Renshaw 1
Harrison Renshaw
Ms. Dunbar
AP Lit
11 March 2015
The Circle of Life
What’s in a name? In modern society the amount of recycled entertainment that we see in
new media seems to be endless. While the idea of sequels, trilogies, and collection pieces fit that
statement, the re-used ideas found in older works that are adapted into a brand new platform
seem to be enjoyed the most. This could be due to the discussion that is sparked after viewing the
newer piece. What was similar? What was different? What reoccurring ideas and themes were
celebrated throughout the majority of both pieces? Or the new media could be enjoyed more
because the audience simply doesn’t realize it’s an old story. Regardless of the reasoning, it is
done time and time again. The most prevalent example of recycling ideas is in the transformation
from text to film. The amount of examples is endless. Harry Potter, Twilight, The Hunger
Games, The Great Gatsby, Chronicles of Narnia, Holes, Breakfast At Tiffany’s, Jurassic Park,
and The Shining are just a few of the well-known ideas that were taken from books and turned
into movies. While it may not be apparent to most, even William Shakespeare’s pieces have been
turned into films. Around 400 years after his death, the plots and characters from his books are
still being transformed into movies for the newest generations to enjoy. While many Shakespeare
plays have been directly adapted, line for line, into movies, the more unique adaptations seem to
be much more popular. The connections are made obvious when pointed out, but they can be a
bit surprising at times. The 1999 romantic comedy 10 Things I Hate About You is a clear
modernization of The Taming of the Shrew. The 2001 drama O is a newer version of Othello,
Renshaw 2
which focuses on a basketball playing high-school student named Odin. There have also been
multiple adaptations of Shakespeare’s classic King Lear. One of the most popular “Shakespeare
films” has been West Side Story, a musical re-telling of Romeo & Juliet. But overall the most
universally loved modernization of a Shakespeare story has been The Lion King. This legendary
Disney film is a new version of Hamlet. This colossal movie grossed $987 million box office,
making it the 20th highest grossing film of all time. After deeply analyzing Hamlet and The Lion
King together, the intriguing similarities and differences between them combine to make the
greatest book-to-film experiment that has ever hit the world of entertainment.
Less like a direct adaptation, The Lion King is more of a euphemism for Hamlet. This is
due to the fact that they have completely different platforms and audiences. Hamlet is a bloody
tragedy in the form of a play, written sometime between 1599 and 1602. The Lion King is a 2D
animated children’s movie, which premiered in theaters in 1994. The stories also differ in several
characters, defining moments in the plot, settings, and a number of other devices. Yet, the two
are still similar enough that one can observe parallels between them. The differences, however,
are what make one a fairy tale, and the other a full-blown tragedy.
The likenesses are clear. As the movie begins, the viewer (if they are familiar with
Hamlet) is instantly made aware of the matching characters between the two tales. Simba is
Hamlet: son of the king, kindhearted, adventurous and still unsure of his confidence. Mufasa is
ex-king Hamlet\The Ghost: a king (at one time), brave, caring, and a loving father. Yet as the
movie progresses, the viewer begins to notice the glaring differences between the two pieces.
One of the biggest differences is Disney changing characters for the better. The main
character of The Lion King, Simba, is far different from his Shakespearian counterpart, Hamlet.
The most noticeable difference is the lack of Simba being absolutely deranged. Now it is still
Renshaw 3
debated whether or not Hamlet was actually crazy or if he was just pretending, but it is a fact that
Hamlet was seen as crazy by his peers. Throughout TLK, this idea is nonexistent. Simba is
forever and always seen as the valiant lion cub with a bright future. He is never seen as “mad” by
his family and\or close royal officials like Hamlet was. That leads to the answer of why Simba
never had any violently crazy soliloquies like Hamlet did.
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;
(3.1.74-77)
While there could have been the possibility of Simba discussing the pains of life and the idea of
giving up hope, it would have never been to this extent. Hamlet’s mind is bursting in this
soliloquy, filled to the brim with thoughts of suicide, murder, and hatred. Honestly the scene
where this soliloquy would have been in TLK was replaced with a song and dance of Hakuna
Matata – no worries. Ideas of living life without a care are much more marketable to children
than those of suicide and bloody death. This pattern of making Hamlet more presentable to
children continues with the other characters of TLK. A proper Ophelia-like character can barely
be seen throughout The Lion King’s song and dance. While Nala, Simba’s childhood sweetheart,
is the obvious match for Ophelia, it only holds up in one real case. Simba likes Nala…Hamlet
likes Ophelia. That’s where it stops. First off, Ophelia and Hamlet were never even truly an item.
