...story of Hamlet there are multiple villains and no heroes. Everybody has a fault that leads to something tragic or dramatic during the story the main villain in this story is Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. In Shakespeare’s play The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark the main character Hamlet goes through a series of very unfortunate events throughout his life, and mostly negative things come out of them. During the beginning of the play we find out that Hamlet loses his father the King of Denmark. This causes a great depression to Hamlet. Soon after Hamlet becomes even more upset due to the fact that he finds out that his uncle Claudius will be marrying his mother Gertrude and be the new King of Denmark. This causes Hamlet to go crazy, insane, and mad. Over the course of the play Hamlets madness continues to build due to everything that happens between the beginning and the end. At the end Hamlet has gone completely and incredibly mad. This madness ends up breaking out of him and spread throughout the ending scene of the play. The main reason for Hamlets madness is due to his father passing away and him having to deal with his uncle Claudius. He soon finds out that his uncle will be marrying his mother. These events only get him upset, sad, and gloomy. Later in the story one of his friends and the guards of Elsinore confront a mysterious creature wandering the castle. Hamlet ends up discovering that this creature is a ghost, and not just a ghost but the spirit tells Hamlet “I am...
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...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 pretending to be mad actually...
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...madness whether it is feigned or not to be presented in literary works. William Shakespeare and Euripides depict this theme in their works Hamlet and Medea. Medea and Hamlet have experienced familial hardships; as a result they believe that the only way to obtain what they desire is through manipulation. Indeed both characters have become masters at the art of deceiving. In both works the theme of madness can be discussed as we cannot be certain that these personas are truly lunatics. Madness can be here considered as a tool to achieve ones end. Indeed Medea and Hamlet feign insanity in order to achieve revenge over their disloyal family. Medea and Hamlet have been betrayed by their family, the first through the murder of his father by his uncle and the marriage of his mother to the same man and the second by her husband who has agreed to marry somebody else. Both are left alone dealing with these events. As madness may be described as “mental incapacity caused by an unmentionable injury”, it is with no surprise that Hamlet or Medea would fall in the hands of insanity. However their actions and words prove the opposite. We can thus suppose that they are both feigning madness to achieve revenge. Medea thinks about the consequences before taking action “what state would take me in? What friend would offer me his land as refuge”. Hamlet weighs also his options as he does not know whether he should defend his father’s honor or not, “Now might I do it pat, now he is praying;...
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...play Hamlet. There are certain parts in the play Hamlet where Hamlet can be seen as crazy. Hamlet’s craziness was not real. His reactions to the events in his life are completely normal. Hamlet had a lot of events that lead people to think he was crazy. Some events that really affected his mental state were the fact his father had passed away, his mother remarried his uncle, and his girlfriend, Ophelia, broke up with him. Some could call it “the subsequent emotional turmoil” (Lee). One major event Hamlet encounters is the death of his father. The play starts with Hamlet’s father just passing away. This tragedy truly affected Hamlet’s sanity. Any normal human being would be affected by this. Death is not an event that a person can just move on from. There is usually many stages to dealing with the death of a person. These stages include denial, anger, depression, and acceptance (“The 5 Stages of Loss and Grief”). Hamlet experienced anger and depression. Hamlet had every right to be angry and depressed over the death of his father. This type of reaction is normal for anyone who is grieving. This reaction is even more acceptable if the grieving is over a parent such as Hamlet’s situation. Hamlet was angry at the beginning because the death of his father was a brand new change in his life. Throughout the play Hamlet’s angry feelings started to get less angry at the fact his father had passed away and more angry at how his father died. As the play continues Hamlet is told...
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...coffee place would be a reminder of that person. The lady could cry from just seeing the coffee shop, or she could be happy for seeing that coffee shop. The cry or happiness reveals her relationship with the person who passed. She could be crying because she regret saying something to the person or not saying something. She could be remembering the good times she had with that person as well, it could remind her of the person. Hamlet is the same way. Hamlet is dealing with grief his own way. Shakespeare is showing Hamlet as a person who isn’t getting along with anybody. Everybody has their own way of dealing with grief. Everybody in the play tells Hamlet to move on and stop grieving, but in reality everybody in the play are in their own stages. Everybody from Gertrude to the Claudius is showing the different stages of grief. In the play Hamlet, Shakespeare shows the distinct stages of grief by using successful cause and effect vivid characterization and dramatic suspense. Shakespeare uses dramatic suspense to show the different stages of grief. Hamlet loved his father. In the beginning of the play,...
