Hamlet: To be or not to be...
Mrs. Tobin-Careen’s English 12 SJB 2015
This book belongs to...
1
Discuss modern day examples of marriage, death and remarriage. How do you think a young person
would you feel if…their dad died and their mom married his brother within weeks??
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2
Read Act one as a class. At the end of the act discuss what has happened so far! To help you better
understand the plot, create a socio-gram.
3
Watch a video version of Act One. After watching and comparing the two versions, write a Shrink-Lit.
Write Act One in 30 words or less.
Hamlet in 30 words or less....
4
Act 1 Scene 3 60-84 Read, discuss, and comment.
Yet here, Laertes? Aboard, aboard, for
shame! The wind sits in the shoulder of
your sail, And you are stay’d for. There;
my blessing with you! And these few
precepts in thy memory See thou
character. Give thy thoughts no tongue,
Nor any unproportion’d thought his
act. Be thou familiar, but by no means
vulgar. The friends thou hast, and their
adoption tried, Grapple them to thy soul
with hoops of steel; But do not dull thy
palm with entertainment. Of each newhatch’d, unfledg’d comrade. Beware Of
entrance to a quarrel; but being in, Bear’t
that the opposed may beware of thee.
Give every man thine ear, but few thy
voice; Take each man’s censure, but
reserve thy judgement. Costly thy habit as
thy purse can buy, But not express’d in
fancy; rich, not gaudy; For the apparel oft
proclaims the man, And they in France of
the best rank and station Are most select
and generous in that. Neither a borrower
nor a lender be; For loan oft loses both
itself and friend, And borrowing dulls the
edge of husbandry. This above all: to
thine own self be true, And it must follow,
as the night the day, Thou canst not then
be false to any man. Farewell; my blessing
season this in thee!
5
Read and watch Act Three. What is a soliloquy? At the end, write To be or Not to Be, in modern day
language from the POV and voice of a popular literary, T.V., sports, entertainment, or political figure
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 arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;
No more; and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep;
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the
rub;
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause: there's the respect
That makes calamity of so long life;
For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,
The oppressor's wrong, the proud man's
contumely,
The pangs of despised love, the law's delay,
The insolence of office and the spurns
That patient merit of the unworthy takes,
When he himself might his quietus make
With a bare bodkin? who would fardels bear,
To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
But that the dread of something after death,
The undiscover'd country from whose bourn
No traveller returns, puzzles the will
And makes us rather bear those ills we have
Than fly to others that we know not of?
Thus conscience does make cowards of us all;
And thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprises of great pith and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry,
And lose the name of action. - Soft you now!
The fair Ophelia! Nymph, in thy orisons
Be all my sins remember'd.
An example from the POV of Prince Charles!
Well, frankly, the problem as I see it at this moment in time is whether I should just lie down under all this hassle
and let them walk all over me, or whether I should just say OK, I get the message, and do myself in. I mean, let's
face it, I'm in a no-win situation, and quite honestly, I'm so stuffed up to here with the whole stupid mess that I
can tell you I've just got a good mind to take the easy way out. That's the bottom line. The only problem is, what
happens if I find, when I've bumped myself off, there's some kind of... ah, you know, all that mystical stuff about
when you die, you might find you're still - know what I mean?
6
To_________or Not to_________!!!!
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7
Double Entry Journal
8
Pick a character and use quotations to write an acrostic poem that accurately portrays the character. You
can use the character’s words or what others say about or to him or her.
9
After reading and watching Act five create a Character mandala. You will pick four characters, give
descriptive words, find quotes to justify their choice words, and then write a summary of the play and the
characters listed.
Inner circle: Character Name; next: Characteristics; then quotes to justify your trait choices; and in the
outer ring a summary of how your character contributed to the overall theme and plot development.
10
Towards the end of Act Five, Hamlet asks Horatio to tell his story, but he does not get the opportunity.
