Hamlet Notebook

Hamlet Journal 1

I think revenge is the act of trying to make justice with someone who has injusticed you. I feel like tragedy is something that happens extremely unfortunate. Tragedy is always usually a story of death, Der Erkonig is an example of tragedy, the story of Pandora’s box, the story of Prometheus, a lot of greek stories are tragedies teaching you to not mess with the gods. An example of a story involving revenge would be Avengers Endgame, where the avengers are seeking revenge for the destruction that Thanos caused

Act 1 Scene 1

Questions

  1. What time is it when the play begins?

    1. The time when the play begins is midnight

  2. Why has Marcellus asked Horatio to come?

    1. Marcellus has seen the ghost Hamlet, and he wishes for Marcellus to be there with him

  3. How many times has the Ghost appeared?

    1. The ghost has appeared twice so far

  4. Who did King Hamlet kill?

    1. He killed the old king Fortinbras in battle

  5. List at least three questions that Horatio asks the Ghost.

    1. What are you

    2. Why do you look like the old king

    3. Why do you wear armor

  6. What makes the Ghost leave?

    1. Marcellus Threatens to hit it with his spear

Summary

Act 1 Scene 1 takes place in a castle, where two guards are watching the castle at night. They call in two more people, who are supposed to take over watch, when they see the ghost of old King Hamlet. Bewildered, they ask the ghost a few questions, mainly trying to figure out the ghosts identities. The ghost soon dissapears and they tell the rest of their friends what happens. After talking about it and walking around more, the ghost quickly reappears. The men try to figure out how to keep the ghost and wonder what it is doing there, but as soon as they try to harm the ghost, it vanishes once more.


Act 1 Scene 2

Class Discussion

  • Who is the audience for this speech? 

    • The audience are the people of his council and the other officials in the castle

  • What is Claudius’s purpose in this speech? What effect does he want it to have? List at least three separate goals

    • The goal is to try and calm down the public and to reassure them that he is the rightful king and that they made a good choice, to help them transition after old Hamlet’s death

    • Three seperate goals are to announce he married Hamlet’s mom, to send Laertus off to France, and to talk about the upcoming battle with Fortinbras

  • Considering his audience, whose reaction to Claudius’s speech is likely to concern him the most? Why?

    • Hamlet, because Hamlet actually has the power and the support behind him to pose a challenge to the throne

Paraphrase Claudius Speech

Even though Hamlet, our dear brother died

And that it is fair for us to grieve his loss

We must move on, even though we think of him in sorrow

we must think to the future

Therefore my sister in-law, who is now our queen

The other ruler of this state

We defeated the odds

We will end this feud through marriage

with equal rights

I have made her my wife

This is what you have previously suggested

And for that I thank you



Claudius Speech Tweet

My brother may be gone, but his memory lives on. To help move on, I married my sister in law #couplegoals. You suggested it, now it happened

The original speech can create more vivid imagery than the speech


Questions

  1. What event is the court celebrating?

    1. Claudius’s coronation, him becoming king

  2. Why did Laertes come to Denmark? Where is he going next?

    1. He came to show his loyalty to the throne, he is going to France

  3. How is Hamlet dressed? What reasons does he give for his appearance?

    1. He is dressed in all black, he is mourning his father

  4. According to King Claudius, why is Hamlet’s grief a “fault to heaven”?

    1. He says that death is natural and so refusing to accept it is refusing to accept heaven itself

  5. Why does Claudius forbid Hamlet to return to the university at Wittenberg (although he has given Laertes permission to leave for Paris)? Why might he want to keep Hamlet “in the comfort of our eye” (120)?

    1. Because Hamlet is next to the throne and so he should stay near the throne

  6. How much time has passed between King Hamlet’s death and Queen Gertrude’s marriage to Claudius?

    1. Less than two months

  7. How does Horatio describe the Ghost to Hamlet?

    1. Dressed in full armor, looking just like Hamlet’s father

  8. Why does Hamlet want to see the Ghost?

    1. He suspects some foul play in his fathers deat

Summary

The scene opens with Claudius, who is giving a speech to his council. He warns them of three things

  1. he married gertrude, queen to the throne

  2. he will fight against Fortinbras, and sends messengers

  3. He bids farewell to Laertus

He and gertrude then help to console a mourning Hamlet, telling him that mourning is an insult to his father’s memory.

