hamlet essay a level

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A Level English Literature Candidate Exemplar Work - H472 01 Drama and poetry pre-1900 Summer 2017 examination series

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AS and A Level: Hamlet

• English Literature
• Shakespeare

"In the play Hamlet, Ophelia and Gerturde are both victims" How far do you agree with this view?

"Ophelia and Gertrude are both victims" How far do you agree with this view? Ophelia and Gertrude are the most prominent female characters in "Hamlet" and as a result they do seem quite susceptible and vulnerable in the patriarchal society of Denmark that the play is set in. Many of the ideas and suggestions presented in the play are put forward by the dominant male characters. Since both women seem to have a loving attachment to Hamlet, when it comes to suggestions for establishing the cause of Hamlets madness, they are often used by the men as "bait" to lure him in. This in itself could testify for the idea that both Gertrude and Ophelia are collectively victimised. This is demonstrated in the scene just before Hamlet talks to Ophelia about his real feelings for her. Claudius declares he and Polonius will act as "lawful espials" and they then "may of their encounter frankly judge". Ophelia does not voice her opinion of their plans, although she is present for the entire discussion. Through this, she is shown to be passive with no strength to defy the orders of others. This could be due to a weak character or the fact that Ophelia is forced to conform to the ideals of the time and doesn't know any better. Through this repression, Ophelia is some what victimised as she feels and knows she must respect her elders wishes and obey her father. In one of the earlier scenes of

• Word count: 1414
• Level: AS and A Level
• Subject: English

"Hamlet is a character about whom we are told so much, yet we know little. Do you agree?"

"Hamlet is a character about whom we are told so much, yet we know little. Do you agree?" This essay will discuss the character of Hamlet and the ways he potrays himself across to the reader. It highlights his introspection, puns, and thoughts of death, thoughts of women and his "madness". These all help to find out more about Hamlets character. Hamlet first introduces us to his character through famous soliloquies however this is not the only way of finding out who or what he is. In his first scene Hamlet speaks to his mother, and mocks her lack of grief for his father, her dead husband. "I have that within which passeth show" and "These but the trappings and the suits of woe". At this point in the speech, Hamlet may merely mean that his grief for his father is genuine, but "passeth show" may also mean that he has some sort of feeling that can't be shown by "the trappings and suits of woe"--his black clothing and cloudy face. Hamlet says that the King is "My father's brother, but no more like my father, than I to Hercules". This comment, which appears in Hamlet's first soliloquy, makes it appear that Hamlet does not consider himself particularly strong or heroic. He uses extreme examples to show his "cowardliness". "O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I!" says Hamlet at the beginning of his second soliloquy. He blames himself for lack of passion and accuses himself of

• Word count: 1319

"Hamlets Character is contradictory". Discuss.

"Hamlets Character is contradictory". Discuss Shakespeare gives Hamlet a very indecisive character in this play. This in turn leads to Hamlet becoming contradictive, more and more so throughout the play. His main problem is that he is more of a 'thinker' than a 'doer'. This causes him many problems throughout the whole play. The first example we get of this comes in Hamlets first soliloquy. Here we find out what Hamlet truly feels about the situation he finds himself in after his fathers death. After initially seeming to be willing to go along with Claudius's and his mother's marriage here we find out how he truly feels. He expresses his disgust at the hastiness from which his Mother has married to Claudius so soon after his fathers death. He also expresses how devastated he is at the death of his father and Claudius taking the crown, which Hamlet believes should rightfully be his. Hamlet once again shows this when he goes with his Fathers ghost. He comes back from this encounter determined to take revenge on Claudius but then passes up many chances to do so in order to make sure that the ghost is telling the truth. Hamlet continues this throughout the play and ironically this leads to him doing exactly the opposite of what the ghost wants by hurting his Mother and not taking revenge on Claudius when he has many chances to. Another appearance of Hamlets contradiction

• Word count: 559

How far is Hamlet dominated by a Christian worldview? Does its Worldview have any relevance for a modern day audience?

