2. The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark General Information –Date of Publication –Genre –Setting (TIME) –Setting (PLACE) 1603- late in Shakespeare’s career. Aristotelian Tragedy Late Middle Ages Denmark 3 Modern Movie Adaptations of the Play from Mel Gibson, Kenneth Branagh, and Ethan Hawke

3. Background Information –Renaissance Movement –Humanist Movement Influenced by Histoires Tragiques by Francosi de Belleforest Focused on interests in the human experience and optimism about the scope of human understanding A reaction to the Renaissance: –Explored the limitations of man’s understanding At its core, Hamlet is a play about the difficulty of human’s having to live life in a world with so many unanswerable questions

4. Personification –Denmark Shakespeare returns us to the home of King Hrothgar in the days of Beowulf. Fate will once again play a role. Denmark is described throughout the play in terms of being a human body With King Hamlet, Denmark was healthy and strong With King Claudius, Denmark becomes weak and corrupted

5. HAMLET OVERVIEWPart I- A GHOST STORY? King Hamlet’s ghost visits Denmark in the dead of night. Is this illusion or reality? Will the spirit lead young Hamlet astray? He is confused, hesitant and even loses his mind a little as he searches for the truth.

6. A DETECTIVE STORY? –Protagonist –Antagonist –Major Conflict: Hamlet- a flawed hero figure Claudius- Machiavellian character- order in society must be maintained! Hamlet faces self-doubts and obstacles as he weighs whether his father’s death was an accident. Hamlet watches on as his mother marries his uncle

7. A REVENGE STORY?Part of Hamlet’s confusion that he thinks his father was murdered. IS HAMLET MAD AS IN ANGRY? OR IS HE MAD AS IN INSANE? WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE IN THE END? Who can be trusted? What is the meaning of love and true friendship? The Play’s the Thing! Hamlet Hesitating to Kill his Uncle in Prayer

8. A STORY OF REVENGE AND CORRUPTION? “SOMETHING IS ROTTEN IN THE STATE OF DENMARK” HAMLET WILL SET A TRAP. –How deep does the corruption go? –Is it political? Physical? –Social? Personal? Hamlet killing the Chamberlain Laertes preparing to fence Hamlet

9. A Story of Fate and Tragedy? Aristotle’s Poetics dictates that in a true tragedy the tragic figure must be sympathetic or the audience will not experience catharsis ( the emotional turning point in which sadness and pity are released) Order is restored in the end though many lie characters lie dead. Shakespeare is a master of the Aristotelian tragedy

10. Characters –Hamlet Protagonist Son of Gertrude and the dead King Hamlet; nephew of Claudius Melancholy, bitter and cynical Feels hatred toward Claudius and detests the Queen’s sexuality Indecisive and hesitant one moment and rash and impulsive at other times

11. Characters –Claudius The king of demark, Hamlet’s uncle, King Hamlet’s brother and the plays antagonist Calculating, ambitious politician driven by sexual appetites and lust for power Sincerely loves Gertrude

12. Characters –Queen Gertrude Hamlet’s mother. Marries Claudius after the death of the King Loves Hamlet but is more concerned with selfish desires than discovering the truth.

13. Characters –Polonius The Lord Chamberlain of Claudius’s court Father of Laertes and Ophelia Pompous and conniving Sneaky and suspicious

14. Characters –Ophelia Polonius’s daughter and Laertes’ sister Intimate with Hamlet Archetype of the Sweet and Innocent

15. Characters –Laertes Polonius’s son and Ophelia’s brother Passionate and does not hesitate to act Plays a foil to Hamlet’s more contemplative self

16. Characters –Horatio –Fortinbras Hamlet’s best friend Loyal and Helpful to Hamlet The Young Prince of Norway. His father was killed by Hamlet’s father. A foil for Hamlet, who is seeking to avenge his father’s honor by conquering Denmark.

17. Conflicts and Themes Impossibility of Certainty Corruptive Nature of Power Revenge Self Doubt Action vs. Inaction Loyalty vs. Selfishness Inevitability of Death Madness Hamlet’s is constantly battling self-doubt; he looks inward for answers, but rarely finds any certainty

18. Symbol –Yorick’s Skull Representative of the destructive nature of death: Every human—great or small—meets the same end

19. Famous Quotations from Hamlet "This above all: to thine own self be true” “Frailty, thy name is woman!” “Though this be madness, yet there is method in 't.” "What a piece of work is man. How noble in reason. How infinite in faculty. In form and moving how express and admirable. In action, how like an angel. In apprehension, how like a God. The beauty of the world. The paragon of animals. And yet, to me, what is this quintessence of dust. Man delights not me. "Murder most foul, as in the best it is, But this most foul, strange, and unnatural." "To be or not to be-that is the question: Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles And, by opposing, end them." "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.“ "A little more than kin and less than kind.”