Write a speech from the POV of Horatio, filling in all of the “goings-ons” to date, that would explain the
outcome. Assume that Horatio knows all since he is Hamlet’s best friend…modern day language is fine.
11
Create a Flowchart of Hamlet. Using a grid paper, create at least four plots: one accurate, one humorous,
and two dead ends. (Sample to shared from LLRH)
12
Read Margaret Atwood’s, “Gertrude Talks back.” After reading it, write a personal response…
I always thought it was a mistake, calling you Hamlet. I
mean, what kind of name is that for a young boy? It was
your father's idea. Nothing would do but that you had to
be called after him? Selfish. The other kids at school
used to tease the life out of you. The nicknames! And
those terrible jokes about pork. I wanted to call you
George. I am not wringing my hands. I'm drying my
nails. Darling, please stop fidgeting with my mirror.
That'll be the third one you've broken. Yes, I've seen
those pictures, thank you very much. I know your father
was handsomer than Claudius. High brow, aquiline nose
and so on, looked great in uniform. But handsome isn't
everything, especially in a man, and far be it from me to
speak ill of the dead, but I think it’s about time I pointed
out to you that your dad just wasn't a whole lot of fun.
Noble. Sure, I grant you. But Claudius, well, he likes a
drink now and then. He appreciates a decent meal. He
enjoys a laugh, know what I mean? You don't always
have to be tiptoeing around because of some holier-thanthou principle or something. By the way, darling, I wish
you wouldn't call your stepdad the bloat king. He does
have a slight weight problem, and it hurts his feelings.
The rank sweat of what? My bed is certainly not
enseamed, whatever that might be! A nasty sty, indeed!
Not that it's any of your business, but I change those sheets twice a week, which is more than you do,
judging from that student slum pigpen in Wittenberg. I'll certainly never visit you there again without
prior warning! I see that laundry of yours when you bring it home, and not often enough either, by a
long shot! Only when you run out of black socks. And let me tell you, everyone sweats at a time like
that, as you'd find out if you ever gave it a try. A real girlfriend would do you a heap of good. Not like
that pasty-faced what's-her-name, all trussed up like a prizes turkey in those touch-me-not corsets of
hers. If you ask me, there's something off about that girl. Borderline. Any little shock could push her
right over the edge. Go get yourself someone more down-to-earth. Have a nice roll in the hay. Then you
can talk to me about nasty sties. No darling, I am not mad at you. But I must say you're an awful prig
sometimes. Just like your Dad. The Flesh, he'd say. You'd think it was dog dirt. You can excuse that in a
young person, they are always so intolerant, but in someone his age it was getting, well, very hard to live
with and that's the understatement of the year. Some days I think it would have been better for both of
us if you hadn't been an only child. But you realize who you have to thank for that. You have no idea
what I used to put up with. And every time I felt like a little, you know, just to warm up my aging bones,
it was like I'd suggested murder. Oh! You think what? You think Claudius murdered your Dad? Well,
no wonder you've been so rude to him at the dinner table! If I'd known that, I could have put you
straight in no time flat.
It wasn't Claudius, darling. It was me.
13
Reaction to Margaret
Atwood’s Words!
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14
“Something’s Rotten In the State of Denmark”
Marcellus
Locate and record images of Death,
Disease, and Decay
Disease
Death
Decay
15
Engage in a debate, and present your closing remarks to determine if Hamlet is sane or insane
throughout the play.
Hamlet: Sane or Insane?
The Verdict….