'There are more things dreamt of in heaven and earth than are dreamt of in your philosophy' HOW FAR IS HAMLET DOMINATED BY A CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEW? DOES ITS WORLDVIEW HAVE ANY RELEVANCE FOR A MODERN DAY AUDIENCE? England during the 17th century was a Christian society and country. All Children would most certainly have been baptised shortly after birth and once at a suitable age capable of understanding religion would be taught the essentials of Christian faith. Attendance at church was compulsory; failure to do so without a good medical reason or otherwise would lead to a hefty fine. During the 16th century in England those of Christian faith subsequently despised other races against that of Protestantism, and any other religion or paranormal existence that they did not understand. The persecution of Jews within Elizabethan England meant the state forbade them the rights to ownership of land or to engage in trade. Shakespeare showed an incredible understanding and knowledge of issues and crises of his time, introducing burning issues of today into his deeply Christian country that showed an inability of understanding and respecting other faiths and religions. Within the pre-Elizabethan period and onwards society was influenced heavily by the head of state, religion and new theoretician's ideas. A Theocentric world view stated that everything was circled around God,

• Word count: 1558

"Compare the way Shakespeare presents Hamlet's 'antic disposition' to the way Ophelia's madness is presented to us in Act V."

"Compare the way Shakespeare presents Hamlet's 'antic disposition' to the way Ophelia's madness is presented to us in Act V." In this play, Hamlet, Shakespeare shows us the different ways that madness can be portrayed and the various ways that others surrounding the central characters can perceive it. From the beginning it is explained that Hamlet would "put an antic disposition on" and this signifies that Hamlet's madness would just be an act, not something that is actually true. Hamlet confides in Horatio and asks him not to look knowingly if he sees Hamlet behaving oddly by saying "some doubtful phrase" that might be "ambiguous" in its meaning. This immediately reinforces the notion that Hamlet is only play acting his apparent madness and in actual fact, is sane. Shakespeare presents Hamlet's "antic disposition" as a means for Hamlet to bide his time and figure out how to avenge his father's murder "by a brothers hand." Hamlet's madness is not meant to be seen as madness by us, but as something that has a purpose i.e. it could enable Hamlet to kill Claudius and it could be perceived by others that the killing was unintentional and was because of Hamlet's "madness". However, in the case of Ophelia, Shakespeare presents her form of madness as something that is real and tangible. She has a reason to be mad; her father is "dead and gone." Shakespeare enforces the idea that

• Word count: 948

Examine how Shakespeare explores the role of women in Hamlet. What might the response of a modern audience be to this aspect of the play?

AS English Literature Coursework: Examine how Shakespeare explores the role of women in Hamlet. What might the response of a modern audience be to this aspect of the play? Gertrude and Ophelia, the only two women in Hamlet, reflect the general status of women in Elizabethan Times. Women were suppressed by the males in their lives (brothers, fathers, and partners) and were always inferior. Ophelia and Gertrude have little or no power due to restricted legal, social and economic rights that were found in Elizabethan society. The male characters in Hamlet reflect this sexist view point, represented by Hamlet's judgement that "frailty, thy name is woman". This view was not uncommon in Shakespeare's time and heavily influenced Shakespeare to present women the way he does in Hamlet. In a critical essay, Judith Cook1 noted that in many of Shakespeare's plays major women characters 'die because of direct association with the fate of a tragic hero'. This could be seen as Shakespeare trying to convey women's fate being a 'by-product' of the fate of men- men are superior. On the other hand, Ophelia is crucial in understanding Hamlet as a character and gives an insight into different motifs of the play. Some may argue that Ophelia is one of the causes of Hamlet's 'madness' and his recoil from love. The reaction Hamlet has to Ophelia, at the play for example, allows us to watch Hamlet's

• Word count: 2109

Explore the presentation of revenge in 'Hamlet'.

Jose Cree Explore the presentation of revenge in 'Hamlet' Revenge is a key theme in Hamlet. It is not only essential to understanding Hamlet's character, it forms the structure for the whole play, supporting and overlapping other important themes that arise. Though it is Hamlets revenge that forms the basis for the story, tied into this is the vengeance of Laertes and Fortinbras, whose situations in many ways mirror Hamlets' own. By juxtaposing these avengers, Shakespeare draws attention to their different approaches to the problem of revenge and how they resolve these. The idea of revenge is first introduced by the appearance of the ghost in act 1 Scene 5, and linked to this is the theme of hell and the afterlife. At the end of this scene, Hamlet is irreversibly bound to revenge for the duration of the play, 'speak, I am bound to hear' 'So art thou to revenge'. The ghost appears with the sole aim of using his son to obtain revenge on his brother, and so every word he speaks is designed to enrage Hamlet and stir in him a desire for vengeance. He uses very emotive language to exaggerate the enormity of the crime, and he concentrates Hamlet's attention on the treachery of Claudius. His description of the murder itself demonises Claudius and contains many references to original sin, 'the serpent that did sting thy fathers life now wears his crown.' Hamlet, who has been

