3. Recount the sources of HAMLET.

The immediate source of Hamlet is an earlier play dramatising the same story of
Hamlet, the Danish prince who must avenge his father. No printed text of this play
survives and it may well have been seen only in performance and never in print.
4. Identify the elements of tragedy in HAMLET.
- Revenge motive
- Internal and external conflicts
- comic relief
- Tragic hero/flaw/mistake
- Supernatural element
- Chance Happenings
5. Provide the evidence of Shakespeare’s power of the language in HAMLET.
In Hamlet,  words are weapons and can be like poison in the ear or like daggers.
Furthermore, Hamlet’s deep connection with language and words causes him to base
his perceptions of reality on his interpretation and understanding of words.
One of the central images in Shakespeare’s Hamlet is that of the ear being poisoned,
both literally and metaphorically. While in the case of Hamlet’s murdered father the
poison was inserted directly into the ear, the meaning is extended to include the power
offered by words and language to manipulate and destroy. In essence, as the play
progresses, words are the key to both the driving action of the play as well its outcome
as all characters have somehow been affected by poisoned words. In many senses, each
character’s sense of reality has been created and shaped because of their relationship to
language and words, often to tragic ends. The reader is offered some degree of
foreshadowing when the ghost of Hamlet’s father states that Claudius has poisoned
“the whole ear of Denmark" with his words. 

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7. Consider the major themes in HAMLET:

 Revenge
Revenge is a prominent theme in Hamlet and a catalyst to many events in the plot.
Several characters seek revenge:
 The ghost of Hamlet's father wants Hamlet to avenge his death.
 Laertes wants to avenge both Polonius's and Ophelia's deaths.
 Fortinbras wants revenge for his father's death and for military losses.
Of the characters prominently involved in vengeful action, Fortinbras is the only one
who does not die as a direct result. It might be said that Hamlet's death was less a result
of his own action (or attempted action) and unavoidable because Claudius and his need
to protect his position was the force behind that string of events. It could be argued that
Claudius's actions might have resulted in Hamlet's demise regardless of whatever
Hamlet decided to do about the ghost's entreaty.
Both Hamlet and Fortinbras grow in spite of—or perhaps because of—the vengeful
actions they undertake or attempt to undertake. The same might not be said about
Laertes, however, unless the last-minute wisdom by which he asks for and extends
forgiveness counts. And, ultimately, with the carnage of the final scene so
poignant, Shakespeare could be making a case for the uselessness of revenge, but that
could also be a 21st-century viewpoint overlaid on a 17th-century drama.

 Appearance vs. Reality

 Sanity vs. Insanity

Madness is a theme explored in Hamlet, particularly as it relates to Hamlet, Ophelia,
and maybe even Claudius (if one considers egomania a form of madness). Interestingly,
too, madness goes hand-in-hand with truth versus deception because whether Hamlet's
madness is real or feigned remains an open question throughout the play.
 Decay and Corruption
The idea of truth versus deception, which at times is expressed more as reality versus
appearance, is prevalent in Hamlet. This theme plays out in major ways; the deceitful
way by which Claudius came to power underpins the entire play. And it is also
developed in smaller ways; the fact that Polonius is willing to spread rumors
about Laertes to investigate his behavior in France tells us something about the nature
of Polonius's relationships with his children.
The play presents many characters who thrive on deceit (Polonius, Claudius), and
many situations that evolve out of deceit (Polonius's death when he tries to eavesdrop
on Gertrude and Hamlet).
Every scene and act contain examples, such as:

 The presence of the ghost—as a witness to the truth, or as a figment of Hamlet's

imagination
 The presence of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern—and their true mission—in
Elsinore
 Claudius's motivation in bringing Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to Elsinore
 Claudius's very existence
 The company of players
 Hamlet putting on an "antic disposition"

