contemporaries believed in ghosts. Apparitions...
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...HORATIO HORATIO: What is this ghost that the guards claim to see during the night? They say it looks like the dead king- rest his soul. Let me see if it appears tonight. GHOST enters. HORATIO: It looks so much like the old king. It’s terrifying. Look at its armor. The king was wearing exactly this armor when he fought the king of Norway. And it frowns just like the king did when he attacked the poles, travelling on an ice-sled. HORATIO(speaking to the GHOST): What are you, that you walk out so late at night, looking like the dead king of Denmark when he dressed for battle? By God, I order you to speak. GHOST disappears. HORATIO: What paranormal occurring are these? The sighting of a dead king’s ghost is a bad omen for the country. I must tell prince Hamlet about it. HORATIO exits. Scene 2: Enters CLAUDIUS, POLONIUS. CLAUDIUS: I still have fresh memories of my brother the elder Hamlet’s death, but life still goes on—I think it’s wise to mourn him while also thinking about my own well being. Therefore, I’ve married my former sister-in-law, the queen, with mixed feelings of happiness and sadness. I know that in marrying Gertrude I’m only doing what everybody have wisely advised all along. POLONIUS: I am happy for you sir. But your nephew-son Hamlet is still mourning his father’s death. He has still not shunted his black robes. CLAUDIUS: Call him. I want to talk to him right now. Enters HAMLET HAMLET: You wish to see me, sir? CLAUDIUS: Hamlet, you are such a good son to mourn...
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...Hamlet is one of the greatest Shakespeare’s plays that have for a long time fascinated many readers all around the globe. The character of hamlet plays a central role in the Shakespeare’s tragic play which has the same name. When the play starts Hamlet is far from being a commanding figure. The play starts with Hamlet striking a defensive poster. He is very resentful of what had happened. The play paints an image of a man who is very thoughtful. It is maybe for this reason that he is the main protagonist in this tragic drama. Hamlet takes time to think about incidents in his life a trait that keeps the play moving. He takes time before acting which raises the question of to why he is the central figure in the play. The start of the play also paints an image of a depressed hamlet. All through the play Hamlet is a victim of his cruel fate. Although he is melancholic, Hamlet is a schemer and very secretive. After the ghost revealed to him who his father’s killer was, Hamlet does not jump into action but opts to think about the incident first. He also makes Horatio and Marcellus to vow to keep the ghost story a secret. Hamlet has been able to make this one of the best plays maybe due to his complicated character which is hard for the other characters to understand. He himself acknowledges at the start of the play that “Tis not alone my inky cloak, good mother nor customary suits of solemn black” (I.ii.77-84). By this he acknowledges that he is a character with more than one facet...
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...In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the main protagonist, prince Hamlet,loses his father to death at the hands of his uncle. When Hamlet becomes informed about the true nature behind his father’s death, he is faced with several consequential events. Despite his desire to avenge his father, Hamlet struggles internally with the potential consequences of killing his uncle. In Mccloskey’s criticism of Hamlet, “Hamlet Quest for Certainty” he says, “Now it is Hamlet who is in active danger and not the King…After slaying Polonius he hides the body”, but here lies a flaw in McCloskey’s argument. (McCloskey 449). Instead Hamlet’s fatal error is he is ahead of his time. While the Ghost tries to incite Hamlet to commit mindless murder in the name of vengeance,...
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...Vickie Shipley Professor Marek ENC 1102, SEC 87 27 October, 2013 Drama Essay: "Hamlet's Ghost- To Believe or Not to Believe” Of all the plays written by William Shakespeare, Hamlet is the most intriguing. As the plot develops, themes such as indecision, deceit and revenge become apparent. As is expected, questions about the characters' motives arise as these themes are portrayed. Questions regarding Hamlet's love for Ophelia or his sanity arise. However, these questions develop throughout the story. The most important question arises at the beginning of the story in Act 1, and affects Hamlet’s every thought and action thereafter. Is the King's ghost a good spirit, merely seeking justice or an evil spirit sent to corrupt Hamlet? Perhaps the ghost is genuinely that of the dead king, but the fact that the ghost uses Hamlet to exact revenge and demands he commit the mortal sin of murder, clearly shows it to be an evil, malicious demon from hell. During the era in which Hamlet was written, there was a common belief of demonic intrusion, and corruption by the devil. Even today, it is not too difficult to find people who will agree that specters are evil demons, sent up from the bowels of hell to corrupt and destroy the living. In fact, a recent CBS poll reveals that almost half of all Americans believe in evil spirits, and that the dead can return in certain places and situations (Alfano). Because of this belief, the appearance of the spirit, along with the assumption of its...
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...Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet, the ghost of the late King Hamlet has influenced his son to become obsessed with the idea of death. When young Hamlet is informed of the ghost’s sighting, he is anxious and curious to find out who this ghost is and what news it has to deliver. After the ghost reveals himself as Hamlet’s deceased father, Hamlet’s curiosity increases. The ghost divulges to Hamlet that his brother, Claudius, poisoned him to take his life as well as his throne, which infuriates young Hamlet. After this shocking revelation, Hamlet becomes obsessed with thoughts of death and avenging his father’s murder, which contributes to his insanity. When Hamlet speaks to his father’s ghost, his father insists that Hamlet avenge his death by killing Claudius. The ghost explains to his son that King Claudius has corrupted the nation of Denmark, has robbed him of his own life, and therefore, achieving revenge is crucial. After conversing with the ghost, Hamlet vows to seek vengeance on Claudius. This “seeking” of vengeance very quickly turns into an obsession. Hamlet’s every thought seems to revolve around his plot to kill Claudius, causing friends and family to express concern over his strange behaviors. Rumors begin to travel around Denmark that Hamlet has “gone mad,” while Hamlet claims to only be feigning his insanity. Hamlet’s soliloquy where he contemplates suicide is one example of his obsession with death. Amidst the stresses of planning Claudius’ murder, Hamlet even considers...
