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TRANSCRIPT
10/18/2010
1
About the Man
&
Context for the Play
English 621
2010
Generously Liberated from Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 1 10/18/2010 2From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes
The most influential
writer in all of English
literature, William
Shakespeare was born in
1564 to a successful
middle-class glove-maker
in Stratford-upon-Avon,
England.
From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 3 From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 4
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Shakespeare attended grammar school, but his formal education proceeded no further. Don’t let that fact
give you any ideas about quitting though…
From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 6
In 1582 he married an
older woman, Anne
Hathaway, and had three
children with her.
After he left for London,
she embarked on a
moderately successful film
career in Hollywood.
From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 7
Around 1590 he left his
family behind and
traveled to London to
work as an actor and
playwright.
History also suggests
that William took small
roles in other
productions to help
finance his writing.
From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 8
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Public and critical success quickly followed, and Shakespeare eventually became the most popular playwright in England and part-owner of the Globe Theater.
From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 9 10/18/2010 10
His career bridged the
reigns of Elizabeth I
(1558–1603) and
James I (1603–1625),
and he was a favorite of
both monarchs.
James granted
Shakespeare’s company
the greatest possible
compliment by bestowing
the title of King’s Men.
From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 11
Wealthy and world-
famous, Shakespeare
retired to Stratford and
died in 1616 at the age of
fifty-two.
His will never mentioned
any of his plays since, at
that time, they were the
property of the King’s
Men and not his.
From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 12
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Shakespeare’s works were
collected and printed in
many editions in the
century following his
death.
The First Folio was
published seven years after
his death by his actor
friends to preserve his
legacy.
By the early 18th Century
(1700s), his reputation as
the greatest English-
language poet was well
established.
From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 13
The fascination with his works led to a fierce curiosity about Shakespeare’s life.
However, the absence of biographical information has left many details of Shakespeare’s personal history shrouded in mystery.
From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 14
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Where did he get all his great ideas? As was common,
Shakespeare borrowed ideas for his plays from earlier literary works.Why did he have
to do that?
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In Shakespeare’s time, an
acting company could not
expect a playwright to write
in a vacuum.
Alone without help.
The nature of the schedule, in
which a new play could be
demanded weekly, required
playwrights to get together
and share their ideas.
English playwrights at this time freely borrowed material from one another and shared criticisms/edits. Christopher Marlowe was
Shakespeare’s closest rival.
Each play definitely presents Shakespeare’s work, but also the contributions of actors, managers, and so forth, who all knew what parts of a play to leave in or take out.
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10/18/2010From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 17
Shakespeare likely
wouldn’t be impressed to
learn that his work is
being studied.
He wrote for entertainment
value; for the same
audiences who loved
watching executions.
This crowd loved ‘staged
mayhem’.
The English crowd loved
gore (blood and guts).
Stage crews would do their
best to show blood, illness,
love scenes, etc. look real.
His plays appealed to
everyone, even if they
didn’t understand many of
the words.
Sound familiar?
Some people have concluded
that Shakespeare’s plays were
really written by someone else
(Sir Francis Bacon and the Earl
of Oxford are the popular
candidates).
Support for this claim is
circumstantial and the theory is
not taken seriously by many
scholars, including one bald one
in this room.From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 18
10/18/2010From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 19
Without credible evidence to prove otherwise, Shakespeare must be viewed as the author of the 37 plays and 154 sonnets that bear his name.
The legacy of this body of work is immense.
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Hamlet is Shakespeare’s
most famous play.
Its original title:
The Revenge of Hamlet
Prince of Denmark.
It has been called the
‘perfect play’.
From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 21 10/18/2010From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 22
Was probably written in 1600 or 1601.
It was most likely first performed in July 1602.Why July?
10/18/2010From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 23
Shakespeare could have
taken the story of
Hamlet from:
A 12th Century Latin
history of Denmark;
A French prose work
(story) entitled Histoires
Tragiques.
10/18/2010From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 24
The raw material that he
‘borrowed’ from these
works in writing Hamlet
is of a Danish prince
whose uncle murders the
prince’s father, marries
his mother, and claims
the throne.
