HAMLET Hamlets view of his father he compares his father, Hyperion, to his uncle, a satyr.

r. Hamlets disgust at his mothers sexuality. Hamlet generalises the things that damn women Frailty thy name is woman Textual Integrity refers to: the unity of a text; its coherent use of form and language to produce and integrated whole in terms of meaning and value Quotes: Hamlets nature is philosophical, reflective, prone to questioning and therefore aware of the larger moral implications of any act Mary Slater Hamlets self questionings are mere pretexts to hide his lack of resolve William Alice Hamlet is full of weakness and melancholy William Hazlitt Hamlet is a man of painful sensitivity F. Richmond Hamlet continually resolves to do but does nothing but resolve S.T Coleridge He lives entirely for himself; he is an egotist I. Turgenev He is a success, for he gets his man, and a failure, for he leaves eight bodies, including his own, where there was meant to be one B. Nightingale Hamlet must be seen as a doomed character from the start and that his changes in mood are not just the result of his feigned madness. His lines directed towards his mother in Act One, Scene Two Seems, madam! Nay, it is; I know not seems. Tis not alone my inky cloak, good mother Hamlet must be portrayed as agitated and indignant, as if he is astonished that his mother would question his love for his father. Hamlet is the main character and is meant to be seen as aggressive, somewhat ignorant of other peoples feelings and moody. Many versions of Hamlet have focussed on the sexual relationship that may exist between Hamlet and Gertrude, the Oedipal Complex, and the bedroom scene. Hamlet must be seen as ignorant of the feelings of others and his insensitivity is shown by his behaviour at Ophelias grave. Hamlet challenges Laertes by saying that he loved Ophelia more than Laertes, even though he had previously denied it to Ophelias face. Hamlet mentions that I loved Ophelia and that 40 000 brothers could not equate to this love. This blind disrespect for Ophelia is shown by both Hamlet and Ophelia. Hamlet is trying to convince, not only everyone else, but also himself, that he truly loved Ophelia. Hamlet is also meant to be seen as indecisive in Act 3 Scene 3. Hamlet does not delay in killing Claudius because he wants him to die with his sins upon his head; but rather delays because it is in his nature to do so. He is a procrastinator. During the bedroom scene Hamlet discusses Gertrudes sins of adultery and incest and this is meant to show his ability to change from the murder of Polonius. Hamlet also uses Gertrudes sins as an avenue to somehow justify his killing of Polonius. Hamlets treatment of Ophelia in Act 3 Scene 1 demonstrates his cruel and misogynistic nature. Hamlet. Lines such as get thee to a nunnery and wise men know what monsters you make of them are very important as it reveals Hamlets misogyny. Ophelia wishes to be more outspoken but is afraid of the consequences. Hamlets treatment of Ophelia in this scene is seen as unnecessary and wanton cruelty (Dr. Johnson). Hamlet must be seen as only using the guise of insanity to show his true nature. This is so Hamlet actually seems mad. This fits in well with the bedroom scene in which Hamlet sees the ghost but Gertrude cannot. In this

way the ghost will have the voice of Hamlets. It is a show of Hamlets subconscious fears that he will not live up to his fathers standards and that he is actually cowardly.