Hamlet is then paid a visit by Horatio, who tells him of his father appearing as a ghost. The three decide to watch together the next day.

Act 1 Scene 3

Recap

  1. Both Laertes and Polonius give Ophelia advice. As you read the scene, list what each is concerned about. What do we learn about Ophelia from her responses to her brother and her father? What does her obedience suggest about the available roles of women in the world of the play? 

    1. Polonius is concerned more about the image that sleeping with Hamlet would have on him and his position and the people around it. Laertus is more concerned with the effect that it would have on Ophelia and specifically her honor. From Ophelia’s responses, we learn that she is quick witted and willing to defy her brother, but she does not defy her father. Her obedience shows that women in the society have to listen to others.

  2. What advice does Polonius give Laertes as he prepares to leave for Paris? What does this tell us about Polonius? About Laertes? About their father and son relationship?

    1. The advice that polonius gives laertus is to make friends with the people around him but not be too close, to be a good member in society, and never to make too many grudges. What we learn about polonius is that he’s heavily diplomatic, he tries to be friends with everyone but not make too close of relationships. From laertus we learn that he’s maybe too hot headed and takes opinions about others really easily. About their relationship we learn that Polonius is trying

  3. What predictions can you make about Ophelia’s relationship with Hamlet? 

    1. They both love each other, clearly Hamlet has made gestures towards ophelia and told her that he loves her, and Ophelia seems the same way. I assume that they would become star crossed lovers, barred by both of their families

  4. Do young people today still receive advice from parents or older siblings that varies by gender?

    1. Yes, they still ask siblings especially and also their parents as to advice of the people around them


Questions

  1. While speaking with Ophelia, what does Laertes tell her about Hamlet? How does he justify his comments?

    1. He tells her not to take Hamlet’s affection seriously, he justifies his comments by saying that Hamlet is next in line to the throne, which shows that he will prioritize his duty to the country over his duty to her

  2. What warning does Ophelia give Laertes?

    1. Ophelia tells Laertus to not be a hypocrite and to stay safe in France

  3. What advice does Polonius give Laertes? List at least three pieces of this advice.

    1. Polonius tells laertus general things to be safe in France

    2. Wear nice clothes but not too nice

    3. Make friends but don’t be too close to people

    4. Keep quiet on your thoughts and don’t act on them until oyu have fully through throuhg

  4. What does Polonius tell Ophelia about Hamlet?

    1. He orders her not to be with Hamlet, that it would ruin his honor, and that hamlet is young which means that he can get away and will make a lot more rash promises

  5. How is Ophelia treated by her brother and her father? How is their treatment similar and how is it different? 

    1. She is treated more of an equal to her brother who is trying to give her advice and takes criticisms, but Polonius orders her and tells her to listen to him no matter what

Summary

The scene takes place in a corridor, and features Ophelia receiving advice from both Laertus and Polonius before Polonius is leaving for France. To start of, Laertus warns Ophelia about Hamlet, and tries to reason with her that spending time with Hamlet will only hurt her future endeavors. Ophelia snaps back at Laertus when Polonius enters the room. He wishes well to Laertus, telling him to keep his wits about him in France. The scene ends with Polonius talking to Ophelia, telling her that she should not be with Hamlet, ordering her to not talk to him anymore.


