Hamlet Context

rWILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

  • Son of a glover and the daughter of an affluent landowner 

  • Born in stratford-upon-avon 

  • Born in 1564 and died 1616

  • Third child of eight- oldest suvriing son 

  • Most likely educated at Kings new school in stratford 

  • At 18 he married 26 year old anne hathaway, six months after the marriage anne gave birth to a daughter- sussanna

  • Two years later Shakespeare had twins, a boy and girl, the boy died age 11


Religious context

  • The play is alternately protestant and catholic 

  • The ghost describes hi,self as being in purgatory (catholic concept), as well a sthis ophelias burial is charcateristically catholic 

    • Some scholars have observed that revenge tragedies come from traditionally catholic countries such as spain 

  • Much of the plays protestantism derives from its location- protestant denmark, as well as this the play mentions wittenberg- the birthplace of protestantism

  • Written during a period of reformation 

  • Britain had broken from catholicism under Hnery VIII (elizabeths father)

  • In protestant england the existence of purgatory was denied 

  • Religion also influences the question around revenge and sin, hamlet struggles with the religious implications of avaneging his fathers murder

  • Internal conflict between duty and fear of damnation reveals tension between old honour based values and christian ethics 


Philisophical context 

  • Hamlet is now observed as relativist, existentialism and sceptical,

  • Hamlet discusses the idea hat nothing is real except in the mind of the individual - a concept which finds its roots in greek sophistis

  • Clearest example of existentialism is the ‘to be or not to be’ speech 

  • Hamlet reflects contemporary scepticism prompted by humanist Michel de Montaigne, challenging the view  that man was gods greatest creation - ‘what piece of work is man’


Phychoanalytic context 

  • Freud analysises that the play is built on hamlets hesitation but no motivation of justification for this hesitation is provided.

  • Freud concludes that hamlet has an oedipal desire for his mother and the subsequent guilt is preventing him form murdering claudius 

  • Ernest jones developed freuds analysis and as a subsequence many productions have portrayed the closet scene in a sexual light 

  • Ophelias sadness afer her fathers death can also be read as freudian: she is so overwhklemed by her love for him that his absence drives her into madness 


Feminist Context 

  • New historicists focused on the gender sytem of early modern england pointing to the common trinity of maid,wife or widow with whores exiting outside of that steryotype 

  • Gerturdes transition to ‘whore’ radicalises hamlets perspective of women leading him to lose faith in all women particularly ophelia 

  • There has been defence of gertrude arguing that she had no knowledge of claudius’ crimes 

  • Gertrudes worse crime is prgamatically marrying her brither in law to avoid a power vacuum

  • Ophelia has also been defended by critics- notably showalter: She is surrounded by powerful men, all three of which disappear which could cause her decent into madness, ophelia has become symbol of distruaght and hysterical woman in modern culture 


Scandinavian Legend 

  • Hamlet is likely inspired by Vita Amlethi which was written around 1200 AD

  • Parrales can be found with the icelandic legend with many notbales similarities: Prince who plots revenge on his uncle for killing his father, prince feigning madness an dhis testing by a young woman 


Elizabethan Court 

  • Many of the plays major characters have been identified in members of the elizabethan court 

    • Polonius likely inspired by William cecil- who was massively verbose and in charge of the leizabethan spy system 

    • Aslo thought that Ophelia and laertes were inspired by Cecil’s two children 

  • When written, elizabeth was approaching the end of her reign- there was anxiety around the issue of succession, claudius’ hasty succession mirrored elizabethan anxieties 

  • Claudius’ rise to power raises questions about legitimacy- elizabethan audiences would have seen claudius as a dangerous figure reflecting fears of disorder and rigthful succession 


Elizabethan Women 

  • Rolesof women in elizabethan society were massively limited: expected to be housewives and mothers

  • On average elizabethan women gave birth to a child every two years but many died from sickness

  • Women regarded as the weaker sex 

  • Women not allowed to vote 

  • Gertrudes hast marraige to claudius relects contemporary anxieties about womens secuality and the importance of family honour 


Renaissance and Humanism 

  • Hamlet written during a period of intelectuala nd cultural revival 

  • Renaissance humanism placed a strong emphasis o the potential of human reason and individual agency- evident in the character of Hamlet 

  • Hamlet is deeply reflective, with frequent internal debates- humanist attitude 

  • Rennaisane humanism encouraged scepticism ad the questioning of otherise accepted truths which is mirrored in the ongoing debate on appearance versus reality 


Political Context 

  • Elizabethan england was vulnerable to political instability, foreign powers such as spain were posing challenges to english security

    • The play mirrors this with denmarks conflict with norway- fortinbras mirrors the fear of foreign influence within elizabethan society 

  • Machiavellian politics 

    • Claudius manipulation echos Machiavellian political strategy

    • Machiavelli argue dthat rulers must be willing to use cunning, manipulation and even immorality to achieve control


Revenge tragedy context

  • Revenge tradgey was a very popular genre during the elizabethan era, highly influenced by roman playwright seneca 

  • Delays and soliloquies 

    • On ekey difference is Hamlets hesitations 

    • In traditionbal tragedies the hero is single minded and determined, hamlet subverts this iwth his deep philosophical reflections and internal conflict sets him apart from more straight forward avengers 

  • Violence and catharsis 

    • Hamlet also includes a high level of violence which somewhat acts as a cathariss for the audience- hamlets moral struggle with revenge does however complicate the typical revenge tragedy structure 


The Great Chain of Being 

  • Popular belief in shakesperian society that everything in the universe had its place in a divinelu ordained hierarchy appointed by god 

  • Disorder and restoration 

    • The murder of king hamlet disrupts political and moral order in Denmark 

    • The disorder can only be rectified through the death of claudius and hamlet