SCHOLARSHIP
Scholars and audiences interpreting Hamlet may struggle when contemplating the theme of death throughout the play. This begins as early as Hamlet’s “to be or not to be” soliloquy, which entices scholars to debate whether this speech supports the concept of suicide, making death attractive and admirable, or whether it labels the act as insane, crazy, and irrational. As the play progresses, we see a building argument arise. The question being - does death drive one to insanity and irrationality or does the latter drive one to death? Some scholars argue that the initial deaths in the play followed by memento mori symbols drive characters such as Hamlet, Ophelia, and Laertes into an irrational craze, while others conclude that the insanity within Hamlet and other characters incite death and cause many of the later murders. A final challenge many scholars face is interpreting whether or not murder is justified through vengeance. There are several instances when death and murder seem moral, perhaps in the case of avenging one's father. For instance, Claudius poisoned Hamlet’s father, stole the throne, and married Gertrude all within three months of King Hamlet’s death. Some scholars argue it is needed in this situation to bring justice to the state of Denmark. They explain that the play, Gonzalo, done by the actors within Hamlet provides a situation similar to that of Hamlet and displays revenge as an applauded action. However, others suggest that murder is morally unjust in all regards. They may interpret the story of “Pyrrhus and Priam” as a prime example of unjustified vengeance. Quite similarly, when Laertes wishes to avenge his father, many scholars suggest that Hamlet is innocent because his act of murder was unintentional, while others suggest Hamlets ignorance justifies Laertes’ vengeance. However, there are also complications with this interpretation such as. Does Hamlet’s father’s murder truly justify him killing Claudius? Does Laertes father’s death truly justify him killing Hamlet? While some readers argue yes and others no, we do not judge whether or not these acts of murder are justified, we do not say, but through support of several other sources, we conclude that the death associated with these murders does in fact cause the destruction within Denmark.
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MEMENTO MORI POEMMerris discusses Memento Mori as a prevalent element in Shakespearean writing, especially Hamlet. According to Merris, Memento Mori is the idea that the fear of death manifests itself in characters and symbolism, imagery, diction allow this idea of death to take enlarge and become prominent in the characters daily lives. These symbols and words sometimes work further to reveal the meaning of life after death to some of the characters. The author further argues that Memento Mori highlights the purpose of life, relevance of afterlife, and whether deeds are right or wrong. The audience of this work could be any group of educated people with intentions to more deeply understand the internal conflict Hamlet, Ophelia, Claudius, and Laertes experience. The author further proves his claim by accessing other works that include the theme of Memento Mori that were written prior to or during Shakespeare's time. Perhaps Shakespeare is borrowing from their idea of manifested death or perhaps his idea grows in its own. Either way, it becomes clear that Memento Mori is a very distinguished idea common in literature of the time and thus it is very likely that Shakespeare tactfully chose to deeply integrate this theme in his own works. While the author uses a lot of textual evidence, he also relies heavily on works outside of Hamlet to emphasize his claims about the play. This puts his idea into a broader more relevant context. The author successfully argues his claim that Memento Mori is a prevalent part of Hamlet. By using textual evidence and analysis, the author makes his claim and convinces us of his argument, but then, he consolidates the validity of his claim by showing how Shakespeare uses Memento Mori in a few of his other works as well showing it to be a fine element of his writing, and how his version of Memento Mori coincides with others of the time period and prior. Hamlet may be read as a play manifested with internal conflict and grief. However, upon deeper analysis, this conflict and grief stems from the fear of death, loss of loved ones, fear of the afterlife, and the way in which the characters day by day realities and interactions seem to continuously remind them of death and its ensuing conflict. Thus, the collection of death and it’s symbols prove to be another bad collection within Hamlet. Merris, Harry. “Hamlet as a Memento Mori Poem.” PMLA 85.5 (1970)
