ap lit hamlet essay prompts

107 Exceptional Hamlet Essay Topics: Questions & Prompts

Every academic paper starts with a captivating idea, and Hamlet research paper or essay shouldn’t be an exception. In the list below, our team has collected unique and inspiring topics for you. You can use them in your writing or develop your own idea according to the format.

Here are some Hamlet essay topics for you:

• Elaborate on the weather in Denmark. How does it reflect the state of affairs and mood in the country? How does it change throughout the play? Start this Hamlet essay by describing the foggy weather in the first scene and gradually provide more examples as evidence.
• Think of irony in Hamlet . How and for what purposes did Shakespeare incorporate it in the play? Provide examples of the lines and situations that can be considered ironic.
• Reflect on Gertrude’s marriages. Why did she marry Claudius? Did they have an affair when King Hamlet was alive? Or did she agree on the new marriage to help the country?
• Compare and contrast Claudius and King Oedipus from Oedipus the King . What character traits do they share? Who is a better politician? Why?
• Explain whether you think Gertrude is on Hamlet’s or Claudius’ side. Did she switch the side by the end of the play? Analyze her conversation with Hamlet and how she later told Claudius that Hamlet was mad. Why did she drink the suspicious (poisoned) wine?
• Analyze the fact that dying Hamlet asked Horatio to spread his story. Will Horatio retell it without changes? Can he tell the truth about what happened at all?
• Examine an approach to violence in Hamlet . Are violence and aggression excessive in the play? How do characters react to it? Comment on how violence is mainly linked to vengeance.
• Consider the Ghost of Old Hamlet and all his appearances in Hamlet . Who saw him? Who do you think can see him? In your Hamlet essay, analyze every scene where he occurred and elaborate on why he did so.
• Talk about the relationship between Gertrude and Old Hamlet. Analyze what we know about their marriage and her reaction to her husband’s death. Did Gertrude see the Ghost in the scene with Hamlet? Could she have pretended that she didn’t?
• If Hamlet had survived, would he have been a good king? Analyze his strengths and weaknesses concerning the matter. Did he prove to be a good leader or politician in the play? Consider that Fortinbras explicitly stated that Hamlet could’ve become a good ruler.
• Elaborate on the way Hamlet killed Polonius in act 3, scene 4. Why did Hamlet act so quickly and calmly when he hesitates to kill his enemy, Claudius? Was this murder intentional? Did Hamlet regret it or freak out about it?
• Explore Hamlet’s mental state. How did grief affect him? His depression and suicidal tendencies are apparent. How do they change throughout the play?
• Compare Hamlet’s attitude towards the only women in the play, Ophelia and Gertrude. Why does he shame both of them for their sexual relationships? Examine his dialogues with his mother and his (ex)girlfriend, where he expresses cruelty. Elaborate on how his mother’s remarriage affected his relationships with the women.
• Examine the madness that Hamlet may or may not obtain. Thanks to his dialogue with Horatio, we know that he fakes his insanity. But could it have changed by the end of the play? What could’ve caused it? Analyze the evidence of his abnormal behavior and whether you can consider it natural, not acted.
• Analyze how Hamlet reflects on suicide. Provide examples from the soliloquies where Hamlet presumably tells the truth about his feelings. He considers suicide as an option, way out of the situation. Why doesn’t he commit it? Or was his death close to suicide?
• Consider whether the Ghost exists or not. A few people have seen him, but may it have been a case of mass hysteria? Hamlet may have gone mad over the death of his father and his mother’s remarriage. What if he imagined his dialogues with deceased King Hamlet? Provide evidence for that opinion or refute it.
• Elaborate on Hamlet’s trust issues. He suspects everyone from the start except for one person. Why does Hamlet trust Horatio? Analyze how the prince never lies during their conversations, even when the truth is a little insane. Why does Horatio believe everything he says?