Act 1 Scene 4

Questions

  1. What is the weather like in scene 4? How do you know? What effect might this particular weather have on the audience?

    1. The weather is cold and harsh, the effect is to create a gloomy and dark atmosphere

  2. Hamlet asks the Ghost several questions. List three of them 

    1. The three questions that Hamlet asks are one, why is the king out of his coffin, why is the king dressed in all armor, and why does the ghost appear in a shape similar to Hamlet’s father

  3. What is Horatio afraid the Ghost will do to Hamlet? Be specific in your response.

    1. Horatio is afraid that the ghost will lead Hamlet to a cliff near the rolling ocean and lead them off a cliff

  4. Why does Hamlet ignore his friends and fight to follow the Ghost? What does this reveal about his character?

    1. Hamlet doesn’t have any more faith in his life and so he wants to follow the ghost, even if that leads to Hamlet’s death

  5. What do you make of Hamlet’s remark, “My fate cries out” (91)? What is it about this experience that makes him think of fate?

    1. He believes that his dad is his fate, and so even if he dies that is his fate

Act 1 Scene 5

Questions

  1. According to the Ghost, where must it go when it is not walking the night?

    1. When its not walking the night, the ghost visits to purgatory, which is a place where souls are unnaturally kept

  2. If you were Hamlet, how would you react to the Ghost’s description of what happened to him? What would be particularly horrifying? Why?

    1. I found it horrifying because he says that Claudius is the one that poisoned him and the specific description of the rashes and how he died so brutally because of being poisoned

  3. The Ghost describes his murder twice. Find both places and mark them in the text. What does he include in the second description that he leaves out in the first? Why do you suppose Shakespeare has the Ghost describe the murder twice? What impact might the double description have on the audience?

    1. The first bit is in line 45, where he describes the snake that bit him, and just essentially says that the snake was Hamlet’s uncle. But in actuality, it was claudius who poisoned him, which he goes a lot more in depth into in the next description. The double description helps to show the severity of the issue

  4. Hamlet is the only one of the group that can hear the Ghost’s encouragement from below. What might this suggest about the relationship between Hamlet and the Ghost?

    1. It shows that they have a more personal relationship, and that the ghost may be manipulating hamlet or just a voice in the ghosts head

  5. Why won’t Hamlet tell Marcellus and Horatio what he learned from the Ghost?

    1. He believes that Marcellus and Horatio might tell his plans to others and he wants t keep his plans to himslef

  6. Why does Hamlet say, “The time is out of joint. O cursèd spite / That ever I was born to set it right!” (210-211)? Try to connect this remark with his previous thoughts regarding fate (1.4.91). What does “spite” mean here?

    1. Curse the fact almost where he is basically saying it is a curse upon him that he has to be the one to kill his uncle

Questions Moving into Act 2

  1. Will Hamlet and Ophelia get into a relationship

  2. How will Hamlet get revenge on Polonius

  3. Will the ghost reappear, and will other people be able to see him

Act 2 Scene 1

Ophelia Analysis

Text

He took me by the wrist, and held me hard, 

Then goes he to the length of all his arm, 

And with his other hand thus o’er his brow, 

He falls to such perusal of my face

 As ‘a would draw it. Long stay’d he so. 

At last, a little shaking of mine arm, 

And thrice his head thus waving up and down,

 He rais’d a sigh so piteous and profound

 As it did seem to shatter all his bulk 

And end his being. That done, he lets me go, 

And with his head over his shoulder turn’d,

 He seem’d to find his way without his eyes, 

And to the last bended their light on me.

Questions

  1. What is the rhetorical purpose of the verbs in this passage? What do Shakespeare’s verbs suggest about how we are supposed to perceive Hamlet? 

    1. The rhetorical purpose of the verbs is to try a feeling of constant motion and one where Hamlet is being rough. Through Shakespeare’s choices of verbs, we are supposed to look at Hamlet as a rough person who doesn’t have any more sanity

  2. How does Ophelia respond to him? What does this suggest about their previous relationship, how Hamlet is changing it, and her response to those changes?

    1. Ophelia responds to hamlet in an unsure way. She seems to see him more of an intruder rather than the person she loves. In her description of him before, he seemed to be a great person, but now he seems almost attacking her

  3. Does Hamlet love Ophelia? What in the passage supports your answer?

    1. It seeems like he does love her, but he is going sort of insane. He says in the passage that he falls to such persusal of my face as if he was drawing it, he takes her in care, but acts rash because he is unsure of himself.