Gertrude Gertrude is a strong willed woman who, although she is considered to be the possession of Hamlet and Claudius, she does wield a considerable amount of power. Gertrude will be seen as attempting to influence King Claudius decisions by using her womanly virtues. This could be displayed through her body language and her overly sexual behaviour. It is because of her that Claudius did not have Hamlet murdered but it is also because of Gertrude that King Hamlet was killed. Gertrudes opinions are valued which is seen when Claudius asks her if Hamlets madness is due to Ophelias rejection of his love, to which she replies that his is nothing but the main his fathers death and our oer hasty marriage. Gertrude is not portrayed as a cruel and heartless woman in this version, as Hamlet was disposed to describe her. But rather, her remarriage to Claudius is shown as a way in which se could keep her position in society. It has however been suggested that Gertrude and Claudius were in a relationship before King Hamlet died and so the ghosts recollection of Gertrude as being his most virtuous Queen may be taken as too kind. Queen Gertrude is quite jealous of Ophelia. In the line I will not speak with her she is referring to Ophelia and wishes not to speak to her because she is afraid and jealous of Ophelia since she may be carrying Hamlets child. Gertrude may also be jealous of the liberty and freedom that Ophelia secures through her madness since Gertrude is allowed no privacy and is treated like a possession by the men in her life. Gertrudes loyalty must be seen to change from Claudius to Hamlet. In Act 4 Scene 1 Gertrudes over emphasis and over use of the word mad demonstrates that she is now loyal to Hamlet and wishes to preserve his guise of madness. Although Gertrude is jealous and somewhat manipulative, she manages to redeem herself in the final act by drinking from the cup of poison intended for Hamlet. She is asserting her power by disobeying Claudiuss request not to drink. In order to make it seem like she is aware that the drink is poisoned Gertrude must be seen focussing on the cup and looking between Claudius and the cup. Ophelia Originally Ophelia was seen as an insignificant, minor character. However, in this version of Hamlet we shall allow Ophelia to play a larger role and shall emphasise her importance in revealing Hamlets true character. In order for you to really play this role, you must first understand the hardships that Ophelia suffered. Ophelia is treated like a possession by her father, brother and by Hamlet; her father used her for his own self interest, her brother hypocritically lectures Ophelia on self discipline, and Hamlet takes out all of his misogyny on her. From the very beginning of Hamlet we are able to see that Polonius and Laertes treat Ophelias relationship with Hamlet and other private matters, as issues of family importance.

Polonius openly insults Ophelias intelligence by suggesting that she does not understand Hamlets motives and behaviour; saying You do not understand yourself so clearly As it behoves my daughter and your honour(1:3:96-7). Polonius use of phrases like mydaughter imply possession and dominance over her. Ophelias response to Polonius demonstrates her unwillingness to speak out of turn, and yet she says in a sarcastic tone I do not know, my lord, what i should think (1:3:104). In this scene Ophelia must be seen as somewhat aggressive and moody but that she soon succumbs to Polonius possessive behaviour and becomes silent. It is clear to see that when Ophelia speaks to Polonius, Hamlet and Laertes, she wishes to be more outspoken but is afraid of the consequences. In Act 3 Scene One Ophelia is slighted and tormented by Hamlet who, after realising that he is being spied on by Polonius and Claudius, insults Ophelia and compares her behaviour to that of his mothers. Ophelia has been seduced by Hamlet and then discarded. I would like to see Ophelia played in Act One Scene 3 as a strong willed woman who feels dejected by Hamlet and confused by his change in attitude towards her. Although this is not mentioned in this original text, Ophelia needs to be seen as trying to tell Hamlet that they are not alone. This could be done in a number of ways such as Ophelia walking around and purposely reading from a book which is actually upside down. This would alert Hamlet to the fact that something is amiss; or Ophelia could also hint to Hamlet that Claudius and Polonius are watching through her body language, such as avoiding eye contact or Ophelia could continually look towards the place where Claudius and Polonius are hiding. This will help to establish Ophelia as a pure and honest woman who wishes to tell Hamlet about Polonius and Claudius plans but is still worried about the consequences of her actions. This also helps us to get a better understanding of Hamlet since his treatment of Ophelia is nothing but useless and wanton cruelty (Dr Johnson). During Act 4 Scene 5 Ophelia demands a meeting with Gertrude which demonstrates the fact that her madness has empowered her. Readings of Hamlet Family Reading Importance of family and relationships, role of a person within a family influences their actions. Freudian Reading Feminist Reading empower Gertrude and Ophelia. Gertrudes manipulative behaviour etc. Act One Hamlet: A little more than kin, and less than kind Hamlet: I am too much I the sun - He is referring to his dislike of his relationship with Claudius. (Play on words sun & son) Hamlet: How weary, stale, flat and unprofitable seem to me all the uses of this world Hamlet: Frailty, thy name is woman Hamlet: I do not set my life at a pins fee Ghost: That incestuous, that adulterous beast Ghost: Thus was I, sleeping by a brothers hand, of life, of crown, of queen Hamlet says that he is going to take on an antic disposition Act Two Ophelia: Hamlet looked as if he had been loosed out of hell to speak of horrors