• Examine friendship in Hamlet . Most of the relationships in the play are based on manipulation and benefit. Who can you see as friends in Hamlet ? Reflect on whether Hamlet values his friendship with Horatio. What can you say about Hamlet’s friends from childhood?
• Analyze the literary period during which Shakespeare came up with Hamlet . What features of the Elizabethan era does he illustrate in the play? Examplify various scenes and dialogues to prove your point.
• Consider prominent theatrical productions of Hamlet . How did they change over the centuries? What does modern theatre do that the Medieval one could not? Did theatrical performances evolve?
• Compare and contrast the original play and Lion King by Disney corporation. What are the key differences that were made in the cartoon? Why did Disney decide to come up with them? Analyze which version do you like more and why.
• Comment on the theme of death and mortality What events and objects made Hamlet obsessed with death? Elaborate on the role that religion plays in his considerations concerning the matter.
• Examine Claudius’ soliloquy . What’s its role in the play? What’s the crucial idea of his speech? Elaborate on the reasons why Claudius, the villain, has a soliloquy in Hamlet .
• Analyze all the symbols of death in the play What symbols from Hamlet refer to mortality? Speculate whether you can call fences, poison, unweeded gardens, flowers, and so on a symbol of death.
• Explore the conflicts of Hamlet . The play combines inner and outer conflicts, which are addressed mainly through Hamlet’s monologues. List the fundamental oppositions and lines that exemplify them.
• Reflect on Hamlet’s relationship with Gertrude Why is he upset with her? How does it affect his actions and opinion about all the women? Does Gertrude love her son?
• Analyze the setting of the play. Does the fact that Hamlet takes place in Denmark play any crucial role? Speculate why Shakespeare may have decided upon this country and support your opinion with evidence.
• Elaborate on Hamlet’s relationship with Ophelia. Does the prince consider her significant? Does he care about her? Compare how he treated Ophelia before and after her death.
• Comment on Hamlet’s religious beliefs Does religion have an impact on the prince’s decisions? Why is Hamlet considered a protestant? Prove your point by providing evidence from the play.
• Reflect on the theme of revenge Why does everyone value revenge in the play? Why do people passionately seek it in the society presented in Hamlet ? Elaborate on what impact it has on the characters’ motivations and decisions.
• Consider the language of Hamlet . Explain that Shakespeare’s play is well-known for its rich language and broad vocabulary. He composed a few characters who pay close attention to the words they say and hear. Why is language crucial for Hamlet?
• Examine Fortinbras. Who is he? Why is he a character foil for Hamlet? Analyze why he succeeded in everything he did and even became the king of Denmark.
• Analyze imagery and descriptions in the play. How does Shakespeare enhance each scene by alternating descriptions of the weather and nature? Provide examples of prominent images presented in the play and elaborate on their purpose.
• Compare Hamlet to Oedipus Rex . What do the characters of the famous plays have in common? Do they have a similar goal? Elaborate on how their character traits affect the endings of the respective plays.
• Explore the deception in Hamlet . What things and events are built on lies? Why and how do characters try to manipulate each other throughout the whole play?
• Elaborate on the imagery of rot and diseases How do unweeded gardens reflect the state of affairs? Explain how ill atmosphere foreshadows and represents problems caused by the actions of the royal court’s members.
• Comment on the role of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern in the play. Speculate whether they are simply comic relief characters or they have another purpose in Hamlet . Why did Shakespeare decide that he needed such characters in the play?
• Analyze Gertrude’s attitude towards Ophelia. Elaborate on the scenes where Gertrude communicates with Ophelia and mentions her. What does the queen think of her and her relationships with Hamlet? How does Gertrude comments on Ophelia’s death?
• Compare Hamlet’s and Horatio’s character traits. In what ways are they different and similar? What Horatio’s qualities Hamlet explicitly admires and lacks?
