Hamlet
What’s rotten in Denmark?
General Info
• Registered in 1602 on the 26th of July
as “The Revenge of Hamlet, Prince of
Denmark”
• A Classic Tragedy
– Hamlet is Tragic Hero
– But what is his tragic flaw?
Setting
• The primary setting is Elsinore Castle in
Denmark, which was based on Kronberg
Castle.
• Elsinore is an important port city that got fat
based on taxes it charged for passing ships.
• The setting is seen as rotten or decaying
because of political and moral corruption.
Characters
• Old Hamlet, murdered
King of Denmark
• Claudius, Old Hamlet’s
Brother and murder
victim, New King of
Denmark
• Gertrude, widow of Old
Hamlet, mother of
Hamlet, wife of
Claudius
• Hamlet, son of Old
Hamlet and Gertrude,
nephew to Claudius
• Horatio, best friend of
Hamlet
• Polonius, chief advisor
to Claudius and father
of Laertes and Ophelia
• Laertes, son of Polonius
who travels to France
• Ophelia, daughter of
Laertes and Hamlet’s
love
• Reynaldo, Polonius’
servant
• Fortinbras, Prince of
Norway
• Rosencrantz and
Guildenstern, friends of
Hamlet from school
Revenge
• Hamlet is a son bent on revenge as
Claudius has murdered his father and
married his mother.
• Fortinbras also seeks revenge for his
father’s murder at the hands of Old King
Hamlet.
• Laertes also later seeks revenge.
Sin and Corruption
• Hamlet reflects humans as fallen beings--full
of sin and corruption.
• Is Claudius the rightful heir to the kingdom if
he murdered Old King Hamlet and seduced
Gertrude?
• Is the political Kingdom corrupt or rotten? Or
the physical one, full of weeds?
• Is nobility generally corrupt?
• Is the ghost the devil in disguise?
• Did Hamlet and Ophelia have sex?
• Are women natural temptresses?
Deception
• The murder was deceptive, but so is
Hamlet’s knowledge of it.
• The ghost’s words to Hamlet.
• Polonius’ actions of spying.
• Rosencrantz and Guildenstern’s feigned
friendship.
• Hamlet’s actions throughout the play???
Madness
• Is it pretended or real?
• Must true madness wear the mask of
sanity?
• Was the ghost the devil trying to drive
Hamlet mad?
• What drives Ophelia to her end?
Pregnancy or Madness?
Hesitation
• According to custom, Hamlet has an
obligation to seek revenge for his father.
What makes him hesitate? Is it the
moral code of “thou shalt not kill”?
• Why does he hesitate?
Ambition and Loyalty
• Does Claudius seek the crown or
Gertrude?
– In any case, he kills his brother.
• Why does Polonius spy?
• What is the relationship between
Horatio and Hamlet?
Religion and Emptiness
• The religion of the time is Roman
Catholic.
• There are tons of allusions to The Bible
• But all characters seem to have a
general spiritual anxiety.
• Murder, Ghosts, Suicide, Adultery…
Gender
• “Frailty thy name is woman”
• What is the role of the woman in this
society?