- Hamlets behaviour towards Ophelia could have been a part of his feigned antic disposition or it could have been a result of his disappointment in Ophelia. Hamlet might be using Ophelia so that everyone believes that he has truly gone mad. Claudius: the exterior nor the inward man resembles that it was Queen: Believes the reasons for Hamlets distemper stems from His fathers death, and our oerhasty marriage Hamlet: You cannot, sir, take from me anything that I will more willingly part withal; except my life Hamlet: I have of late...lost all my mirth...this most excellent canopy, the air...appears no other thing to me but a foul and pestilent congregation of vapours. What a piece of work is man!...Yet, to me what is this quintessence of dust? Hamlet: What a rogue and peasant slave am I...A dull and muddy-mettled rascal, peak, like john-a-dreams, unpregnant of my cause, and can say nothing; no, not for a king Hamlet: What an ass am I! - This soliloquy is full of reproach for his failure to act on the revenge he promised his father. He accuses himself of cowardice, speaks of his silence and villainy and is filled with self hate. He tells himself that he had a great father who deserves revenge and that only a whore would waste time with talk. Act Three Hamlet: To be or not to be: that is the question: Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take up arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing end them Hamlet: To sleep: perchance to dream: aye theres the rub; For in that sleep of death what dreams may come Hamlet: The dread of something after death...makes us rather bear those ills we have than to fly to others we know not of...Thus conscience does make cowards of us all - In this soliloquy Hamlet is contemplating suicide and is also speaking of the choice between suffering through the demands and evils of the world or taking action to achieve justice. Hamlet: I am very proud, revengeful, ambitious...We are arrant knaves, all; believe none of us Hamlet: If thou wilt needs marry, marry a fool; for wise men know well enough what monsters you make of them Ophelia: What a noble mind is here oerthrown Textual Integrity: How Hamlet fits into the mould of a Shakespearean Tragedy In Shakespearean tragedy, the audience is presented with a main character who is a man of high estate- In Hamlets case a prince. Normally we hear about them from others before he makes an entrance in the play. And we are given the impression of the greatness of the hero In Hamlet we hear Bernardo, Horatio and Marcellus talking about the late King Hamlet, his good deeds and then mentioning what they should tell Prince Hamlet. So in this way it deviates from the traditional Shakespeare tragedy as we do not hear about Prince Hamlet but rather hear about King Hamlet.

 Within the first two act the audience becomes aware of a driving force or tragic flaw (In Hamlets case this is a inability to act) within the hero. We then witness the nature of the inner torment he goes through as he follows his obsession (His duty to kill Claudius and his uncertainty about the Ghosts intent) Pace and urgency accelerates in the third act. The heros tragic flaw is compounded by his acting on a supernatural suggestion Hamlet acts on the suggestions from the Ghost to a certain extent before he is sure of the truth behind the ghosts words Things happen a fraction too late and the hero operates on information that he believes to be true but is in fact not correct. Hamlet continues to believe that his mother was part of the plot to kill King Hamlet but before acting on this and killing her he acts hastily, which is against his nature, and kills who he thinks is Claudius, but is really Polonius. New conflicts and complications arise which bring about the gradual alienation of all forms of support for the hero and must face the opposing forces alone. Again Hamlet differs from the mould of a Shakespearean tragedy in that although his is isolated from everyone even his beloved, Ophelia, he still has one friend Horatio. Probably the most important element is an amount of free will. In every tragedy, the characters must displays some. If every action is controlled by a hero's destiny, then the hero's death can't be avoided, and in a tragedy the sad part is that it could. Hamlet's death could have been avoided many times. Hamlet had many opportunities to kill Claudius, but did not take advantage of them because of his tragic flaw that he had an inability to act. He also had the option of making his claim public, but instead he chose not to. Also, another important part of the Shakespeare tragedy is the existence of obstacles in the heros path In Hamlet, Shakespeare removed all objective obstacles from the heros path so there is no indication in the tragedy of what prevents Hamlet from killing the king immediately after the ghosts revelations. Furthermore, he gave Hamlet a fully feasible objective (since in the course of the play, Hamlet kills three times). Finally, he portrayed Hamlet as a man of exceptional energy and tremendous strength, making him into a character opposite to the