• Speculate on Shakespeare’s opinion about theatre. Examine a few references to the English stage of the Elizabethan era that the author put in the play in Act 2. How does he comment on the theatre of his own time through Hamlet’s lines of dialogue?
• Explore the relationships between Hamlet and Claudius. Why does Hamlet suspect his uncle from the start? Does Claudius think of Hamlet as dangerous? When does he become highly aware of his nephew’s capabilities?
• Consider the death of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. When and how did they die? Why does a reader find out about it after the deaths of the royal family members? Speculate on the reasons why it was structured to be so anticlimactic. Why did W. S. Gilbert write a short comic play about them?
• Analyze the reception and comprehension of Hamlet . Why is it one of the most popular Shakespeare’s plays even today? Is it still relevant? Explain why nowadays our understanding of the play differs from the one from the writer’s era.
• Comment on the appearance vs. reality in Hamlet . Why do so many characters pretend to have another personality or obtain character traits that they don’t have? Why does Hamlet see through the pretense?
• Elaborate on Ophelia’s death . Was it a suicide, how gravediggers presumed, or an accident, as Gertrude claimed? Explain in your Hamlet essay the reasons for Ophelia to commit suicide. Did she have a choice?
• Reflect on political corruption. What characters represent corrupted politicians in the play? How do they manipulate public opinion?
• Analyze one movie adaptation of Hamlet . Write about the changes that were made in the film version. What differences from the play did you like? What changes were you surprised to see?
• Examine the political situation in the play. What war did Fortinbras lead? Why? How does it affect Denmark during the play and after it’s the last scene?
• Explore the role of women in Hamlet . The play presents the social norms that were relevant for people of this period. What parts of women’s lives did men explicitly control? Provide examples from the play.
• Compare Laertes and Hamlet . Laertes is known as Hamlet’s character foil. Examine similarities and differences in their character traits.
• Consider the doubt and indecisiveness of Hamlet . Why are such traits uncommon for the genre? What do they say about the prince as a character? Explain how these qualities affect the plot and Hamlet’s thought process.
• Elaborate on the symbolism in the play. Finding symbolism can be challenging as the interpretations differ. Some individuals consider particular objects as symbols, while others don’t. What do you view as examples of symbolism in the play? Why? What role do they play in understanding the story?
• Reflect on the Oedipus complex. Comment on whether Hamlet has it or not. Provide evidence from the play, especially from the scene with Gertrude, to prove your point. How can this idea be approached on the stage? Find examples of theatrical productions where Hamlet and Gertrude had a conversation in her closet.
• Compare and contrast Claudius and Polonius. What character traits do they have in common? Explain how they are not who they are trying to appear. Who is better at lying and manipulating others? Why?
• Examine how revenge affected characters in Hamlet . Three characters wish to avenge their fathers: Laertes, Hamlet, and Fortinbras. How does revenge affect their lives? Who succeeded in getting their revenge?
• Consider the family theme. What role does family play for various characters? Elaborate on how blood ties motivate multiple characters.
• Reflect on Yorick’s role in the play. Who was Yorick? What impact did he have on Hamlet during the prince’s childhood and present time? Elaborate on how Yorick led Hamlet to his last soliloquy.
• Analyze the religious conflict of the play. How did events from Shakespeare’s time affect the theme of religion? Explain how Hamlet presents the conflict between Protestantism and Catholicism through the prince and King Hamlet.
• Comment on the theme of madness. Who went mad in the play? Compare Hamlet’s and Laerte’s insanity to Ophelia’s one. How was her madness different from the other examples?
• Explore Polonius’ character. What was Polonius’ motivation throughout the play? Whom did he manipulate, and why? Explain why he tried to appear a good person and a parent.
• Elaborate on the reasons why Hamlet is the protagonist of the story. What makes him a tragic hero? Why is he considered a good person after every crime he committed and every cruel thing he said to his mother and Ophelia?
• Think of the conflict of good and evil. What imagery is associated with each of them in the play? Does evil spread like a disease?
