The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark

1
The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark

• Jump in time 1300 Dantes start of the Inferno
• Hamlet composed around 1600 or 1601
• From Medieval to High Renaissance in one leap

2
Hamlet as Renaissance Man

• Medieval supernaturalism faith afterlife
  uniform view (more or less) suppressed the ego
  and individual
• Renaissance humanism movement toward secularism
  appreciation of worldly pleasures individual
  experience rather than shadowy afterlife
  reliance upon faith and God weakened
• Renaissance man suspended between faith and
  reason (scientific attitude came later)

3
Elizabethan Agereigned 1558-1603

• Renaissance English Literature 1485-1603
• Became queen when she was 25 nation bankrupt
  not believed legitimate heir of throne by most
• Educated as well as any prince pragmatic--never
  passionate about religion
• Quest for prosperity-stability guiding force of
  her reign

4
Struggles between Church of England and Catholics

• Despite her desire to prevaricate or play both
  sides, tensions mounted
• She was considered Protestant leader
• To be activist Catholic was to be a traitor to
  England

5
Themes in Hamlet

• Revenge Can personal revenge ever be justified?
  What effects does seeking revenge have on the
  avenger?
• Friendship-betrayal Who is loyal in this rotten
  state of Denmark?

6
Hero Journey

• More psychological, though it has some spiritual
  components
• Play of questions mysterymore questions than
  answers
• Struggle to take action of revenge
• He has inherited his situation

7
Sanity vs Insanity

• Hamlet feigns madness as a ploy
• Seems on the edge of insanity
• Ophelia struggles to keep her sanity

8
Appearance vs Reality

• Nature of reality-truth (Myth of the Cave)
• Phony or feigned appearances (deception)
• Appear or seems
• Four interpretive possibilities of the Ghost, for
  example

9
Family RelationsFriendship-Love-Loyalty

• Father-son (King Hamlet and Prince Hamlet
  Polonius and Laertes Old Fortinbras and
  Fortinbras
• Mother-son (Gertrude-Hamlet Ophelia as
  motherless)
• Brother-sister (Ophelia-Laertes)
• Brother-brother (King Hamlet and Claudius Cain
  and Abel connection)
• Polonius-Laertes-Ophelia subplot

10
Prominent Imagery Patterns

• Disease-poison-infection
• Animal imagery
• Music-painting imagery
• Garden imagery
• Drama (show-act-play)
• Allusions to Greek and Roman myths