Questions

  1. What does Polonius want Reynaldo to do? Why does he tell Reynaldo to talk about Laertes’s supposed faults with Laertes’s friends (34-39)? What does this suggest about Polonius as a father?

    1. Polonius wants Reynaldo to go to France and spy on Laertus. He wants Reynaldo to talk about Laertus’s faults to see if Laertus’s friends will give in and admit that those faults are true. This suggests that Polonius is a very suspicious and nosy father, who is always suspecting malpractice

  2. When Ophelia enters, the first thing Polonius says is “How now, Ophelia, what’s the matter?” (line 84). Predict what you think might have upset her enough that Polonius notices it immediately. If you were the play’s director, how would you have her come on stage so that her distress would be immediately apparent to her father?

    1. I think that she must have had a fight with Hamlet, which caused her to become really sad. If I was the play’s director, I would have her come in weeping with her hands on her face to show how sad that she is

  3. How does Ophelia describe Hamlet’s appearance (85-94)?

    1. She says that Hamlet looked distressed, with his shirt unbuttoned, no hat on his head, his stockings undone, and pale white, as if he had just escaped from hell

  4. Polonius wonders if Hamlet has gone mad because of his love for Ophelia. Ophelia says she isn’t sure. Considering Hamlet’s recent experience and what he told his friends, what do you think might have made him appear as described? 

    1. He was terrified because he had just seen the ghost telling him that his uncle had murdered his father, and he wasn’t sure what to do

  5. Describe Hamlet’s behavior towards Ophelia. How does she interpret his actions?

    1. Hamlet acts incredibly rough towards Ophelia, grabbing her arm, waving it up and down three times, and she was incredibly confused by him. She describes his actions very confusedly, and she isn’t sure of his intentions

  6. How does Polonius interpret Hamlet’s behavior?

    1. Polonius believes that its the madness of Hamlet’s love, and believes that Hamlet is acting out of rage because Ophelia isn’t talking to him




Act 2 Scene 2

Hamlet Soliloquy Analysis

  1. Why is it important that Hamlet says, “Now I am alone” (line 576) at the beginning of the speech? 

    1. It allows us to know that what he says in the rest of the soliloquy are truly his thoughts, and he isn’t saying anything because he feels pressured to

  2. What sort of mood is Hamlet in at the beginning of the soliloquy? What mood is he in by the end? How does he get himself from the first mood to the last?

    1. At the beginning, he feels extremely depressed and ashamed at the fact that he does not have the same level of passion and emotion of the actor, but by the end he is calm and collected, and the reason for that is because he learns to channel the talents of the others towards his own benefit

  3. What does he think might happen when Claudius watches the play? Why is this important to him? 

    1. He thinks that claudius will flinch when he watches the play, which will make Hamlet realize that claudius is really the one who killed his father because he could not stand the guilt of watching the play

  4. What do you know about Hamlet’s state of mind now that you would not know if this soliloquy wasn’t here?

    1. We know how bad he feels about himself, throughout the soliloquy he spends the time cursing himself and how he is such a bad sun

  5. What is Hamlet’s purpose when he gives this speech? What is Shakespeare’s purpose for putting it at this point in the play?

    1. The purpose is to try and plan out his next actions and maybe show how bad of a person he thinks that he is. Shakespeare’s purpose of putting it is to give us a bit more insight into Hamlet and all of the demons that he’s facing


Questions

  1. Why have Rosencrantz and Guildenstern come to Elsinore? What does King Claudius ask them to do?

    1. Resencrantz and Guilderstern come to Elsinore at the Kings request, the king asks them to follow Hamlet and figure out if he suspects an foul play

  2. What does Polonius claim is the cause of Hamlet’s odd behavior?

    1. He believes that Hamlet has gone crazy because of his love for Ophelia

  3. What does Gertrude believe is the cause of Hamlet’s odd behavior?

    1. Gertrude believes that the cause of Hamlet’s odd behavior is his father’s death and her quick marriage to king Claudius

  4. Why is Polonius’s line “I will be brief” (2. 2.99) ironic?

    1. Because right after saying that he make a point that needs a lengthy explanation, causing him to have to describe what has caused Hamlet to go mad for an extended period of time

  5. Polonius and Claudius devise a plan. What is their plan?

    1. They would send Ophelia to meet hamlet in “private”. Claudius and Polonius would observe their interactions, and if Hamlet professes his love for Ophelia, then Polonius was right

  6. Describe Hamlet’s reaction to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. How does he feel about them? How do we know?