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...Drama Connections Drama Connections After reading the play, Hamlet, I’ve come to a great understanding of the actual character of Hamlet. Hamlet was a prince who felt like he was stuck in a castle full of betrayal. Claudius, the King of Denmark, was his uncle/stepfather. He had murdered the former King, Hamlet Senior, whom was also his brother. Claudius then married young Hamlet’s mother a couple months after the death of the former king. In the beginning of the story, young Hamlet knew of his father’s death, but did not know that it wasn’t an accidental death. The ghost of the former king paid a visit to a couple of guards and Hamlet only to tell Hamlet the story of his death. The ghost let Hamlet know that Claudius was the one at fault for his death because he had murdered him. He also told Hamlet to seek revenge upon Claudius. After the ghost’s visit, Hamlet felt like he had gone mad! He felt crazy and he couldn’t believe that Claudius had killed his father so he could become King of Denmark and marry his mother and take her as Queen. Another possible reason for Hamlet’s madness was his love for Ophelia. Although, in the story, it’s said that his madness comes from the rejection from Ophelia, I did not see it. I thought his madness resulted from the appearance of the ghost of his father. His father’s death left him devastated and the fact that his mother married his uncle right away left him flustered. Combined, the death of his father with the marriage of his mother and...
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...In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the protagonist, Hamlet, leads an antic disposition that causes his downfall and leads him to insanity. The cause of his insanity was quickly developed at the beginning when the sudden death of his father, King Hamlet, was announced to him. The tragic Hamlet plotted to murder his father’s murderer, thus the act of madness was introduced. His antic disposition affects his judgment, destroys relationships and creates a belief that he is truly mad. Throughout the play, Hamlet is consumed with anger of his father’s death which causes him to act through emotion and without reason, thus affecting his judgement. Hamlet’s main goal is to avenge the death of his father. His actions to do so are hindered because of the irrational decisions he has made through the antic disposition he has put on that has finally led to his misguided judgement. Hamlet’s irrational decisions began after the death of his father. As any normal human being would be allowed to grieve, Hamlet was not, he was expected to accept the death of his father and move on. “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.” (Act 1, Scene 2. 69-74) These lines spoken by the Queen, Hamlet’s mother, are proof that Hamlet is obliged to accept his father’s death. With little time to grieve and a mother that seems to care less about her deceased husband, Hamlet’s mind was given the...
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...Hamlet Movie Scene Comparison Act II, scene 2 is the longest scene in Hamlet. In this scene, Rosencrantz and Guildernstern come to the King, Voltimand and Cornelius report the message from Norway, Polonius suggests to Claudius and Gertrude the reason of Hamlet’s madness, Hamlet calls Polonius a “fishmonger”, Rosencrantz and Guildernstern bring in the players, Hamlet decides to let the players play the Old King’s murder. Scene 2 is divided into sub-sections in a way to present the plot and the theme more clearly. The “fishmonger scene” refers to the part from Polonius’s explanation of Hamlet’s madness “Your noble son is mad” (2.2.92) to the end of Hamlet and Polonius’s first interaction “except my life” (2.2.210), initiates Hamlet’s actions on revenge and vouchsafes how other characters view his “madness”. This essay will compare the actors’ gestures and line arrangements from directors Kenneth Branagh and Franco Zeffirelli to depict the different effects in Hamlet’s madness. First, the actors’ gestures between Kenneth Branagh version and Mel Gibson version show differences to the interpretations of Hamlet’s madness. There are not many gestures in the Kenneth Branagh film, which can mean something. When Polonius talks to Claudius and Gertrude, also when he talks to Hamlet, he does not have obvious big body movement, but instead just standing straight, walking steadily, behaving perfectly like a honorable and educated man; Hamlet as the noble son of the King and Queen, and the...
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...Drama Review of Hamlet By studying the Stage Show of Wuhan University Abstract As the longest masterpiece of Shakespeare, Hamlet impresses us with its tragic revenge of prince Hamlet. This stage show presents us the core part of Hamlet through performance of “nunnery scene”, “closet scene” and Hamlet’s monologue. Thus, this article will mainly focuses on drama review of the stage show from aspects of technical arts, adaption and editing as well as performance of the actor and actresses and a character analysis combing with Oedipus complex, Electra complex together with the author’s personal reactions. Keywords: drama review; technical arts; performance, character analysis Contents I. Introduction………………………………………………………………………....3 II. Technical arts………………………………………………………………………4 A. Lighting &Music.……………………………………………………………..4 B. Stage Properties…………………………………………………………..........4 C. Costumes………………………………………………………………………4 III. Editing& Adaption………………………………………………………………..5 IV. Performance……………………………………………………………………….6 A. Hamlet…………………………………………………………………………...6 B. Ophelia………………………………………………………………………….6 C. Gertrude…………………………………………………………………………7 V. Character Analysis………………………………………………………………....7 A. Hamlet………………………………………………………………………….7 B. Ophelia…………………………………………………………………………8 C. Gertrude………………………………………………………………………..9 VI. Conclusion…………………………………………………………….................9 Introduction The original play of Hamlet is a masterpiece...
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...Hamlet’s plan, struggle, and inevitable death Shakespeare’s Hamlet is a very controversial story of how the entire royal family of Denmark was wiped out. Hamlet is doomed to die, but in his death Denmark would be purged of its evil. Through murderous plots and schemes, it is revealed that King Hamlet’s brother Claudius murdered him. Hamlet is the son of the late King Hamlet, he was supposed to be the next king, but Claudius quickly married Hamlet’s Mother to take the crown. During the play, it is shown why Hamlet is a considered a revenge tragedy. Throughout the play Hamlet’s view of death prevents him from taking action, but through accepting his fate he is able to finally kill his uncle, without thinking about his death. After Hamlet meets...
