Shakespeare Hamlet Essay

ENG 165: British Literature from Hamlet to Hamnet

Here are a few ideas for your first essay, due 2 / 15. You do not need to write about one of these,

but you may appreciate some help finding a topic:

The Renaissance was a time when humans rediscovered their potential for scientific, historical,

linguistic, geographic, and other kinds of discovery. The natural world yielded insights into the

workings of the human body; texts in ancient languages were recovered and translated;

engineering feats such as the great dome over Florences cathedral were completed; previously

unknown regions of the world were visited and mapped. There seemed to be no end to what the

human mind could achieve. At the same time, people feared there were limits to what we should

attempt to achieve. Was there a boundary to the pursuit of knowledge? Could the quest for

knowledge have some terrible consequences? Renaissance writers were fascinated by the legend

of Dr. Faustus, a medieval scientist who sold his soul to the devil in exchange for boundless

knowledge, wealth, and pleasure. Faustus thought himself clever enough to escape the devils

contract, but the devil finally claimed his soul and carried Faustus off to hell. Christopher

Marlowe, one of Shakespeares contemporaries, wrote a tragedy, Doctor Faustus, based on the

legend.

But long before Marlowe and Shakespeare, the Greek playwright Sophocles wrote a tragedy

exploring the limits of the human quest for knowledge during a similar period when the sciences

and arts flourished. Oedipus Rex is about a king proud of his ability to solve puzzles and resolve

mysteries. He sets out to find the murderer of his citys previous king but is warned by a prophet

not to continue. He persists, only to discover that he was the murderer. Oedipus inflicts on

himself the penalty of exile he had imposed on the undiscovered criminal and blinds himself to

compound his suffering. Sophocles clearly warns contemporary Greeks not to stray beyond the

limits of reason imposed by the gods. (If you have studied ancient myths, you can think of other

stories, such as those of Prometheus and of Pandora, with similar lessons.)

In many ways, Hamlet is related to this enduring theme. Hamlet is great because he is what

today we call a Renaissance Man as Ophelia describes him: a soldier, a scholar, a courtier. He

is, above all, the cleverest person at court, sparring verbally with his mother and stepfather and

mocking the uncomprehending Polonius, Rosencrantz, and Guildenstern. Even the scholar

Horatio is unable to communicate with the ghost of King Hamlet, but Hamlet converses with the

spirit and learns the identity of his murderer. While mistrusting the ghostis it a devil?Hamlet

tries to prove its revelation by disguising himself as a madman and provoking Claudius to reveal

his guilt at a play. But when Hamlet finally acts, he mistakenly kills an innocent spy, Polonius,

instead of the king. Hamlet is caught in a chain of events that ends in Claudius death but also

those of Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, Ophelia, Laertes, Gertrude, and himself. The most brilliant

man in Denmark has unwittingly destroyed the royal dynasty, paving the way for a Norwegian

successor. Is this a story about the possible consequences of brilliance? Hamlet tries to prove the

truth or falsity of a spirits story; he hesitates to violate the sanctity of Claudius apparent prayer

but mistakes the kings posture for penitence; the play is full of references to people trying, often

failing, to pierce behind appearances. (In the case of Polonius death, he is literally pierced while

hiding behind a curtain.) In the case of The Mousetrap, Hamlet apparently succeeds, but even

this scene is ambiguousdoes Claudius rise because he is guilty or because he feels threatened by his nephew? Is

Shakespeare inviting us to consider the limitations of our reasoning power? That there may be some mysteries we

cannot solve? Unforeseen consequences of our discoveries?

Write an essay considering this way of looking at Hamlet. Is this a topic we still find relatable

today? When you consider all the brilliant technological innovations of the past few decades,

such as Amazon, Google, Facebook, Twitter and the rest, have there been unanticipated bad

consequences? What would Shakespeare say about the pursuit of ever-more-sophisticated

technology? Are the famous Titans of Tech the modern equivalents of Faust? Of Hamlet? You

can probably think of many pursuits, such as the quest for never-ending youth or longevity, that

recall the older cautionary tales, so feel free to respond based on your personal interest and

information.

On a related topic, write an essay about the phenomenon of spying in Hamlet. In Elizabethan

Britain, networks of spies were employed to foil real and imagined plots by Catholic rulers

against the British throne. Spies worked in all the noble households, for example, trying to

discover treason and unearth hidden Catholic priests. Thinking about all the references to spies

and spying in Hamlet, what do you think Shakespeare is saying to his audience about the dangers

of espionage to a healthy state? Does spying have anything to do with the plays main plot and

its conclusion?

Another topic would be to write an essay about Hamlet and Claudius as mighty opposites, two

men locked in a battleone to conceal, the other to reveal, the previous kings murderer. How

does Shakespeare construct Claudius as the worthy opponent of his nephew? Or, in your opinion,

is the king a weak opponent, and in that case, why would Shakespeare characterize him that

way?

We discussed Laertes and Fortinbras as foils of Hamlet. In your opinion, why does Laertes

come to a bad end while Fortinbras inherits the Danish crown? The two characters are

similarwhat if anything distinguishes Fortinbras? Or if they are parallel, why do you think

Shakespeare includes both of them in the play as foils?

We did not discuss Gertrude and Ophelia in depth, but they are worth considering as additional

foils to the main male characters. Shakespeare was a conservative writer (patronized by the

court), so his female characters usually have traditional personalities. Good women are

nurturing, innocent, loving; bad women are cruel, aggressive, conniving. Young virgins are

allowed a period of flirtation and adventure, but once married, they adopt traditional manners.

Shrews must be tamed. With this background in mind, what are the roles of Gertrude and

Ophelia within this plot? While Hamlet and Claudius are spying and plotting revenge or murder,

what do the plots involving either or both ladies reveal about the principal men in the play? Or

about the position of women at court? In British society?

Shakespeare Hamlet Essay

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