    1. He is originally happy to see them but then gets apprehensive, because he realizes that they are just informants for the king

  7. Who is Pyrrhus (475)? Use the information provided in the text to describe him.

    1. Pyrrhus is someone who tried to usurp power by killing the previous king (Priam). In the text, they describe pyrrhus as someone with black armor as black as his desire, which is ever consuming with him and how his armor gets stained with blood

  8. Who is Hecuba (585)? Use the information provided in the text to describe her.

    1. Hecuba is King Priam’s grieving wife. When Priam gets killed, Hecuba is supposed to have let out a terrible screech and be devastated by the death of her husband





Playlist

Character: Hamlet

  1. My Shot - Hamilton

    1. Who knew Hamlet was such a musical lover? I guess it does make sense, they both do start off with “HAM” after all! But anyways, similar to Hamilton, Hamlet shares a sense of purpose to try and prove himself. Both come from similar backgrounds as they are both orphans. In My Shot, Alexander Hamilton says how he wouldn’t waste his opportunity to prove himself and rise up the ranks. He talks about how King George III is a tyrant and how he would overthrow him. Similarly Hamlet seeks to overthrow his father. Whether that happens through song and dance, only time will tell.

  2. Aaron Burr Sir - Hamilton

    1. Both Hamlet and Hamilton seek figures aroudn them for advice. In this song, Alexander seeks advice from Burr, another figure who was from a similar background and could lead him to where he wanted to go. Hamlet seeks advice from the Ghost, and believes that the Ghost will tell him what he needs

  3. Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen

    1. Bohemian Rhapsody features a descent into madness. After killing a man, the singer has no idea where to go. He describes the events of what has happened, and then searches around, being approached by others trying to figure out and trap him. Similarly, Hamlet is trapped by those around him, and is going insane in the process.

  4. Blinding Lights - Weekend

    1. Specifically, the super bowl performance of this song, where the Weekend is trapped in a maze of lookalikes, and he is trying to search for the blinding light that will make everything alright. He is trapped for and searching for the thing that will make the situation better. Similarly, Hamlet is trapped by the guilt of his fathers murder and the unknowing void of what happened to him. He looks for clarity, but he can’t find any answers around him.

  5. Bolero - Ravel

    1. What playlist would be complete without a nod to the classics (Also lets be honest this is like the 1500s, there was only classical music) Ravel’s Bolero is famous because of its monotony. The song features a single snare drum rhythm, repeated 103 times over the songs, as other instruments keep adding on with the same melody, getting louder, and louder as the song goes on. Many think that Ravel had a brain tumor while writing the song, creating its eerie nature. Similarly, due to his fathers passing Hamlet seems to be exhibiting some sort of mental illness causing him to go crazy and not understand the situation around him

Act 2 Main Parts

  1. Polonius's conversation with Claudius and Gertrude and the ambassadors that were sent to Norway 

    1. Hamlet vs. Fortinbras 

      1. Both of them have an uncle who took over the throne after their father’s death

      2. Fortinbras acts on his anger tries to wage war, Hamlet stands still

    2. Doubts of the King 

      1. Pursuit of Poland 

        1. The uncle tells him that he should go to Poland instead of Denmark, to try and avoid the battle with Denmark

  2. Hamlet’s conversation with Polonius 

    1. Revelation of Polonius state 

      1. Polonius has ego and lack of intellect, compared to Hamlet he does not have the same knowledge or the same wit

      2. He is paranoid and hypocritical, forgets his train of thought, showing his fatigue of age

  3. Hamlet’s reunion with Guildenstern and Rosencranz 

    1. Hamlet’s confession of faux madness and insight into their mission 

      1. Horatio has true intentions, but rosencrantz and guildenstern have come back only at the behest of the king

      2. He understands that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are not there because of true intentions, true show of his wit