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...In my opinion Hamlet’s act of going mad can be up for discussion and can be viewed differently according to people’s opinion. Hamlet pretends to be mad because he does not want the kingdom especially King Claudius and Queen Gertrude to know the truth about his father’s death/murder. At the beginning of the play in Scene_____ he admits to Horatio and Marcellus that after his encounter with the ghost he will portray his character to be a mad man. The ghost has come to tell Hamlet what he has to do to set things right. Hamlet does not realize he that this act that way playing of being mad is actually turning against him and realistically gradually is going mad. Hamlet pretending to go mad is only a method he is using to survive in the kingdom with whoever is trying to take him down because they know he is the son of the king and will soon one day be the king of Denmark. Hamlet has an ambition at the beginning of the play to do as his father commanded him to do but without fully exposing the truth of King Claudius’s secret. Hamlet is pretending to be mad to get into King Claudius mind so that he himself will come out with the truth of murdering his brother. The message he received from the ghost has made him not only want to listen to what he was told but also takes things farther. His madness and the message from the ghost begin to affect relationships with his mother, Ophelia, and Guildenstern and Rosencrantz. Hamlet’s relationship with Ophelia can be the downfall of his...
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...control, regarded as predetermined by a supernatural power” (Oxford Dictionaries). Fate is the progressive unchanging flow of actions and events, predestined and guaranteed by a higher order or deity, in a person’s life that no one can change. For example, in the drama stories of Sophocles “Oedipus the King” and William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet”. One of the two stories will show Fate while the other demonstrates Free Will. Oedipus and Hamlet’s life may seem alike as they both wanted what was best for their people and for their loved ones. However, Oedipus’s life...
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...play of Hamlet, the ghost of King Hamlet comes back to the kingdom to tell his son, Hamlet, how he did not suffer a natural death, but rather was sinfully murdered. His death occurred because his own brother and Hamlet’s uncle, Claudius, poured poison down King Hamlet’s ear while he was asleep, so that he could take over the Royal Throne of Denmark. King Hamlet’s ghost then commands Hamlet to fulfill his duty and seek revenge for him by killing Claudius. The ghost reappears later in the play, since Hamlet has still not managed to kill Claudius up to this point, and reminds him to stay focused on fulfilling the commandment he has given him. The ghost claims that he has come back to whet, or sharpen, his request for the death of Claudius, which seems to have been blunted, or dulled, by Hamlet’s actions. Hamlets purpose has been blunted throughout the play in many ways, and he fails to quickly take action for avenging the death of his father. Hamlet is not sure whether he believes the story of King Hamlet’s murder, one of the reasons for Hamlet’s inaction. Hamlet thinks that, “The spirit that [he] have seen may be a and the hath power T’ assume a pleasing shape…” (II. 627-629). Hamlet thinks that an evil spirit may have taken the ghostly form of his late King and father and this causes him to have second thoughts on what this ghost has commanded him to do to Claudius. He thinks that there is a chance that Claudius may not have murdered his father, and that the ghost may just...
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...Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark, was sad because of his father’s death and he was shocked to find his mother Gertrude already remarried two months after his father’s death. The Queen married Claudius, her dead husband’s brother and then Claudius became king. In reality, Hamlet was the true king after his father’s death. The reason why Claudius married his sister-in- law was he didn’t want Hamlet to become king. Although Prince Hamlet knew that there was something strange about his father’s death, he couldn’t prove anything. In addition, he could not think how quickly his mother could forget his dear father. Claudius tried many times to become friends with Hamlet because he wanted Hamlet to like him. One day, Horatio, a good friend of Hamlet,...
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...poisoning through the ear in hamlet Hamlet is a drama that tells the story of a bewildered young prince, a thinker who must contend with vengeful impulses riled by his father's ghost and subsequently by the prince's own agonized sensibility to the decorum of revenge. Shakespeare manages to induce Hamlet's sensibilities in many ways, not the least of which is the "poison in the ear" motif that courses the length of the drama. Indeed, in Act 1 Scene 5 Shakespeare introduces the literal act of Claudius pouring poison into the "porches" of old King Hamlet's ear, as related to the prince by old Hamlet's ghost. But the extent to which earpoisoning plays a role in the play is, at the juncture of Act 1.5, only beginning to take root. Even in Act 1.4, before the truth of King Hamlet's death is ever known or even suggested by the play's action, Shakespeare alludes to the overwhelming power of envenomed sound and poisonous aural suggestion. Likewise in the following 2.1, Shakespeare subtly elaborates on the motif, which, once given its literal form in Act 1.5, is only in its infancy, though by the drama's conclusion it's structurally crucial has been made increasingly apparent. In Act 1.4 the Ghost makes its second appearance in the play, though it is the first time Hamlet has witnessed him. Besides furthering the plot, Act 1.4 also serves as a prelude to the pivotal 1.5 wherein the Ghost reveals to Hamlet the secret that rules the action of the remainder of the playthe murderous deed...
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