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...Hamlet Pleads Sane William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet is considered to be a great tragedy in the eyes of many. In the play, the protagonist, Hamlet, is on a quest to avenge the death of his father. At the beginning of the play, Hamlet is upset that his mother married his uncle, Claudius, only two months after his father’s death. As the story progresses, Hamlet is confronted by King Hamlet’s ghost. The ghost informs Hamlet that he was murdered by Claudius. When the ghost asks Hamlet to seek revenge for his murder, Hamlet takes on the task whole-heartedly. Hamlet’s actions, in the first half of the play, are rooted in revenge and anger, not madness. I can prove he is not crazy and acts as a normal human, out of curiosity. Hamlet’s first soliloquy begins by him suggesting, “Oh,that this too, too-solid flesh would melt, Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew! Or that the Everlasting had not fix’d His canon 'gainst self-slaughter!”(Shakespeare 1.2.129-132).This excerpt clearly highlights Hamlet’s thoughts regarding his mother’s recent nuptials. It only took Gertrude two months after the death of King Hamlet to marry Claudius. This abrupt marriage causes Hamlet to suspect that something might have been taking place between the two before his father’s death. Hamlet reacts as any logical or sane individual who finds himself in the same situation. Hamlet’s anger towards the hasty marriage between Claudius and Gertrude is a logical reaction that any sane individual has; thus highlighting...
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...female characters in William Shakespeare's Hamlet appear to be fragile collateral figures that are mistreated by men, causing great misfortune. However, there is more to these female roles than what meets the eye. Ophelia is one of the characters that had an impact on the action of the story. Even though Shakespeare's intention for Hamlet was not meant to be a woman-based play, the female roles are more significant than what the readers believe. Through closer investigation, the true purpose of these females such as Ophelia unfolds, and it becomes evident that these women were more significant to driving the action of the play, than they were at first glance. In Hamlet, the role of Ophelia is presented as a very submissive, but gentle, loyal, proper and loving young woman. Ophelia is meant to be...
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...Elizabethan tragedy Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, Gertrude can be viewed as being morally ambiguous at many times in the play causing the reader to question whether she is an evil character or somewhat good. Moral ambiguity reveals the true feelings and often mixed emotions, making it difficult to determine one’s motives, guilt, or regret. In the play, there are many instances in which Gertrude exhibits moral ambiguity and leads the reader to question her intentions. At the beginning of the play, the reader is introduced to a character who has married her former brother-in-law almost immediately after her husband’s death. This causes many to question whether she really loved her husband or not. If she had truly loved him, she probably would not have married so quickly. She would most likely be grieving over her loss and have no desire to marry any one else, especially in such a short amount of time. This also leads to another question of whether or not she was involved with Claudius even before her husband’s death. Their relationship most likely did not start after the death of Hamlet Sr., because most women would not have recovered from their loss and found love within a month’s time. This reveals that she most likely did not in fact, love her husband. If she were involved with Claudius before Hamlet Sr.’s murder, it is presumable that she knew something about her husband’s impending death. The fact that she knew anything at all about it causes the reader to question why she did not...
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...how Prince Hamlet speaks and acts different in Act V, scene II, than in other parts of the play. Throughout the play Hamlet is conflicted and revengeful when he finds out that his uncle Claudius had murdered his father. Hamlet can never seem to take action. He procrastinates and overthinks almost every situation he is in. Hamlet also fears death and what consequences his actions will have. In Act V, scene II, Prince Hamlet speaks and acts very different he overcomes being afraid of death. He also stops overthinking very move he makes. Hamlet also starts doing what he wants to do and keeping to his word. Act I is where Hamlet is first challenged. Hamlet cannot understand why he is the only one being affected...
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...''Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work.'' Or “The main subject that is being discussed or described in a piece of writing, a movie, etc.” Theme is a word having etymology from the Greek, "placed" or "laid down". Its origin is 1250–1300; Greek théma proposition, deposit, akin to tithénai to put, set down. In contemporary literary studies, a theme is the central topic a text treats. Themes can be divided into two categories: a work's thematic concept is what readers "think the work is about" and its thematic statement being "what the work says about the subject". The most common contemporary understanding of theme is an idea or concept that is central to a story, which can often be summed in a single word (e.g. love, death, betrayal). Typical examples of themes of this type are conflict between the individual and society; coming of age; humans in conflict with technology; nostalgia; and the dangers of unchecked ambition. A theme may be exemplified by the actions, utterances, or thoughts of a character in a novel. An example of this would be the theme loneliness in John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, wherein many of the characters seem to be lonely. It may differ from the thesis—the text's or author's implied worldview. A story may have several themes. Themes often explore historically common or cross-culturally recognizable ideas, such as ethical questions, and are usually implied rather than stated explicitly. An example of this...
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