16
Finally! We are going to watch, Disney’s, The Lion King! Why? The Lion King is Hamlet. After watching the movie,
discuss your personal response to Disney’s rendition of Shakespeare’s Hamlet…over a beverage and some
sweets of course. (POT-LUCK STYLE)
Lion King Vs Hamlet
The movie, The Lion King, and the book, Hamlet, both have a similar story line. In both stories, the king is killed
and revenge is sought by the king’s son. The murderers in the stories are the king’s brothers who want the power
of the throne. After the death of the Kings, both of the villains successfully took over the kingdoms. While these
villains ruled, the kingdoms slowly deteriorated. Neither of the sons liked the villains, but they did not know at
first that they had anything to do with their father’s death. It took an outside force to convince them that they
must vow revenge for their father’s death. Both sons had the wit to approach revenge strategically. They wanted
the villains to know that they knew about how their fathers were murdered. The leading roles in each of the
stories had a corresponding role in the other. The corresponding characters shared a number of similarities, but it
was the ways in which they were different that determined their fate and that of the kingdom. In Hamlet, the
prince is Hamlet. He is in deep grieving of his father’s death. He is angry because he believes that everyone has
already forgotten how great of a king his father was. Hamlet does not know for sure who is responsible for his
father’s death, but he suspects Claudius who is his uncle and the new king. Hamlet decides that if he can
convince everyone that he is insane, then maybe he will be able to get someone to tell him more about his
father’s murder. In The Lion King, Simba is the prince. Simba’s father, Mufasa, is killed after he falls from a cliff
into a herd of hyenas. Simba falls into a deep depression after his uncle Scar twists things around and convinces
Simba that he is the one responsible for the Mufasa’s death. Simba can not deal with what has happened and he
runs away from the kingdom. In Hamlet, The new king Claudius is able to gain respect from the kingdom. He
even steals the love of Hamlet’s mother Gertrude. The old king’s councilor, Polonius, becomes Claudius’s councilor
and his best friend. He helps Claudius keep an eye on Hamlet and tries to keep him from finding out anything
about his father’s death. Polonius believes that if he helps Claudius that he can make life better for himself and
for his daughter and son. But in the end, his actions get him slayed, drive his daughter to insanity, and eventually
set the stage for his son to die in a sword fight with Hamlet. In The Lion King, as soon as Scar takes over as king,
everything in the kingdom begins to die and grow ugly. The three Hyenas become Scar’s helpers. He uses them
to do his work and to keep an eye on Simba. The Hyenas think that by helping Scar, they will earn some power,
but Scar eventually double-crosses them. In Hamlet, Hamlet’s mother crosses her son by marrying Claudius. She
loved Hamlet, but she wanted to keep her title as queen. Throughout the play she shows that she is loyal to
Claudius because she tells him everything that Hamlet tells her. Hamlet can’t understand how a woman could just
forget the love of one man, his father, and jump right into another bed with a new man. He begins to hate all
women because of this. In The Lion King, Sarabi, Simba’s mom has great pride and faith in her son. When her
husband dies, she knows that Simba is not to blame. She also believes that Simba has the strength to take the
throne back and reclaim the kingdom. Hamlet’s only friend who he can trust in the play is Horatio. When Hamlet
sees the ghost of his father, he is able to confide in Horatio about what he had seen and what the ghost had told
him. The ghost told Hamlet that Claudius was the murderer of his father. This is easy for Hamlet to believe
because he doesn’t like Claudius. Hamlet gets an idea to perform a play in front of the whole kingdom that would
depict the way in which he believed Claudius killed his father. He shares his idea with Horatio and gets him to
watch Claudius to see how he reacts. When Claudius sees the play, he can barely breathe. His actions convince
Hamlet and Horatio that he is the murderer. Hamlet now has the proof he vows to kill Claudius the next time he
catches him in an act of sin, so that he is guaranteed to go to hell. In The Lion King, Simba has many friends.
