Genre: Shakespearean Tragedy

Shakespeare’s plays are usually categorized as comedies, tragedies and histories, and some newer genres were later identified by scholars. Along with other popular plays such as Macbeth, King Lear, Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet is part of Shakespeare’s oeuvre of tragedies, which were inspired by the humanist school of thought and the Renaissance movement. These plays succeeded the “morality plays” prevalent in the Medieval era, which had flat structures. Shakespeare’s plays do not entirely fit the mold of Aristotelian tragedies either, since they explore the psychology of the main characters.

Context: Renaissance

Written after the Reformation and during the era of “late humanism,” Hamlet reflects the time when limitations of human knowledge were brought to the forefront. Skepticism was prevalent, and this can be seen in Hamlet’s obsession with what is real and what is not. During this time, theaters employed men to play women’s characters, since women were not allowed on stage. Elizabethan theaters often catered to the masses who expected to be entertained. Theater troupes and spaces were often under the patronage of the aristocrats. Another unique feature of the theater was that the fourth wall was removed, allowing the crowd to interact with the actors on stage.