The prince (Hamlet) then
pretends to be feeble-
minded to throw his
uncle off guard, then
manages to kill his uncle
in revenge. This is where the
similarities end.
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10/18/2010From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 25
Shakespeare changed the
emphasis of this story
entirely, making Hamlet
a philosophical prince
who delays taking action
because his knowledge of
his uncle’s crime is so
uncertain. He is too deliberate (thinks
too much).10/18/2010From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 26
Earlier versions of the story were quite bloody.
Shakespeare made it poetic and full of thought-provoking speeches on : The meaning of life & death Eternity
Relationships Hypocrisy
Truth God’s existence
Other concerns of mankind.
10/18/2010From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 27
He also went beyond
making uncertainty a
quirk of Hamlet’s,
introducing a number of
ambiguities into the play
that even the audience
cannot resolve for
certainty.
For Example:
Does Hamlet’s mother, Gertrude,
share Claudius’s guilt?
Does Hamlet continue to love
Ophelia, even as he spurns her in
Act III?
Is Ophelia’s death a suicide or an
accident?
Does the ghost offer reliable
knowledge or does it seek to
deceive and tempt Hamlet?
Most importantly, is Hamlet
morally justified in taking
revenge against his uncle?
10/18/2010From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 28
Shakespeare makes it clear that the stakes riding on some of these questions are enormous. The actions of these
characters bring disaster upon an entire kingdom.
At the play’s end, it isn’t even clear whether justice has been achieved.
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Shakespeare was a keen
judge of humanity and
Hamlet is perhaps his best
character to do the same.
As teenagers know,
Hamlet’s dual nature is very
recognizable:
Hamlet is: Sensitive
Poetic
Artistic Loving
He is also: Treacherous (stabs friends
in the back).
Lecherous (treats his girlfriend badly)
Murderous (shows no remorse for killing other men).
From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 29
It is the play which is most quoted. It is also the play most
adapted to film.
No one interpretation of the play exists or is accepted as the ‘correct one’. They all stand alone.
From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 30
Why? Because he is everyone.
He is driven to avenge his
father’s death, but his
emotions tear him in two:
He wants to right a
horrible wrong, but his
morals tell him that murder
is a sin, no matter what.
His indecision proves to be
his downfall.From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 31
Most of the conflict Hamlet must overcome results from his own internal struggles, not from outside influences or other characters. Although there are a fair
share of external obstacles as well.
Polonius, Claudius, Laertes, Gertrude, Ophelia, Ghost, Gravedigger, etc.
The only proof he has of his uncle’s guilt is the word of a ghost. To the world around him, the
cheese has slid of Hamlet’s cracker. He is ‘insane’.
The Danish subjects have no reason to think his uncle is anything but a noble king.
Hamlet has no clear allies.
He is alone.
From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 32
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A Who’s Who in Hamlet
10/18/2010 33From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 10/18/2010 34
10/18/2010From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 35
King Hamlet
King of Denmark
Castle in Elsinore
Killed by his brother
Now a ghost
Claudius The King’s brother
Murdered King Hamlet
Gertrude Don’t call her ‘Gert’
King Hamlet’s Wife
Widowed
Now Claudius’s Wife
Hamlet Son of the King and Gert
A Sad Boy…Man…Boy
man
10/18/2010From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 36
Polonius Lord Chamberlain
King’s Flunky
Claudius’s Stooge
Laertes His son
Student in France
Hot-tempered
Ophelia His daughter
Hamlet’s GFF
Mentally unstable
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10/18/2010From Cliffsnotes and Sparknotes 37
Horatio Hamlet’s trusted friend/advisor.
Marcellus Guard (ghost witness)
Bernardo Guard (ghost witness)
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Hamlet’s school chums
Now working against Hamlet for Claudius
Old Norway Norway’s defeated King.
Defeated by King Hamlet before the play begins.
Fortinbras Norway’s nephew, plotting to invade
Denmark
Others: Osric, Voltimand, Yorick, Reynaldo,
Francisco, Cornelius, Lucianus, Roy, Roy’s Mom.