one actually required by the plot. Often in the 5th Act the hero is confronted by an enemy who has good reason to seek his death In Hamlet, it is Laertes who has good reason to seek the death of Hamlet as he has caused the death of Polonius and Ophelia. The hero then knows and accepts that he alone is to blame and that he alone has erred. However this recognition takes place when there is no time to correct the error This does not really happen in Hamlet. Except Hamlet does realise that his mother was innocent after she dies. But, he does not really experience any self recognition. Before he dies the hero usually shows us a moving display of courage or nobility of heart. Critical History Over the last 400 years Hamlet has become the most frequently performed play of all time. And its popularity is global. However, with this popularity has come intense critical activity. Thomas Hanmer (1736) drew attention to Hamlets delay in carrying out his revenge. Delay was one of the convention s of revenge tragedy that Shakespeare used. Hanmer makes the point that had Hamlet acted right away as he was instructed, there would have been a quick end to the play. But this has not prevented critics from seeing the delay of which Hamlet accuses himself before the Ghost returns to whet [his] almost blunted purpose as a matter of examining from a psychological standpoint. Dr Johnson believed that confusion arose from a man distracted with contrariety of desires and overwhelmed with the magnitude of his own purpose.

 Voltaire however, believed that Hamlet was merely the work of a drunken savage. During the Romantic period Hamlet became a figure of intense speculation because of the spiritual agony, the insight of an individual alienated from society, his madness, and the complexity of his thoughts and the ambiguity of his actions made him appear life-like because he could not easily be summed up. Hamlet began to be talked about as if he were someone in real life. Samuel Coleridge said that he saw in Hamlet a man whose intellectual energy and alertness understandably made inaction impossible. Early 20th Century during this time criticism of Hamlet took the form of character analysis: largely of Hamlet but also of Claudius, Gertrude and Ophelia. In Hamlets case delay was diagnosed as being his flaw and critics accounted for it, if not excuse it. This was because the assumption was that the hero had a character which was stable and reasonable. Therefore people made excuses for Hamlets inaction. Like perhaps there were practical obstacles to the killing of Claudius - Maybe Claudius was so well protected that even Hamlet could not have found him alone before the end of Act 3. Or was Hamlet so disgusted with the Ghosts command, or was his wit really diseased?. A.C Bradley went on to explore the idea that Hamlet was made melancholy by his mothers sexual depravity and is able to respond to the Ghosts demands in words but not in deed. Ernest Jones continues the psychoanalysis of the people in the play as if they were real people and suggests that Hamlet has an Oedipus Complex How can Hamlet murder Claudius when his uncle has committed the deed he himself subconsciously wanted to carry out? He is fascinated by what disgusts him and this is what causes paralysation and inaction. L. C Knights challenged the Romantic notions of the hero seeing Hamlets judgements as brooding upon evil, pathologically unbalanced. Harley Granville-Barker encourages students to examine Hamlet as a play in performance which signalled a change of focus. John Dover Wilson challenged the authority of the First Folio and instead drew attention to the Second Quarto, and details absent or different in the Folio text. Dover Wilson, more than any critic before him, articulated the ambiguous nature of the Ghost and the impossibility of Hamlets translating its instructions into a coherent plan of action. Caroline Spurgeon and G. Wilson Knight, rather than separating individuals for psychological evaluation both critics explored the role of imagery in the plays. Caroline Spurgeon identified in Hamlet a number of images of sickness, disease...the idea of an ulcer or tumour, as descriptive of the unwholesome condition of Denmark morally. It is in this climate that Hamlet eventually succumbs. For Wilson Knight, Hamlet is not a heroic victim but a sinister presence in Denmark. Recent Developments in Hamlet Criticism During this time we are encouraged to study Hamlet as a coherent work and to examine what Shakespeare is showing us about human life and human responsibilities. Ben Johnson says that Shakespeare was not of an age, but for all time. Catherine Belsey talks of the myth of an unchanging human nature. Critics stress that Hamlet mirrors the beliefs, assumptions, prejudices and blind spots of the society in which it is produced. However, it is the language itself which is volatile what we take Shakespeares words to mean and what they may have meant 400 years ago are similar. Feminist Criticism In Hamlet neither Gertrude nor Ophelia is developed as fully as Hamlet or Claudius, Shakespeare gives them far less stage time and far fewer lines. Feminist criticism looks at the silencing of the women as an important of the plays meaning, which leads feminist critics to examine the ways different productions of Hamlet use non-verbal language to make statements about the place of women. This proves that Hamlet is something not just to be read but something to be acted. Ophelia is made an icon of woman as a victim.