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Death in the sub story of Pyrrhus and PriamThis work by Maurice Hunt describes the scene in which the actor tells the story of “Pyrrhus’ terrible revenge upon Priam”(3) in order to highlight the negatives of revenge acts - more specifically those that involve murder and death. It explains that while murder is justified for Pyrrhus – due to the death of Pyrrhus’ father – much like for Hamlet, the crowd still sympathizes with the one murdered not the murderer. It explains that in Pyrus’s case, there were many innocent people who would suffer for his act since Priam ruled a kingdom of his own. Hunt says that however, “sympathy lies with the victim not the avenger. It paves the way for Hamlet’s questioning of the ‘honesty’ of the ghost that has demanded of him that he perform such a deed.” While Hamlet expects the story to support his revenge, and murder of Claudius it ultimately expresses strong feelings against any such act. For “the passage which Hamlet wished to hear was written by a moral author who suggests to Hamlet a humane reason for not killing Pyrrhus’ alter ego Claudius, even though he is a felon who deserves death. [...] The author's intense compassion for relatively guiltless Priam conflicts with the Ghost's command to murder Claudius. Shakespeare in this case suggests that an artistic mirror of vengeance contains compassionate elements that render that art unfit either to incite bloody acts or to serve as a model for contemplated revenge” (5). Thus, in the end, the general consensus is that murder has no positive outcomes to support its motive. Hunt makes his claims through a close reading and analysis of Hamlet along with outside research on the story of Pyrrhus and Priam. By pulling in a thorough analysis of revenge and murder in the Greek myth, he is better able to compare this story with that of Hamlet and achieve higher credibility. Overall, the author backs each of his claims with credible sources and research making his argument successful. Therefore, due to the prevalence of revenge and murder in Hamlet and supported by Hunt’s opinion of murder as an inappropriate action, we may view death and murder as a bad collection within Hamlet. Hunt, Marice. "Art of Judgement, Art of compassion: The Two Arts of Hamlet." PMLA (March 1, 1991)
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VIDEO AND PERFORMANCE
JOHN GREEN - HamletGreen explains that ambiguity is prevalent in many of Shakespeare’s plays including Hamlet and that this ambiguity helps outline and shape the scenes of the play. For instance, he explains that after seeing his father’s ghost, Hamlet is left to closely watch and interoperate Claudius’s actions as the Ghost could either have presented the truth or a lie, and this ambiguity is left for Hamlet to solve. Further, Laertes interpretation of his father’s death leaves him with a choice he must make. Whether to place his faith in Hamlet or Claudius. Based on each character’s story, either Hamlet or Claudius may be his enemy. Green argues that extensive ambiguity leads characters to obsessively and compulsively watch and analyze other character’s which leads to many misconceptions and eventually the mass catastrophe in the end. Green uses a close reading of Hamlet, research on the history of England, and research on Shakespeare as a writer to develop his claim. By supporting his ideas with not only scenes from the book, but also facts on Shakespearean work in general, Green makes his claims stronger, more coherent, and more analytical. His interpretation of ambiguity as the root of Hamlet’s final tragedy supports our interpretation of Hamlet as a bad collection. For in this instance, the collection of ambiguities among characters lead them to hysteric assumptions and interpretations that in the end lead them to take aggressive action, resulting in the mass murder at the end of the play. Crash Course. “Ghosts, Murder, and More Murder - Hamlet Part I Crash Course Literature 203." Online video clip. YouTube. 3/13/2014. Web. April 18, 2018.