  4. Hamlet’s Soliloquy 

    1. Hamlet’s inability to act on his anger 

      1. Hamlet’s fatal flaw, he doesn’t know how to act or what he is a cting for, curses himself


Act 3 Scene 1

Quick Write 1

I think that Ophelia feels dispair for her interactions iwth Hamlet. Previous to their encounter, she had fallen for his trap and believed that he truly was in love with her. She had her father and her brother tell her that she shouldn’t get involved with Hamlet, but still there was a part of her that believed that maybe Hamlet truly did love her and that she could have a happy life living with him.. First after seeing him she realizes that he had truly gone mad. She falls into dispair when talking to Hamlet, because the things that he is saying make no sense to her. I feel that in the future she will need help from other people. I feel that she will not trust Polonius as much because he is the one who got her into this position in the first place, but I feel that she will go to Laertus. Even though Laertus had previously warned her against becoming close with Hamlet, I feel she will ask him for advise





Quick Write 2

Ophelia preiously had clearly had feelings for Hamilton. In act 1, she talks to Polonius and Laertus telling them that she truly does want to be with Hamilton, but later on in Act 2 her tone changes. When she sees Hamilton for the next time she is not overjioyed and she does not think that he loves her. Instead she says things like he was looking my face with the intent of drawing it, he held me at arms length, and that he came in with his shirt unbuttoned and stockings fouled. Clearly, heropinion of Hamlet shifts throughout the story as she begins to understand his madness. In the nunnery scene this feeling become stronger, as she sees Hamlet proclaim things as crazy as banning all marriages and seperating all couples. She falls to the floor, unable to bear this torture, losing the man she loved and reeling in dispair.

To Be or Not to Be Soliloquy

Section 1: To Live or To Die

To live or to die, that is the question;

Whether it is better to suffer the ups and downs of life

Or to sleep forever end and end all our troubles; to die, to sleep

And when we say sleep we end the suffering of a thousand lifetimes

That decision is a final choice that we wish dearly; To die, to sleep

To dream, dreaming is the problem

For in that sleep of death, the dreams when we leave our life behind

They will trouble us, to avoid that is what makes the importance of life


Hamlet essentially is saying throughout this that he’s faces with two choices, two live and die but both of them have their own troubles


Section 2: The Pains or Life

Who would be ok with that judgement, dealing with their wrongs and their rights

The heartache of love, the injustice dealth with

Who would deal with these insolences when all our problems could be solved with a dagger

Who would bear a terrible life


Hamlet in this section is debating all the terrible things that he deals with in life and is saying that he could just solve all his problems with a dagger and suicide

Section 3: The Next Stage

But the dread of the afterlife

The place unto which no one returns

And makes us want to live through thesadness rather than leave to the unknown

That thought makes us cowards

And thus our actions are constantly currently fear death

And our moments of significants have no meaning


Our fear of the afterlife clouds are thoughts, making us cowards and the lives insignificant

Pros and Cons of Life

Living

Pros

Cons

Hamlet and his love for Ophelia

Dealing with the pains of life

To be able to settle the fear

Dealing with the overthinking of life


Death

Pros

Cons

Ends the pains of a thousand lives

Doesn’t get to meet ophelia

Doesn’t have to face the pains of life

Have to face the judgement and dreams of the afterlife

Hamlet Deep Dive Questions

  1. What is Hamlet arguing about? How does he first set up his argument?

    1. Hamlet is arguing on whether to suicide or still keep living and the benefits and drawbacks of each option. He first sets up his argument by going over each option and the main thing about each of them

  2.  What forms of evidence does Hamlet offer? Mark these in the text.

    1. Hamlet gives evidence of all the different types of injustices that people face in lies, such as heartache of love, injustices in life, insolences and problems that people face in office, and dealing with their injustice

  3. What sorts of counterarguments does Hamlet acknowledge?

    1. The counterarguments that Hamlet acknowledges is the fact that all of his problems could be solved with a dagger, and maybe if he just suicided that he would be better

  4. What does Hamlet conclude? Where is his conclusion revealed?

    1. Hamlet concludes that it is worth living and that his fear of the afterlife is what makes him a coward and still keep living

Hamlet Journal Entry 2

Why might Hamlet have felt the need to construct a logical argument to debate the issue of suicide in this context? What have you learned about Hamlet because of this soliloquy?

