Hamlet Exam Prep Notes

Hamlet Exam Prep Notes

General Discussion

• Speaking truthfully while omitting details is a strategy employed.

Act III, Scene I Analysis

• Consider the purpose of spying on Hamlet.
• Hamlet uses Ophelia as a means to express:
  • Joy
  • Sadness
  • Innocence
  • Guilt
• Hamlet's feigned innocence is used to mask guilt.
• The comparison of Claudius' actions to prostitutes using makeup highlights the act of concealing corruption with superficial innocence.

"To be or not to be" Speech

• Key considerations within the speech:
  • Suicide
  • Uncertainty of death

Spying on Hamlet

• Ophelia's awareness:
  • Ophelia does not know they are being watched.

Director's Decisions

• Director's decisions involve:
  • The extent of Hamlet's madness: Is it genuine, performative, or a combination?
  • Hamlet's awareness of the spying

Hamlet's Mood

• Hamlet starts out nice toward Ophelia.
• Hamlet's mood shifts after the return of his gifts.

Nunnery

• A nunnery can be interpreted as:
  • A home for nuns
  • A brothel

Hamlet's Education

• Claudius' plan:
  • Send Hamlet to school.

Performance and Emotion

• Acting should:
  • Not avoid emotion (be natural)
  • Track Claudius to see more reality.
• Shakespeare's preference is for more realistic performances.

Hamlet's Character

• Hamlet:
  • Feels a lot
  • Thinks and talks about emotions
  • Contrasts with remaining calm and relaxing
  • May be an introvert

Hamlet's Cruelty

• Hamlet's cruelty is primarily targeted at:
  • Ophelia

The Mousetrap Play

• Lucius' relationship to Gonzaga is not specified.
• Hamlet compares himself to a recorder, implying he is being manipulated.
• Hamlet starts messing with Polonius to keep everything he's got.

Claudius' Punishment

• Hamlet's theory:
  • Claudius should not be killed while praying.
  • Claudius needs to face the same torments as his father's ghost.

Act III, Scene IV

• Hamlet murders Polonius in Act III, Scene IV.

Gertrude's Perception of the Ghost

• Gertrude's Perception of the Ghost
  • Suggests Hamlet may be crazy.

"To be or not to be" Exact

• Hamlet wants Gertrude to:
  • Tell the truth that he's not acting mad, my that he's not acting acting that he is.