Hamlet
Background
• written sometime
between 1598 and 1602
–probably 1600-01
• roughly midpoint in
Shakespeare's career
Revenge Tragedy
• derived from ancient
Roman tragedies of
Seneca (4 b.c.e.—65 c.e.)
• drama in which dominant
motive is revenge for real
or imagined injury
Basic Elements of Senecan
Revenge Tragedy
• a wronged hero
• detailed accounts of
horrible deeds
• long reflective soliloquies
• the gods rarely appear
• ghosts and witches
abound
• the corpse-strewn climax
• favorite form in
Elizabethan and
Jacobean eras
Basic Elements of English Revenge
Tragedy
• hero violently wronged
• justified in seeking
revenge
• revenge aimed at
opponent equal in power
and cunning
• action conducted in
atmosphere of gloom and
terror
• supernatural elements
• beloved of hero involved is
an innocent obstacle to his
revenge
• a counterplot (or subplot)
–started by the antagonist to
defend himself
–engulfs the hero just as his
vengeance was
accomplished
• outcome for the hero
–hero would achieve “poetic
justice” on earth
–hero would also be punished
by Heaven for sin of murder
Elements in Hamlet Derived from Senecan
Revenge Tragedy
• the murdered father
• the ghostly apparitions
• the mad scene
• the bloody finale
Hamlet
• Prince of Denmark
• Son of Queen Gertrude and
the late King Hamlet.
• The model courtier, sensitive,
intelligent. Enjoys popularity.
• Believed to be mad in order to
conceal his real plans
•Is enigmatic in his doubts and
delayed revenge. Ghost of his
father asks him to avenge him
•Shows himself at last as
courageous and decisive in
dealing with his enemies.
•Upset by his mother’s marriage
to his uncle.
The Ghost
•Late King
Hamlet,
doomed to
walk the
earth by
night
Queen Gertrude
• Mother of Prince Hamlet
• Widow of King Hamlet
• Now married to her husbands
brother
• Portrayed as weak, guiltridden, and concerned about
her son.
King Claudius
• Brother of King
Hamlet and is King
of Denmark
• Married his sister-inlaw.
• Plots to kill Hamlet
•Is clever, hypocritical and
gifted at dissembling.
Appears majestic and
commanding.
•Suffers occasional pangs of
guilt for his crime, but can’t
bring himself to repent.
Ophelia
• Daughter of Polonius, and
sister of Laertes.
• Portrayed as sweet,
innocent and obedient.
• Love interest to Hamlet.
• Goes mad
Laertes
• Polonius’ son, and
Ophelia’s Brother.
• Manipulated by Claudius
into exacting revenge on
Hamlet for Polonius’ death
• Foil character to Hamlet
Polonius
• Father of Laertes and
Ophelia. Lord Chamberlain
and Advisor to king
Claudius.
• Is moralistic and
meddlesome.
•Frequently spies on
people, either directly or
indirectly
•Believes Hamlet’s
madness is caused by his
love for Ophelia.
Horatio
• Friend of Hamlet and
schoolmate at Wittenberg.
• Respected as a scholar, and is
called upon to banish the
ghost.
• Brave, and loyal
• Tells the events of the ending
Rosencrantz and
Gildenstern
• Childhood friends of Hamlet.
• Recruited by Claudius to
discover cause of Hamlet’s
madness
• Ordered to escort Hamlet to
England
Fortinbras
• Prince of Norway
• Father conquered by king
Hamlet and seeks
revenge.
• Named heir to the throne
of Denmark
Francisco,
Marcellus and
Bernardo
Danish soldiers who first
spot the ghost.
Osric
• Young,
foppish
courtier who
is mocked by
Hamlet and
Horatio for
his
affections.
Reynaldo
Polonius’ servant who has
been sent to spy on
Laertes in France
Voltemand and
Cornelius
• Danish courtires who serve
as Claudius’ ambassadors to
old Norway.
Player King
and Player
Queen
• Act the part of King Hamlet
and Queen Gertrude in the
play-within-a-play
Themes
Revenge
• Ghost of King Hamlet introduces
the theme. He also spurs it on
for Hamlet
• Prominent in Hamlet’s hesitation
to kill Claudius at his prayers
and in his bitter reproaches of
his mother.
•Theme serves to undermine
the plots of Claudius and
Laertes in Act IV.
Mortality
• Hamlet grapples with mortality.
• His first and third soliloquy touch
on this theme in his
contemplation of suicide.
• Hamlet comes to term with it in
Act V, scene ii, when he tells
Horatio “the readiness is all.”
Appearance and
Reality
• Paradoxically, Hamlet’s
dislike of outward show and
his pretense of madness
combine to develop this
theme.
• Theme is highlighted by
Claudius’s habitual dissembling,
the hypocrisy and flattery of the
courtiers, and the numerous
scenes of spying and eaves
dropping
• Hamlet’s instructions to the
players and the presentation of
the play-within-a-play.
• Linguistic variations of the
theme recur in numerous
puns, especially in scenes
involving Hamlet.
Corruption
• Shown through Claudiu’s guilt
and Hamlet’s perception of
Gertrude’s lust.
• Hamlet generalizes corruption
to include the moral flaws at
court.
•The theme is underscored in
images of disease and poison.
•Emphasis on the body’s
decay after death in V, I.
Reinforces the theme on a
biological level
Madness
• Introduced with Hamlet’s “antic”
behavior after he sees the ghost
• Hemlet’s pretense of madness
dominates his public behavior.
• Hamlet’s feigned madness is
poignantly juxtaposed to
Ophelia’s true insanity.
Doubt
• Especially prominent in the
soliloquies of Hamlet.
• Related to the issue of
decisiveness versus cowardice
in Hamlet’s character
Mystery and Intrigue
• A play of questions
• Mystery of the ghost
• Is Hamlet crazy
• Who killed King Hamlet?
• When will Hamlet get his
revenge
• Several Characters spy on
each other
–Rosencrantz and
Guildenstern spy on Hamlet
for Claudius
–Hamlet has actors perform
a murder play so he can
spy on Claudius
Philosophy
• How does moral man live in a
corrupt world?
• How does intelligence and
sensitivity co-exist with pain
and suffering in the world?
• What is the meaning of death?