Hamlet is a very logical person, and so before making a decision he wants to know that he is making the right one. Because of his inability to make actions, he goes through every single different possibility on what could go right and wrong with his decisions.


Act 3 Scene 2

Analysis

Section 1

  1. What do you learn about what Hamlet knows about acting and about theater? 

    1. Hamlet is very open about his actions and clearly he knows quite a bit about theater. He is very specific in what he wants from the troupe and clearly feels that he’s better than the normal person

  2. How would you describe his vocabulary and sentence structure?

    1. I would describe his vocabulary as very advanced, as he is trying to show that he is superior, with his sentence structure matching

  3. What about his tone?

    1. His tone is very much like a movie critic almost, he demonstrates his advanced knowledge

Section 2

  1. What does Hamlet want Horatio to do?

    1. Hamlet wants Horatio to watch the king closely and look at his actions over the play

  2. How would you describe his vocabulary and sentence structure?

    1. I would describe his vocabulary as endearing and almost romantic. His sentence structure is long as flowing as he describes how Horatio is his dearest friend

  3. What about his tone?

    1. I would describe his tone as generally friendly, he needs Horatio’s help to do what he must

Section 3

  1. What does he say to each? 

    1. To claudius, he says a nonsensical point about chicken, showing claudius that he isn’t here to please the king. To polonius, he mocks him about his career as an actor and treats him as a child. Towards Ophelia he makes several sexual references

  2. How would you describe his vocabulary and sentence structure? 

    1. I would say that overall that Hamlet’s vocabulary stays childish throughout this, almost as if he feels that each of the characters are below him. His sentence structure is mixed and stays simple throughout

  3. What about his tone?

    1. His tone is consistently mocking, he feels that he can take advantage of the other characters and feels no responsibility for his actions

Oedipus Rex and Hamlet

  • Story

    • About a king of thebes, son marries his wife after killing his father

    • Creates odepis complex founded by thebes, realizes that kids have an afffection for the opposite gendered parent

    • Odepius rex daughter, rex gauges his eyes out bc realizes what he’s done

    • Antigony kill herself

  • Freud

    • Creates oedipus complex

    • son admiring mother → loves mother

    • competition betwee parent of the same sex

  • Other examples

    • Long Day’s Journey into Night

  • Foils and Hamlet

    • Literary device in which tow characters are developed to directly contrast each other

      • Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter

      • Hamlet and Fortinbras; Hamlet and Laertus

  • Gertrude and Ophelia

    Gertrude

    Both

    Ophelia

    Accepts Hamlets advances

    Thinks Hamlet as endearing

    Rejects Hamlets Advances

    Lustful

    Enjoys Hamlets witty remarks

    Independent

    Disobedient and dishonest

    Trust and are manipulated by those around them

    Compliant to the people around her




Hamlet Journal 3

What role has inaction played in the play up until what we have read/seen so far? What sort of argument does the story make for inaction vs. action and what does it say about the consequences of inaction. Bring in examples from the text to support your claims. In addition, what is your personal opinion and experience with inaction? 

  • The role of inaction plays in Hamlet because he is not willing to kill Claudius directly. He says that the reason is because he thought that Claudius was going to go to heaven, but at the same time I think that it was actually his inactiveness is actually what causes him to try and kill Claudius wihtout killing claudius directly

  • hamlet → action → killing polonius → getting shipped to england

  • hamlet → inaction → not killing claudius → loses his chance because he was shipped to england

  • hamlet → inaction →

  • Laertus → action → goes to france → isn’t there for father’s death or to protect ophelia


Have you ever been frozen with the fear of action and resulted negatively from it? Have you ever acted out on something and realized in hindsight that doing something was worse than doing nothing?

