Doubt in Hamlet

In act 1 scene 2 of “Hamlet” the character Hamlet speaks his first soliloquy which reveals his innermost thoughts and feelings to the audience. In this soliloquy Hamlet’s unstable state of mind is evident as well as his feelings of despair about his father’s death and his disgust of his mother’s remarriage to his uncle Claudius. Hamlet’s hatred for his uncle is shown through harsh comparisons between Claudius and his late father. This soliloquy takes place after Claudius has begun his reign as king and has addressed the court for the first time but before Hamlet hears about the apparition that Horatio and the guards have seen. Hamlet’s character and personality are shown in this soliloquy through the use of classical imagery, diction and

I Hamlet's second soliloquy, we face a determined Hamlet who is craving revenge for his father. “Ay, thou poor ghost, while memory holds a seat/ In this distracted globe. Remember thee!” Hamlet feels sorry for his father who was unable to repent of his sins and is therefore condemned to a time in purgatory. He promises his father that in spite of his mental state (he is distracted, confused and shocked) he will avenge his death. He holds him in the highest regards because he sees his father as a role model. “Yea, from the table of my memory/ I’ll wipe away all trivial fond records,”. He’ll erase all prior Knowledge and experience and leave only his father’s “commandment”. He will engrave it in the front of his mind to show his

The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark has been performed thousands of times since it was “written in 1599–1601 and published in a quarto edition in 1603” (Britannica.com). It’s popularity stems from its themes that translate across time. These themes, are seen to be relatable even to this day with the ever growing audience. Readers and viewers are able to find similarities between the current state and or even relate to one of the characters or events taking place over the course of Shakespeare’s five act masterpiece. Shakespeare's, The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark remains a viable text for contemporary readers in that it functions as a mirror.

Hamlet is a suspenseful play that introduces the topic of tragedy. Throughout the play, Hamlet displays anger, uncertainty, and obsession with death. Although Hamlet is unaware of it, these emotions cause the mishaps that occur throughout the play. These emotions combined with his unawareness are the leading basis for the tragic hero’s flaws. These flaws lead Hamlet not to be a bad man, but a regular form of imperfection that comes along with being human.

Hamlet sees something that is rotten in his kingdom and he knows it is his moral responsibility to resolve this issues however he finishes off by saying that in actual fact he is powerless “but break my heart, for I must hold my tongue” admitting his weakness. Hamlet begins to grapple with the nature of humanity and morality following the confrontation with the ghost. The appearance of the ghost triggers Hamlet’s existential struggle “All is not well… I doubt some foul play… foul deeds will rise” (Act 1 scene 2) through the use of foreshadowing, Shakespeare exposes the nature of humanity to audiences through the construction of Hamlet’s character. He emphasises that a strong sense of morality can cause conflicts in the decision to make noble choices.

Re-creating Hamlet in comic form was an interesting way to study the play as well as get more of an understanding. For my comic, I chose to do act III scene 4 where Hamlet kills Polonius. Incorporating different conventions of graphic novels, as well as including original quotations from the play made this assignment even better because you had to take in many aspects of film while making it flow.

"Reason is how we discover the truth in nature, without relying on the senses,” said by Descartes. It seems as if Descartes believes that reason is rational, objective thought whereas senses are subjective thoughts. Neither are objective, as humans even our most rational thoughts are subjective and bias to who we are as individual people. Even if reason tells people that the sky is red, our senses say otherwise and no amount of reason can persuade what one can see right in front of them. I would have to, therefore, disagree with Descartes, reason varies from individual to individual and also depending on situations and circumstances. This quote does relate to today’s morals and humanity specifically in the justice system. In the court system the United States relies on some level of “reasonable” doubt. Jurors use reasonings to analyze facts and determine a verdict without relying on their senses, despite not being at the scene of a crime or incident. Descartes quote came to mind at the very beginning of Bohannan’s story. Bohannan was given Hamlet by a friend to read while in Africa due to the primitive setting and maybe with some “meditation” Bohannan could discover the true meaning. After completing Bohannan’s story, coming back to this is humorous. Bohannan’s friend was hoping that meditation, deep thought, and reasoning would help Bohannan come to an accurate interpretation of Hamlet, but when Bohannan relied on the senses to listen to the elders while storytelling she

1. Does Gertrude tell Claudius the truth about what happened between her and Hamlet? Is she following Hamlet's advice at the end of 3.4? Why do you think this is?