CHARACTER ANALYSIS
1. The following phrases might be used to describe the character of Prince Hamlet. How
do you think each relates to Hamlet’s nature? Refer to the text for support.
•a victim of circumstance - when he died because of all events that were caused by the
king
•a man incapable of taking action - he was not satisfied with new king but was
incapable to do anything
• an excessively ambitious prince who lusts for power
•a person of exceptional intellect and intelligence – he was clear enough to make up a
plan how do reveal the truth about his father’s death
•a man in the grip of insanity – after having seen the ghost almost all his actions were
in the grip of insanity
Prince Hamlet is a gentle, deep-thinking, loving, and loyal man. He is not only intelligent but
also quick-witted, appreciative of his standing, and self-aware. He is a decent soul, well-liked by
those close to him. As an only child, he is consumed with grief after the death of his father, King
Hamlet. Audiences get as tangled in his thinking as he is, especially those who get stuck, as
Polonius does, in wondering whether the prince is mad.
2. Consider Hamlet’s behavior when he is with each of the following characters. What is
revealed about him in his dealings with each of these people?
•Claudius – he tries to come across as a good nephew, but in reality has intention to kill
him
•Gertrude – she is his mother and he needs to look up on her, but he doesn’t like her
inside because of her deeds and the fact that she got remarried and betrayed his father
•Ophelia – during the play his attitude to her changed, but I guessed he really loved
her. I was sure of it at the end of the play when she was buried.
•Horatio – his true friend. He shows how he likes him and it make us sure that they
have good relations and almost no secrets
•Polonius – he disobeys him, because saw his real character
•Rosencrantz and Guildenstern – they were his friends in childhood but then became
dependent from the king
3. What developments and/or states of mind do each of Hamlet’s six soliloquies reveal?
(I, ii (https://www.sparknotes.com/nofear/shakespeare/hamlet/page_22/) -
HAMLET
Ah, I wish my dirty flesh could melt away into a vapor, or that God had not made a law
against suicide. Oh God, God! How tired, stale, and pointless life is to me. Damn it! It’s
like a garden that no one’s taking care of, and that’s growing wild. Only nasty weeds
grow in it now. I can’t believe it’s come to this. My father’s only been dead for two
months—no, not even two. Such an excellent king, as superior to my uncle as a god is
to a beast, and so loving toward my mother that he kept the wind from blowing too hard
on her face.
Oh God, do I have to remember that? She would hang on to him, and the more she was with
him the more she wanted to be with him; she couldn’t get enough of him. Yet even so, within a
month of my father’s death (I don’t even want to think about it. Oh women! You are so weak!),
even before she had broken in the shoes she wore to his funeral, crying like crazy—even an
animal would have mourned its mate longer than she did!—there she was marrying my uncle,
my father’s brother, who’s about as much like my father as I’m like Hercules. Less than a month
after my father’s death, even before the tears on her cheeks had dried, she remarried. Oh, so
quick to jump into a bed of incest! That’s not good, and no good can come of it either. But my
heart must break in silence, since I can’t mention my feelings aloud.
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I’m alone. Oh, what a mean low-life I am! It’s awful that this actor could force his soul to feel
made-up feelings in a work of make-believe. He grew pale, shed real tears, became
overwhelmed, his voice breaking with feeling and his whole being, even, meeting the needs of
his act—and all for nothing. For Hecuba! What is Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba, that he would
weep for her? Just imagine what he would do if he had the cause for feeling that I do. He would
drown the stage with his tears and burst the audience’s ears with his terrible words, drive the
guilty spectators crazy, terrify the innocent ones, confuse the ignorant ones, and astound
absolutely everyone’s eyes and ears. But what do I, a grim and uncourageous rascal, do? Mope
around like a dreamer, not even bothering with plans for revenge, and I can say nothing—
nothing at all—on behalf of a king whose dear life was stolen. Am I a coward? Is there anyone
out there who’ll call me “villain” and slap me hard? Pull off my beard? Pinch my nose? Call me
the worst liar? By God, if someone would do that to me, I’d take it, because I’m a lily-livered
man—otherwise, I would’ve fattened up the local vultures with the intestines of that low-life
king a long time ago. Bloody, inhuman villain! Remorseless, treacherous, sex-obsessed,
unnatural villain! Ah, revenge! What an ass I am. I’m so damn brave. My dear father’s been
murdered, and I’ve been urged to seek revenge by heaven and hell, and yet all I can do is stand
around cursing like a whore in the streets. Damn it! I need to get myself together here! Hmm….
I’ve heard that guilty people watching a play have been so affected by the artistry of the scene
that they are driven to confess their crimes out loud. Murder has no tongue, but miraculously it
still finds a way to speak. I’ll have these actors perform something like my father’s murder in
front of my uncle. I’ll watch my uncle. I’ll probe his conscience and see if he flinches. If he
becomes pale, I know what to do. The ghost I saw may be the devil, and the devil has the
power to assume a pleasing disguise, and so he may be taking advantage of my weakness and
sadness to bring about my damnation. I need better evidence than the ghost to work with. The
play’s the thing to uncover the conscience of the king.

