During the school year we saw the musical ‘Hamlet’, performed by the company Palketto Stage. It was a literary adaptation from the play in original language “Hamlet” by William Shakespeare, written in 1601. I am glad you really enjoyed it!
Here are a few notes and some useful questions, written in order to revise the most important characteristics of this tragedy.
- Hamlet is a revenge tragedy, because it contains all the typical elements of the revenge tragedy: a violent crime committed against a family member of the hero, the hero’s doubt which involves complex planning to carry out the revenge, the appearance of a ghost, the avenger’s soliloquies and asides, madness, bloody action and many deaths which occur throughout the play.
- Other themes are: family, friendship and love relationships (father-son, mother-son, hamlet-friends, Hamlet-Ophelia); madness; youth and age; action vs inaction (revenge or isolation); the corruption linked to power (King Claudius, who usurped the throne by killing his brother and marrying his queen); the meaning of theatre (the play performed within the play, written and acted to expose his father’s murderer).
- Hamlet uses metaphor, simile and wordplay. His words often have a hidden meaning!
- Murder: a horrible one, as it is fratricide /ˈfrætrɪsaɪd/and regicide /ˈrɛdʒɪsaɪd/ at the same time.
Answer:
- Can Hamlet be regarded as a revenge tragedy? Why?
- What other themes are linked to the theme of revenge?
- What are the features of Hamlet’s language?
- What is the function of the ‘play within the play’?
Why is Shakespeare considered a language genius?
| He created visual words through language; new words and phrases we still use today
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His language employed irony, imagery /ˈɪmɪdʒrɪ/ (figurative language–> the use of words to describe ideas or situations)
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established atmosphere
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We analysed two scenes (“Hamlet meets the ghost” and the famous soliloquy “To be or not to be”). We also watched some videos on Youtube:
The ghost
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgQiHPDvpx0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyRZOx1PICk
To be or not to be
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjuZq-8PUw0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ei0fnP9s0KA
If you want to read and listen Hamlet’s story, told by the actors of the Royal Shakespeare company, watch this video
or visit their website
English spoken 