“Shakespeare in the Bush”
By Laura Bohannan
“Shakespeare in the Bush” Quiz
A. Choose three of the following points of discussion between the
Tiv and Bohannan about Hamlet. Explain briefly how the Tiv
interpret each of these components of the play.
1. The Ghost
2. Beliefs about Chiefs
3. Hamlet’s madness and revenge
4. Polonius’ advice to Ophelia about Hamlet
5. The reason for Ophelia’s death
B. Explain what Bohannan thought at the beginning of her
experience and how this changed after her storytelling attempt
with the Tiv.
Misinterpreting Hamlet
“Shakespeare in the Bush” Answers
1. The Ghost
No individual personality exists
after death, so the Ghost must
have been an omen sent by a
witch, and omens can’t talk. So
since it was an omen, Hamlet
should have gone to a-man-whosees-the-truth who could have told
him the truth about how his father
died.
Misinterpreting Hamlet
“Shakespeare in the Bush” Answers
2. Chiefs
The next in line after a Chief
dies is the Chief’s brother, not
his son, and it is right for him to
marry his brother’s wife in
order to protect the wife and
the children and to have more
children to help with the work.
A Chief also should have many
wives.
Misinterpreting Hamlet
“Shakespeare in the Bush” Answers
3. Hamlet’s Madness and
Revenge
Hamlet’s attempt to kill Claudius was a
grievous sin because it is wrong for a
man to kill his father’s brother. This
would have been the responsibility of
the elders or King Hamlet’s age-mates,
not Hamlet Jr. But because the Tiv
conclude that Claudius sent a witch to
make Hamlet mad, he would not have
been responsible for murder due to
his madness.
Misinterpreting Hamlet
“Shakespeare in the Bush” Answers
4. Advice to Ophelia
Polonius was a fool for not letting
Ophelia go to Hamlet because if
Hamlet didn’t marry her, he would
still be required to give her many
presents as his mistress.
Misinterpreting Hamlet
“Shakespeare in the Bush” Answers
5. Ophelia’s Death
Laertes had to come up with
some money quickly to pay
off his fines and debts, so he
thought of marrying off his
sister, but all potential
suitors would have been too
scared because she had
been courted by Hamlet, the
son of the past chief. So he
killed his sister by witchcraft,
drowning, so that he could
sell her body for money.
“Shakespeare in the Bush” Answers
B. Explain what Bohannan thought at the beginning of her experience and how this changed after
her storytelling attempt with the Tiv.
In the beginning Bohannan believed that: “Human nature is pretty much the
same the whole world over; at least the general plot and motivation of the
greater tragedies would always be clear.”
• Bohannan believed that Hamlet is a universal story that resonates a universal
message to all people regardless of culture.
She disagreed with her colleague who said that Shakespeare “was, after all, a
very English poet, and one can easily misinterpret the universal by
misunderstanding the particular.”
• Bohannan believed that the particular story of Hamlet could not be
misinterpreted and that the universal message would still come across.
Why was Bohannan proven wrong
about the universality of Hamlet?
Critical Perspective:
New Historicism
Although the Tiv might read Hamlet
one way, Shakespeare was writing in
a very different time and place, and
that is the CONTEXT we must use to
understand the PLOT. Only then can
we correctly discover the intended
UNIVERSAL THEME.
Bohannan’s colleague was correct in
saying that “one can misinterpret the
universal by misinterpreting the
particular.” A great piece of literature
reveals the universal through the
particular, but the audience must
understand the CONTEXT first to get
to the UNIVERSAL THEME.