 Political Criticism Critics like Catherine Belsey question the conflicting notions of authority and power that creates so much of the interest in the play. One shift has been the prominence of the part played by Fortinbras in Hamlet. It was common in the 19th Century for productions to cut the Fortinbras scene entirely. Hamlet is seen as a product of Elizabethan culture as it passed through a period of massive upheaval. Hamlet dramatisices the struggles of the time. Original Text Until recently editors have agreed to use the three earliest versions of the play from which they mix and match, taking what they thought was the best of each and synthesising a version of the play they believed Shakespeare to have written. Hamlet continues to fascinate, provoke and frustrate those who would like to offer a definitive interpretation of the play. Performance Criticism Every performance is an interpretation. Most productions cut the text even more severely than Shakespeare appears to have done himself. Actors and directors approach Shakespeares Hamlet from a realistic rather than from a rhetorical standpoint because of knowledge of what is accepted by audiences. So whenever productions have tried to apply a plausible but eccentric reading the result has not been successful. Why Hamlet Lives On Quotation after quotation has passed into our language, so that the newcomer to the play is intrigued at how familiar it already is to them. Shelves of books have been filled by critics attempting to explain what the play is about. Yet it still seems to be a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma Winston Churchill. There are a number of questions that make Hamlet live on Why does Hamlet delay?, Should Hamlet have trusted the Ghost?, Is Hamlet really mad or does he just put on this antic disposition?, What is the real cause of Ophelias madness? And what, if anything, does the play scene prove? Most critics look for their explanations in the personality of Hamlet himself. Some reasons given for his behaviour include melancholy, thinking too much, cowardice and madness. He delays, they say, because of some weakness in his character. This emphasis on the character of Hamlet can however, blind us to the fact that Shakespeare portrays him as someone who affected very strongly by his own nature AND the world in which he lives. It is possible to see Hamlet consciously trying very hard to come to terms with an environment that he sees as a hostile wasteland. Hamlet is obsessed with a number of problems: the corruption of life around him (How weary, stale, flat and unprofitable seem to me all the uses of this world! and O that this too solid flesh would melt); his relationships with Gertrude and Ophelia (Frailty, they name is woman!) suicide (O that the Everlasting had not fixed his canon gainst self slaughter) In Act 2 we see Hamlet talking to Polonius, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern we find that his preoccupations are not the murder of Claudius and avenging his fathers death, but are the same as those in Act 1: the corruption of life around him (This goodly frame, this earth seems to me a sterile promontory); his attitude to people (Man delights not me, nor woman neither); and suicide (You cannot take from me anything I would more willingly part withal except my life). Hamlets failure is not simply a failure to act, but a failure to act appropriately. He delays not because he cannot act but because the murder of Claudius is only one factor in the complex world in which he finds himself.

