Drama Agenda: Week of April 22 through 26
Monday, 4/22 and Tuesday, 4/23
Hamlet finish viewing and preview essay questions at end of agenda.
Wednesday, 4/24 through Friday, 4/26
Do Now #3--5: Mock interviews—our objective is to practice interviewing by putting
ourselves in uncomfortable, uncertain situations and relying on quick thinking and poise
to carry us through. We will preview the script and checklist for both interviewers and
interviewees, review the list of desirable personal traits and act out both roles from start
to finish. You will be asked to assess five pairs of interviewers/interviewees, so listen to
each role-play carefully. You should also listen carefully to the discussion following
each role-play as a way to refine your own performance.
Hamlet Essay
200 points
Choose one of the three following prompts to write a formal literary analysis essay of
500--675 word paper in which you express your opinion on the question with substantial
support in the form of quotations from the play. Your paper must include at least four
quotes, one of which should be blocked.
1) Claudius says of Hamlet, “Madness in great ones must not unwatched go.” And
Polonius says of Hamlet, “Though this be madness, yet there is method in’t.” Is Hamlet
mad? Is he pretending madness as suggested in Act. I? Is there a point when his acting
becomes truth? Discuss the role of madness in Hamlet.
2) Shakespeare, it is claimed by many modern critics, was a feminist. James S. Shapiro
for example goes so far as to claim that Shakespeare was 'the noblest feminist of them
all'; conversely, Shakespeare does go so far as to have Hamlet utter the infamous line
“Frailty, thy name is woman.” Based on the two main female characters, Gertrude and
Ophelia, what was Shakespeare’s perception of women?
3) Suicide is an important theme in Hamlet. Discuss how the play treats the idea of
suicide morally, religiously, and aesthetically, with particular attention to Hamlet’s two
important statements about suicide: the “O, that this too, too solid flesh would melt”
soliloquy (I.ii.129–158) and the “To be, or not to be” soliloquy (III.i.56–88). Why does
Hamlet believe that, although capable of suicide, most human beings choose to live,
despite the cruelty, pain, and injustice of the world?
Due dates and points:
Rough draft (may only be written in class): Wednesday, 5/1: 25 points
Peer Editing & Revision (using rubric): Thursday, 5/2 during class: 25 points
Final Draft: Monday, 5/6 at the beginning of class: 150 points
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Total Essay points: 200 points