  • I think in deca several times I have been frozen with actions because its hard to know whether to be able to deal with giving negative feedback to hte people around me or not telling them

Gertrude’s Perspective

If I was Gertrude, originally I was siding with my new husband but I would feel sorrow for especially the death of Ophelia, which drives me to switch to the side of Hamlet. In general, she usually tries to pick the side that is winning herself, and is quite indecisive about what side she feels is better. I would choose hamlet because of the sorrow that I feel. Before I would openly side against the king and help Hamlet overthrow the king


Hamlet Vs Lion King

Similarities

Differences

The person looking to overthrow the king always resents that they don’t look as good as the real king

In Hamlet, the new King marries the old queen

Zazu acts a lot like Polonius in calling Simba young master

No group of people supporting claudius like in the lion king

Zazu has a massive ego like polonius

Naala supports Hamlet’s advances, meanwhile Ophelia rejects Hamlets advances and supports

New king betrays old king and kills him

At the end of the Book Hamlet dies but Simba does not die

Sends the new king to die


Makes long speech about new future


Rosencrantz and guildenstern want to disarm hamlet (shaving of Simba’s nails) (what’s in a name)


Character chart

  • simba = hamlet

    • main character

    • grieving loss of father

    • next in line to the throne

  • mufasa = old king hamlet

    • gives advice to simba

  • scar = claudius

    • new king

    • mischevious

    • wants simba to die

    • both have insecurity issues

  • zazu = polonius

    • big ego

  • Timone and Pumba = Rosencrantz and Guildenstern nice version

    • massive ego

    • advisor to the king

  • Naala = Horatio

    • Simba’s trusted friend, always sticks by him, doesn’t listen to other people

1 Page Reflection

  1. What did you like about Hamlet? 

    1. I thought that Hamlet did a really great job of being able to show the madness that comes with the inability to make decisions. Normally when I heard that Hamlet makes a Shakespearean novel relatable I didn’t believe it. I thought that how could this author from 500 years ago make something that is relatable. However, I was pleasantly surprised and I thought that the book was extremely relatable. I thought that personally for every single action that Hamlet that was partaking, I could think of similar occasions in my life where I’ve dealt with similar memories and similar things to deal with

    2. I thought the cast of Hamlet brought various perspectives and I thought that it was really important towards understanding the story

  2. What did you not like? 

    1. I REALLY did not like the ending. I thought that it was extremely rushed and it felt like characters were dying for no purpose rather than them not dying. The entire story seemed like this teetering balance between action and inaction, and I was at the edge of my seat the entire time, but its almost like at the end that they suddenly receive a burst full of action.

  3. What do you think the theme of the story is?

    1. I think that the theme of the story is looking at the difference between action and inaction and our balance between them. It’s looking at the consequences of our actions. Its also about the injustices in life, and how sometimes its better to just put up with the injustices of life rather than act and risk messing everything up

  4. What activities did you enjoy doing the most? What activities did you feel like could be changed or replaced with others that might be more interesting or insightful 

    1. I thought my favorite activity was the tombstone, I enjoyed doing the epitaph and I thought it was very fun to try and create something that was mocking polonius

    2. I think that more interesting activities maybe coukld be like speaking hamlets lines especially the to be or not to be solliloquy, I think practicing that is useful

  5. Who was your favorite character? Why? Who was your least favorite character? Why? 

    1. My favorite character is polonius. We’ve all been a polonius at some point. I feel like hes perfectly relatable in the fact that he makes so many mistakes, yet always thinks hes right. He represents our hubris perfectly

  6. What act did you think was the best? Why? What act did you think was the worst? Why?

    1. I loved act 3 and 4, I thought it was a perfect pace of not too fast but at the same time it went quickly

    2. I thought that the worst act was act 5 because it was too fast