 Hamlet is not able to act when action is required and cannot accept what cannot be altered. Hamlet recognises that these qualities are deficient in him and it is his tragedy that he finds them so rarely in other people. Hamlet speaks to the parts of life that appear to us as question marks, the parts of life that appears to us as a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. It shows us that our only answer lies in decisive and appropriate acting, loving and living. According to George Stubbes, Hamlets decision not to kill Claudius while he is praying so that he can destroy his soul and make him eternally miserable is something so unworthy of a Hero. But according to T. Sheridan it is better fitting with his character that Hamlet is again trying to make an excuse for his delay. To Bradley the main fact of the play is Hamlets inaction which is caused by the profound shock of disappointment he feels upon his mothers marriage to Claudius, and her adultery. All of this is completely unknown to Hamlet which is fully explained by Hamlets melancholy is his own inability to understand why he delays. There is also the question of whether or not Hamlet becomes truly mad Oscar Wilde says that he finds it surprising that the suggestion that Hamlet is really mad has ever been taken seriously. He announces his intent to ACT mad and it is clear that he is able to turn his antic disposition on and off at will. Unlike real madmen he is mad only when he wants to be and implored Gertrude not to real That I essentially am not in madness, but mad in craft. Tradition encourages us to accept that Hamlet is contemplating suicide in the soliloquy To be or not to be, but it is hard to see why because this would do nothing but ensure that he is eternally known as the Prince who went mad an killed himself. Zeffirellis version (1990) there is no dumb show, players speech and there is hardly a speech anywhere in the play without excisions. There is also the relocation of lines, taking them out of context. One example of this is the nunnery speech which is scattered throughout the movie. Michael Pennington explains that Hamlets contemporary appeal is what we see in Hamlet is psychologically true for everyone: we all have the capacity to be both a reactive savage and a rational thinking and sensitive human being. Other Ideas Hamlets self-accusations are yet another evidence of his extraordinary strength of character. His titanic struggle requires a maximum of effort and fortitude, but he is not satisfied with himself and he demands still more of himself. This interpretation proves that the contradictions are not accidental but have been introduced intentionally and that, moreover, they are only seemingly accidental. Any mention of weakness and irresolution is evidence of exactly the oppositeHamlets formidable will. However, this explanation does not explain why he procrastinates, why he does not kill the king in the first act, immediately after the revelations of the ghost, or why the tragedy does not end with the first act. Werder, on the other hand, claims that the exterior obstacles represent the true cause of Hamlets procrastination. Shakespeare introduces the ghost into his tragedy and makes a philosopher out of Hamlet, thus motivating both movement and procrastination. Immediately upon the revelation of the ghosts secret, when Hamlet learns that he has been charged with the duty of revenge, he says that he will fly to revenge on wings as swift as loves desire. He devotes himself entirely to the secret request to kill Claudius After his talk with the actors, Hamlet reproaches himself for the first time for his inaction. It astonishes him that an actor is carried away by passion (Hecuba) and inflamed by a

meaningless plot, while he himself remains silent and inactive in the face of the crime which has destroyed the life and the reign of a great man - his father. The remarkable thing in this monologue is Hamlets inability to understand the reason for his delay. He reproaches himself by speaking of shame and dishonor, but he alone knows that he is no coward. Here we are given the first motive for delaying the death of the king: perhaps the words of the ghost are not to be believed. Indeed, the accusations must be thoroughly verified. So, Hamlet sets his famous mousetrap. Kuno Fischer says that most critics consider the scene of Polonius killing to be proof of Hamlets unplanned, thoughtless actions. Many productions omit the prayer scene because they fail to understand how it is possible to introduce a new motive for procrastination without prior preparation. Nowhere in the tragedy, either earlier or later, does this new condition for killing the king (to kill him while he is sinning in order to destroy his soul after death) appear. During Hamlets scene with his mother the ghost appears again, and Hamlet thinks that he has come to reproach him for putting off the revenge. Hamlet does not resist being exiled to England; in the monologue after the scene with Fortinbras he compares himself to that courageous leader, and once again reproaches himself for his weak will and inactivity. He feels that his procrastination is a disgrace, and finishes his monologue resolutely: "O, from this time forth my thoughts be bloody, or be nothing worth!" The final scene leaves absolutely no doubt that Hamlet kills the king for his latest crime: the poisoning of the queen, and the killing of Laertes and Hamlet himself. Not a word is said about Hamlets father, and the audience has completely forgotten about him. Mezieres quite correctly states: Indeed, everything in the last scene surprises us. Throughout the play we have been waiting for Hamlet to kill the king. Finally he strikesbut no sooner does he perform the deed than we are again astonished and bewildered.