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question is: is it better to be alive or dead? Is it nobler to put up with all the nasty things that luck
throws your way, or to fight against all those troubles by simply putting an end to them once and
for all? Dying, sleeping—that’s all dying is—a sleep that ends all the heartache and shocks that
life on earth gives us—that’s an achievement to wish for. To die, to sleep—to sleep, maybe to
dream. Ah, but there’s the catch: in death’s sleep who knows what kind of dreams might come,
after we’ve put the noise and commotion of life behind us. That’s certainly something to worry
about. That’s the consideration that makes us stretch out our sufferings so long.
After all, who would put up with all life’s humiliations—the abuse from superiors, the insults of
arrogant men, the pangs of unrequited love, the inefficiency of the legal system, the rudeness of
people in office, and the mistreatment good people have to take from bad—when you could
simply take out your knife and call it quits? Who would choose to grunt and sweat through an
exhausting life, unless they were afraid of something dreadful after death, the undiscovered
country from which no visitor returns, which we wonder about without getting any answers from
and which makes us stick to the evils we know rather than rush off to seek the ones we don’t?
Fear of death makes us all cowards, and our natural boldness becomes weak with too much
thinking. Actions that should be carried out at once get misdirected, and stop being actions at
all. But shh, here comes the beautiful Ophelia. Pretty lady, please remember me when you
pray.
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could do it easily now. He’s praying now. And now I’ll do it. (he draws out his sword) And there
he goes, off to heaven. And that’s my revenge. I’d better think about this more carefully. A villain
kills my father, and I, my father’s only son, send this same villain to heaven. Seems like I just did
him a favor. He killed my father when my father was enjoying life, with all his sins in full bloom,
before my father could repent for any of them. Only God knows how many sins my father has to
pay for. As for me, I don’t think his prospects look so good. So is it really revenge for me if I kill
Claudius right when he is confessing his sins, in perfect condition for a trip to heaven? No.
Away, sword, and wait for a better moment to kill him. (he puts his sword away) When he’s
sleeping off some drunken orgy, or having incestuous sex, or swearing while he gambles, or
committing some other act that has no goodness about it—that’s when I’ll trip him up and send
him to hell with his heels kicking up at heaven. My mother’s waiting. The king’s trying to cure
himself with prayer, but all he’s doing is keeping himself alive a little longer.
IV, iv (https://www.sparknotes.com/nofear/shakespeare/hamlet/page_230/) - My
God! Everything I see shows me how wrong I am and tells me to hurry up and get on with my
revenge. What is a human being if he just eats and sleeps? Nothing more than a beast. God
didn’t create us with such a huge power of thought and a divine capacity for reason in order for
us not to use them. Now, whether it’s animal-like mindlessness, or the cowardly hesitation that
comes from thinking too much (thinking thoughts that are one part wisdom, three parts
cowardice), I don’t know why I’m still alive to say “I have to do this deed” rather than having
done it already. I have the motivation, the willpower, the ability, and the means to do it. It’s as
plain as the ground beneath my feet that I must do it. Look at this massive army led by a
delicate and tender prince who’s so puffed up with divine ambition that he puts his fragile life at
risk, exposing it to danger and death, for a reason as thin as an eggshell. To be truly great
doesn’t mean you’d only fight for a good reason. It means you’d fight over nothing if your honor
was at stake. So where does that leave me, whose father has been murdered and mother
defiled, ignoring these mental and emotional provocations and letting well enough alone?
Meanwhile, to my shame, I watch twenty thousand men go marching to their deaths for an
illusion and a little bit of fame, fighting for a tiny piece of land not even big enough to bury them
all. From now on, if my thoughts aren’t violent I’ll consider them worthless.

4. How do you explain Hamlet’s inability to act in avenging his father’s death?
5. Is Hamlet a likable character? Explain. Do you admire Shakespeare’s ability to
develop a character, or do
you think he leaves too many questions unresolved?
PLOT
1. When the play begins, a major event, the death of King Hamlet has already occurred.
How does this affect
the reader’s understanding of the play?
2. What purposes do the subplots of the relationship between Polonius and his children
and the political
situation with Norway and young Fortinbras serve? How is the story of Prince Hamlet
and his particular
situation reflected in each of these subplots?
3. Look carefully at each act of the drama. What is the function of each? What important
event or situation is
developed in each act by Shakespeare?
4. How does Shakespeare keep his audience apprised of developments outside the
primary action of the play?
Why are events on the ship taking Hamlet to England not portrayed? Find other
examples in the play where
Shakespeare keeps his readers aware of important events, but does so without
presenting the action in the
drama. Is this appropriate in your opinion? Why or why not?
5. Did you find the action in the play difficult to follow? Where? What did you find
challenging about these
sections?

6. Consider the dramatic pacing of the play. Does Shakespeare keep the audience or
reader involved in the
action? How? Explain your opinion.
THEME
1. To what extent is Hamlet’s quest for revenge justifiable in terms of the situation
presented? Why or why not?
2. Find evidence of Hamlet’s religious beliefs. How do these beliefs influence his actions
and decisions?
3. Examine the characters and events in terms of appearance and reality. Cite examples
of things that are not
what they seem.
4. Find examples of imagery that reveal decay or corruption. What effect do these
images have on the reader?
How would you explain Shakespeare’s inclusion of these images in the play?
5. Explain what you think is revealed about human nature in Hamlet. Use characters
and situations to illustrate
your points.
6. Of the themes presented in Hamlet, decide which was most important and justify
your selection.