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"To be or not to be"This recording of Hamlet’s “to be or not to be” soliloquy not only shows hamlet pondering death, but also explains death from his point of view. Throughout the recording, the Hamlet’s eyes seem attached to the mirror with a deadly grip, his face portrays expressions of insanity, obsession, and craze, and he consistently uses harsh abrupt diction. Through the speech itself, Hamlet introduces death as a way to ease pain and alleviate the stresses in life. However, as the soliloquy progresses, Hamlet emphasises the idea of death in its entirety, explaining that it hides the unknown. That despite its appeal, an element of entering the unknown with no way to return still remains. This video uses direct textual quotation, stage directions, and vivid acting to portray Hamlet's view of death as well as show how death has impacted Hamlet. The creator of this scene obviously used close reading to interpret Hamlet's soliloquy and assign actions and expressions to Hamlet’s words. Since the video relates the play, its diction, and its stage directions so closely to the exact words and directions in the book, it does an excellent job of accomplishing its goal. This interpretation of the “to be or not to be” speech supports our claim of death as a bad collections because, while Hamlet does not directly say whether death is good or bad, his facial expressions and tone do imply the later. For through such intense and angry diction, Hamlet makes it obvious that pondering death has emotionally degraded him. This therefore emphasizes the prevalence of death in Hamlet’s thought process and how it degrades his well being. Death is a collection in Hamlet that germinates in Hamlet’s mind after seeing his father’s ghost, show much growth in his soliloquy, and then continues to evolve into a massive, terrible veil over the Kingdom of Denmark throughout in the play. Bonaiuti, Carlo. “To be or not to be - Kenneth Branagh HD (Hamlet." Online video clip. YouTube. 9/7/2013. Web. April 18, 2018.
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INTERNET ARTICLES
"Death in 'Hamlet'"
In this reading, the author explains three main acts and or symbols of death in Hamlet: the ghost, the skulls, Ophelia’s death, and suicide in general. They explain that the ghost represents not only death, but also represents a disruption of social order in Denmark. Next, while many associate skulls with death, the author not only makes this association, but goes further to show how the skulls symbolize the frailty death and human life. In reference to Ophelia’s death, the author highlights the issue it causes, as it causes disruption and a quarrelling brawl between Hamlet and Laertes. The author uses close reading and direct textual evidence to support each of his claims. By supporting each claim with at least one passage or paraphrased passage from Hamlet, the author successfully backs each of his claims, making them strong and defined. Since the author evaluates multiple occurrences of death in Hamlet and then relates each to an element of chaos or destruction, it supports our claim that death is not only prevalent in Hamlet but also a bad collection that brings devastation and chaos to Denmark. Galita, Raluca. “IMAGERY OF DEATH IN HAMLET.” Academia.edu, www.academia.edu/1938040/IMAGERY_OF_DEATH_IN_HAMLET.
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Imagery of Death in "Hamlet"
This source discusses the importance of imagery in the portrayal and explanation of death in Hamlet. According to Raluca Galita, such imagery ranges from anything as small as stage instructions to as obvious as the Ghost of King Hamlet. She explains that the image of death is portrayed on multiple levels. One of which is textual. For instance, the ghost, the poison, the ongoing wars, and the skulls in the graveyard directly relay death as an overarching theme throughout Hamlet by providing concrete symbolism. These symbols then strongly support characters to deeply ponder the role of death and its effects on their lives. She goes further to explain that Shakespeare portrays death intertextually through sub plays within Hamlet - the play of Gorgonzola and also the story of Pyrrhus and the Trojans - leading characters to relate their situations in life to others who have experienced the effects of death such as Pyrrhus and Gorgonzola. The author uses strong textual analysis to support her claims along with research on the stories of Pyrrhus and Gorgonzola embedded within Hamlet. By focusing solely on the imagery of death rather than the many complications death causes within the play, the author successfully focuses the reader's attention on imagery and death as an overarching symbol rather than just an action. Galita’s explanation of death’s physical prevalence in Hamlet supports our claim of death as a collection in Hamlet. Then, by her further analysis of the imagery of death as the ultimate support for the character’s destruction, this work supports our claim of death as a bad collection. Jamieson, Lee. “Death as a Theme in ‘Hamlet.’” ThoughtCo, www.thoughtco.com/death-in-hamlet-2984976.
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