Pick five scenes when Hamlet shows how he feels about his mother’s life choices. -Act 1, Scene 2: “Oh that this too, too solid flesh would melt” -> anger towards the relationship between his mother and his uncle. They married too quickly: “But two months dead - nay, not so much, not two!” -Act 3, Scene 4: “Such an act that blurs the grace and blush of modesty, calls virtue hypocrite, takes off the rose from the fair forehead of an innocent love and sets blister there, makes marriage vows as false as dicers’ oaths. ...

Hamlet says "the spirit that I have seen may be a devil, and the devil hath power t’assume a pleasing shape; yea, and perhaps, out of my weakness and my melancholy, as he is very potent with such spirits, abuses me to damn me" (2.2.627-632). Fearing deception, Hamlet has doubts, which initiate his inaction. His hesitation is somewhat resolved in the form of a play. In order to test the truth of the ghost, Hamlet devises a scheme to perform a play to "catch the conscience of the King"(2.2.634), by reenacting a scene similar to the events recounted by the ghost about King Hamlet’s murder, in order to prove Claudius’ guilt. Here, Hamlet’s inaction results not only from his distrust of his father’s apparition, but from his distrust of his own senses. Had Hamlet trusted his father in death as he had in life, Hamlet’s life would never have resulted in such a tragic end.

Throughout the entirety of Hamlet, Shakespeare is able to showcase his prowess as a writer by creating a truly three dimensional character. Hamlet’s series of self-directed philosophical debates, consisting almost entirely of abstractions, reveal his thought process. Relative to the play as a whole, the final soliloquy of Act 4, Scene 4 holds immense significance as it is a climax of Hamlet’s subconscious realizations evolving into a level of self awareness. The passage is also relevant within itself as it contains acute diction and seamless transitioning from contemplative philosophical reflection to ardent will for action, maintaining its importance on both a macro and micro level.

At best, I believe that Act I, Scene II might be one of the most important parts of Hamlet. It prepares any reader with the character’s styling of Hamlet, its importance to the play, its characters, and the logical play on words to show the complexity of Shakespeare’s skills as a playwright. Though, it might be a bit of over-aggrandizing to say that the first Act and second scene could be so crucial. It set the tone of the play for many of the characters and their motives from Claudius, Gertrude, and Hamlet. The Act shows the true nature of many of the characters and where they stand in the apparent and the hidden stance. As the scene begins, we see Claudius come straight out as the antagonist, though not immediately. He (Claudius) begins to establish himself as King of Denmark but it is until Hamlet makes his appearance that we see some of Claudius’s attributes.

Were Shakespeare to be brought back to life for a single day, twenty-four hours would not be nearly enough to answer all the long-debated questions four hundred years worth of readers ask about Hamlet. Debated topics include Hamlet’s madness or lack thereof, the suspicious circumstances of Ophelia’s death, Gertrude’s loyalties, and several others. The questions about these topics, and many more, are left unanswered in Hamlet, and countless essays have been written as attempts to assuage the confusion that readers experience. Definitive answers, however, are nowhere to be found. If this hypothetical resurrection were to occur, Shakespeare would likely not answer these questions in order to preserve an important element of his work. Hamlet’s ambiguity is so pervasive that it becomes part of the meaning of the play. Through all the clouded motivations, unclear traits, and mysterious actions, the only certainty to be discovered is death. The ambiguity establishes the uncertainty of life and morality and the inevitability of mortality.

1. How much time has passed between Act I and Act II. How do you know?

Out of all the plays that William Shakespeare has written most were retelling of stories or histories that have been told years before. His most famous play, Hamlet,(appos.) was based on a story called Ur-Hamlet about a danish prince watching his father(gerund), the king, get murdered by his uncle, and takes his revenge on his uncle by killing him and takes his rightful place on the throne. Shakespeare introduced the plot point that Hamlet, the prince of Denmark, did not see his father being killed, but rather his father’s ghost tells him he was murdered by his uncle and Hamlet must avenge him in his death. From that point in this famous play Hamlet must decide how to act(infinitive). In Shakespeare's most culturally relevant play Romeo and