The story behind them goes a little like this: Hamlet loved Ophelia. Ophelia rejected Hamlet.
Hamlet sent Ophelia into insanity after using some rather hateful words. Ophelia drowned
herself. I don’t remember seeing any of that in The Lion King. Again, that’s because it was for a
Renshaw 4
completely different audience. While the story of Hamlet and Ophelia is extremely intriguing to
someone reading Hamlet, it would be an absolute nightmare to children. So instead the kids got a
more likeable tale. Nala, a strong, independent woman, is actually the one that comes to Simba’s
aid. Where at that point they return to Pride Rock and rescue the kingdom together. That’s a
much different ending than Ophelia plunging into insanity, “By Gis and by Saint Charity, Alack
and fie for shame” (4.5.63-64). Imagine a Lion King in which Simba breaks Nala’s heart, Nala
goes crazy, and then begins to sing to everyone she sees until her suicide. Not too pretty. This is
the beauty of reinventing the original play and idea. The pattern continues on with the lack of a
Gertrude. While Sirabi is indeed Simba’s mother, she is everything Gertrude is not. “The lady
doth protest too much, methinks” (3.2.254), in Hamlet, the mother figure, Gertrude, is an idiot.
She is a pathetic, naïve, woman that doesn’t seem to realize what’s going on throughout the
majority of the play. While her and Hamlet do show signs of love for one another throughout
several moments in the play, their bond is nothing like that of Sirabi and Simba. Sirabi is another
strong female character that stays true to herself and others throughout the entirety of the film.
There is no portrayal of her abandoning her husband for an evil being, because again this is a
kid’s movie. While many “bad” things happen in TLK, the idea of incestuous sheets is
intelligently left out. Other changes in character traits correlate with the likes of Zazu\Polonius,
Rafiki\Horatio, Timon & Pumbaa\Rosencrantz & Guildenstern, and several others.
While the ideas of contrasting a children’s musical with a Shakespearian tragedy are
easy, the more interesting side of things is the list of comparisons between the two. This begins
with the ghost of the lead character’s father coming back to help their depressed son. And
amazingly enough, both father’s use the same phrase, “Remember me” (1.4.98). While they are
in slightly different contexts, “remembering” their father leads the main characters to justice.
Renshaw 5
Another huge similarity is the villainous new king admitting to his crime. In Hamlet, King
Claudius admitted to the crime whilst away from the other characters.
O, my offense is rank, it smells to heaven;
It hath the primal eldest curse upon’t,
A brother’s murder. Pray can I not,
Though inclination be as sharp as will.
My stronger guilt defeats my strong intent,
(3.3.40-44)
While The Lion King has a slightly different scene of epic reveal, Scar still admits to his crime.
This slight difference also plays along with the ongoing idea of change for likeability. Simba’s
defeat of Scar is much sweeter because it is moments after he learns that Scar had killed his
father.
The last big similarity is the circle of life, which acts as a metaphor for this entire idea. In
both Hamlet and The Lion King, there was a natural order of things in life. With the end of an
era, comes new life. Mufasa had to die to make way for Simba. Eventually Simba will die to
make way for his son. Hamlet sr. died to make way for Hamlet’s justice. Hamlet died to make
way for Fortinbras to start a new life for the state of Denmark. Now back to the idea of recycling
media over and over again. Originally Hamlet was written. That paved the way for The Lion
King. After The Lion King there was an entirely new generation to be inspired by the ideas
originally thought of by William Shakespeare. This remarkable way of new creation through old
ideas will live on forever. “I have some rights of memory in this kingdom, Which now to claim
my vantage doth invite me” (5.2.432-433). In this world of constantly evolving entertainment,
time will only tell who the next Fortinbras is.
Renshaw 6
Works Cited
Hamlet. (2015). Retrieved March 10, 2015, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamlet
Shakespeare, W. (1602). Hamlet. Stratford-upon-Avon.
The Lion King. (2015). Retrieved March 10, 2015, from Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lion_King