They all believe in him. His best friend in Nala, who he ends up falling in love with. She is able to finally convince
him that Scar was the one who killed his father. By now, Simba was grown and he was prepared to fight Scar and
take back the throne. The ending in Hamlet was a tragedy. Hamlet is involved in a sword match with Laertes who
is Polonius’s son. King Claudius and Hamlet’s mother are there to watch the fight. Claudius and Laertes had
already planned for this fight to be the death of Hamlet. Laertes sword was poisoned and as a back up a drink in
which Hamlet was to drink from was also poisoned. Instead of Hamlet drinking the wine, his mother takes a drink
in honor of her son. She starts to feel the poison and she warns Hamlet of it before she dies. It is too late
though, the poisonous sword had cut Hamlet. In anger, Hamlet steals the poisoned sword and runs it into
17
Laertes. He then charges Claudius and runs it into him. He also takes the wine and forces Claudius to drink from
it. Both Claudius and Laertes die before Hamlet. Hamlet regains his throne for a few seconds, until the poison
sets in and takes his life. The Lion King has a happy ending. Simba returns to his kingdom and he finds Scar. He
tells Scar that he knows about his father’s death. Scar lies to Simba by telling him that the Hyenas were the ones
who killed Mufasa. This upsets the Hyenas. They leave Scar to fight Simba by himself. Simba wins the fight and
throws Scar off a cliff, into the herd of the Hyenas. The hyenas show no remorse for Scar and they trample over
him, killing him. Once Simba takes back the throne, the whole kingdom becomes beautiful again and everyone is
happy. The two stories had similar plots and characters. But in the end, the small differences in how the
characters acted separated the tragedy of Hamlet from the happy ending of Disney’s The Lion King.
Any thoughts?
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18
Date: May
Heading
Personal Response:
Revenge
Socio-gram
Shrink Lit
Polonius Advise to his
son
To be or not to be
Double Entry Journal
Acrostic Poem
Character Mandela
Journal of a Secondary
Character
Flow Chart
Gertrude Talks Back
Death, Disease, and
Decay
Sane or insane
The Lion King
Submitted on
Description/Expectations
Discuss modern day examples of marriage, death and
remarriage. How would you feel if…your dad died and your
mom married his brother within weeks??
Read Act one as a class. At the end of the act discuss what
has happened so far! To help you better understand the plot,
create a socio-gram.
Watch a video version of Act One. After watching and
comparing the two versions, write a Shrink-Lit. Write Act One
in 30 words or less.
Act 1 Scene 3 60-84 Read, discuss, and comment. Read Act
Two
Read and watch Act Three. What is a soliloquy? At the end,
write To be or Not to Be, in modern day language from the
POV and voice of a popular literary, T.V., sports,
entertainment, or political figure
Read and watch Act four. Divide a sheet of paper into two
columns. On the left write phrases and quotes from a specific
dialogue, and on the right hand side, write your interpretation
and what contribution you feel this particular quotation
makes to the overall play.
Pick a character and use quotations to write an acrostic
poem that accurately portrays the character. You can use the
character’s words or what others say about or to him or her.
After reading and watching Act five create a Character
mandala. You will pick four characters, give descriptive
words, find quotes to justify their choice words, and then
write a summary of the play and the characters listed.
Towards the end of Act Five, Hamlet asks Horatio to tell his
story, but he does not get the opportunity. Write a speech
from the POV of Horatio, filling in all of the “goings-ons” to
date, that would explain the outcome. Assume that Horatio
knows all since he is Hamlet’s best friend…modern day
language is fine.
Create a Flowchart of Hamlet. Using a grid paper, create at
least four plots: one accurate, one humorous, and two dead
ends. (Sample to shared from LLRH)
Read Margaret Atwood’s, “Gertrude Talks back.” After
reading it, write a personal response.
Focusing on Imagery and Symbolism: Death, Disease, and
Decay.
Engage in a debate, and present your closing remarks to
determine if Hamlet is sane or insane throughout the play.
Finally! We are going to watch, Disney’s, The Lion King!
Why? The Lion King is Hamlet. After watching the movie,
discuss your personal response to Disney’s rendition of
Shakespeare’s Hamlet…over a beverage and some sweets
of course. (POT-LUCK STYLE)
Feedback from Mrs. Tobin Careen
19