1. Murder, Revenge, Love, and Hamlet
Yes, More Shakespeare!
Murder, Revenge, Love,
and
Hamlet

2. Hamlet
William Shakespeare

3. Objectives Read, understand and analyze Shakespearean poetry/tragedy
Identify a tragic hero and support with textual analysis
Identify and analyze poetic elements as they affect the telling of a story, development of a character or emerging of a theme
Analyze a theme as it carries throughout an entire work using textual support

4. The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark
Published in 1604
The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark

5. Just Imagine… Your father has just died Your mother marries your uncle
You’re visited by the ghost of your dead father who tells you he was murdered by your new dad
You have a girlfriend who is mentally unstable
You have an unhealthy infatuation with your own mother

6. Setting Late medieval period in Denmark
Hamlet feels the pressure to avenge his father’s death
His father’s ghost visits him and reveals that Hamlet’s uncle Claudius has murdered him in order to become king
Hamlet struggles with trusting the ghost

7. Major Characters Hamlet, Prince of Denmark
Claudius, King of Denmark, Hamlet’s Uncle
Gertrude, Queen of Denmark, Hamlet’s Mother
Polonius, Lord Chamberlain of Claudius’ court
Horatio, Hamlet’s friend
Ophelia, Polonius’s daughter, Hamlet’s love
Laertes, Polonius’s son
Fortinbras, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern

8. Ambiguity
There are many ambiguities in Hamlet, the audience is left with uncertainty about several things
Gertrude’s guilt
Hamlet’s love for Ophelia
Is Hamlet’s revenge morally justified?
and more…
Shakespeare may have intended for these ambiguities to enhance the theme of uncertainty

9. Film Adaptations
1948 – British film directed by and starred Laurence Olivier (Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Actor)
1964 – Russian adaptation, most soliloquies cut out – Hamlet is delayed not by inner conflict but instead by circumstances
1969 – First color film directed by Tony Richardson; made with a small budget and minimal set; marketed to teenage audiences as a tragic love story (hoping to gain success after the 1968 Zeffirelli version of Romeo and Juliet)

10. Film Adaptations
1990 –directed by Zeffirelli (same guy who did R & J), starred Mel Gibson, Glenn Close, and Helena Bonham Carter; fits into the “action” genre; highlights the sexual nature of the relationship between Hamlet and his mother
directed by and starred Kenneth Branagh
Full text (runs about 4 hours); also features Billy Crystal, Robin Williams, and Kate Winslet; vibrant colors, extensive Victorian costumes and furnishings
2000 – Starring Ethan Hawke, Hamlet is a film student and the “kingdom” is the Denmark Corporation and instead of becoming King, Hamlet’s uncle becomes CEO; ghost appears on closed circuit television; also stars Julia Stiles, Liev Schreiber, and Bill Murray

11. Reading Deadlines Act I by Friday, October 27th
Act II by Tuesday, October 31st
Act III by Monday, November 6th
Act IV by Wednesday, November 8th
Act V by Monday, November 13th

12. Reading Act I Act I – Scene I Act I – Scene II Barnardo
Francisco
Horatio
Marcellus
Act I – Scene II
King (Claudius)
Queen (Gertrude)
Cornelius/Voltemand
Laertes
Polonius
Hamlet
Horatio
Marcellus