• Word count: 2345

HAMLET: The Assignment

Tan Wei Jie Joel (31) 3.11 HAMLET: The Assignment TNT Britain's Theatrical version and Ethan Hawke's movie version of the play 'Hamlet' were vastly different in virtually all aspects. From the portrayal of characters in performances, the sets, paraphernalia and especially the fact that one is based in our modern world, (New York, 2000) both differ to large extents. Hamlet in the TNT's version does not dwell on about his Father's death in contrast to the Hamlet played by Ethan Hawke, who is constantly watching videos to reminisce about times he had with his Father. The two actors portray Hamlet, the main character, in a different way. In the play version, he is very vocal and blunt. Hamlet's interaction with the ghost however, is more dramatic in the theater version, with ear-splitting shrieks and squeals. This reflected the influence of the supernatural and unworldly during Shakespeare's time in the Renaissance Period. The movie version had a very different influence on me compared to TNT's play version. For example, in TNT's version, Hamlet is a Prince with zero influence; however, he illustrated as a photographer who instantaneously shows his peripheral nature towards the King. A great deal of the sound effects used was very apt and imaginative in TNT's play. The ghost in TNT's play was interesting and original. I feel, in general, that TNT's version was easier to

• Word count: 1243

What do you think is the importance of Shakespeare(TM)s presentation of the theme revenge in Hamlet for the audiences then and now?

What do you think is the importance of Shakespeare's presentation of the theme revenge in Hamlet for the audiences then and now? Well, we can begin by acknowledging that Hamlet is a revenge play. It is also important to consider the audience today and how they felt about revenge. The story is based upon the need to revenge a murder in the family. In a typical revenge plot, there are no authorities to appeal to, either because the original criminal is too powerful (e.g., has become King) or those in a position to act don't know about or believe in the criminality of the original villain. Hence, the central character has to act on his own, if any justice is to occur. However, although it seems like Hamlet follows the traditional revenge plot at first after a short period of time the audience will realise that there is something that differentiates Hamlet from other conventional Elizabethan plays of the same plot and theme. Today's audience may understand why Hamlet is resulting to revenge but may not consider it to be the right thing to do. The Elizabethan audience who would have first paid to view this play would have been very used to the format of revenge plays; they were exceedingly popular during the 16th and early 17th centuries. There were also two views in the time of Shakespeare. One view is the protestant and the other is catholic view. Today's audience would think

• Word count: 2029

Examine Hamlet's Relationship with Gertrude & Ophelia in light of the comment 'Frailty thy name is woman'.

Examine Hamlet's Relationship with Gertrude & Ophelia in light of the comment 'Frailty thy name is woman'. At the beginning of the play, during Hamlet's first soliloquy, Hamlet contemplates suicide because he is so furious with his mother for marrying Claudius within a month of his father's death. This is when Hamlet comments, 'frailty thy name is woman' to express his bitter feelings towards his mother for not only the speed of her remarriage and betrayal of his father, but the 'dexterity to incestuous sheets'. The situation, and Hamlet's reaction to it, is a trigger of an increasing negative attitude towards all women, viewing them as weak. It is shown through his relationships with Gertrude and Ophelia. The audience learn through the other characters that Hamlet has shown affections towards Ophelia; whether they are genuine and lasting feelings is uncertain as Leartes advices Ophelia that they are not. Leartes asks Ophelia to 'hold it a fashion, and a toy in blood;/ A violet in the youth of primary nature.' Leartes not only says that Hamlet's feeling towards Ophelia is short-lived nonsense of his youth but highlights that 'for he himself is subject to his birth'. Polonius also echoes a negative portrayal of Hamlet's relationship with Ophelia as he advises her to 'be somewhat scaner of your maiden presence'. Ophelia sees that Hamlet's feelings are genuine as he

• Word count: 1608

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Hamlet Essay Plans

Subject: English

Age range: 16+

Resource type: Assessment and revision

Last updated

27 June 2018

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Detailed essay plans including quotations, context and critics as well as introductions and conclusions for the following four questions on ‘Hamlet’:

• Explore Shakespeare’s treatment of moral responsibility in Hamlet.
• Examine the dramatic importance of Gertrude and Ophelia in Hamlet.
• “In his presentation of royalty in Hamlet, Shakespeare could be accused of undermining the political and social values of his time.” Explore this view of Hamlet
• “From first to last, there is an overwhelming air of decay.” Examine Shakespeare’s presentation of the theme of decay in Hamlet

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Hamlet A Level Essentials

Hamlet A Level exam revision essentials. Detailed essay plans, key themes with quotations matched to them from the play, key context and critics to illuminate their arguments. All they need for the exam in one place and presented as handy crib sheets.

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very detailed essay plans will share with my A level class.

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