• Explain how Hamlet differs from other plays of Shakespeare’s time . What new features and connections within the story did the writer present? How did Shakespeare make characters contribute to the plot?
• Analyze the “To be or not to be” speech. It’s one of the most famous lines in history, but what meaning is behind it? Elaborate on the circumstances around the monologue and whether Hamlet is partially lying.
• Reflect on performances of Hamlet. Choose a couple of performances on the stage or in a movie and compare them. Whose version of the character you prefer and why?
• Elaborate on the movie Ophelia (2018). What’s intriguing about a story told from Ophelia’s point of view? Exemplify the differences from the original play and how the change of perspective affected the story.
• Explore Hamlet’s obsession with inaction and action . What stops Hamlet from acting decisively? Exemplify situations from the play when characters act quickly, without any doubt compared to Hamlet’s almost constant hesitance.
• Compare Hamlet and King Lear. What similar character traits have an impact on the respective plays? Can we call the prince and the king victims of the social norms?
• Think of how the play’s themes are relevant nowadays . Which of them remained timeless, relevant for any period? Are any themes become obsolete and useless in today’s world? Elaborate on each theme separately with examples from the play.
• Reflect on Hamlet’s mood swings . Provide examples of how the prince’s mood affects his actions and speech. What can and did influence his mood?
• Examine Polonius’ death. Why was he hiding behind the tapestry during the scene? Was it his idea? How did he die? Elaborate on irony in the way he was murdered. How did it affect the plot?
• Analyze Hamlet as an actor. Is he good at playing a character? Elaborate on his dialogue with the First Player and his opinion about acting.
• Consider the motif of betrayal. Who betrays Hamlet? Explain how the attitude towards this act varies from character to character. How does Hamlet’s betrayal affect Ophelia?
• Explore the connection between honor and revenge . Explain why it’s the principal motivation for such characters as Hamlet, Laertes, and Fortinbras. Comment on scenes where it reveals itself through actions and conversations.
• Elaborate on Hamlet’s death. Was it the only logical conclusion for Hamlet’s psychological and emotional development? Was he satisfied?
• Comment on the genre of the play . Can we call it revenge tragedy without any reservation? How did Shakespeare ruin the genre by Hamlet ?
• Compare Hamlet and the Ghost. What can you say about the language that the characters use? List the lines that state that Hamlet and the Ghost look similar.
• Think of the father-son relationships in the play . Analyze the relationships between Hamlet and King Hamlet and compare them to those of Laertes and Polonius. Which features are common for both of them?
• Elaborate on the name Hamlet . What does it mean? What’s its country of origin? Add a sentence or two about Amleth.
• Consider allusions to historical figures in the play. Why does Hamlet mention Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar in act 5? Why did Shakespeare include allusions at all?
• Examine soliloquies in Hamlet . What’s their role in the play? Provide lines from soliloquies that let us dive into the thoughts and intentions of a character. Does anyone lie during such a speech?
• Compare the two film adaptations of the play. Elaborate on different film techniques and alterations of the plot. Concentrate on one scene in particular and explain what changes were made.
• Explore Hamlet’s nihilism. When does Hamlet start to display features that are inherent to this school of thought? Explain how the prince came to nihilism, what pushed him to this.
• List the most painful moments of Hamlet’s life and elaborate on them. Include events that happened before the first act and within the play. Prove your point with evidence from the prince’s lines.
• Think of what poison represents. What does it refer to? Who dies from poison in the play?
• Consider the play from the public’s perspective. How does Claudius manipulate the public’s opinion? What do people think of the new king and Hamlet?
• Compare and contrast Gertrude and Ophelia. What traits do they have in common? Explain differences and similarities in their affection towards Hamlet. Who controls these women?
• Elaborate on the villain of the story. Who can be considered an antagonist of the play? Why do some people regard Hamlet as a villain?
• Imagine how Hamlet could’ve reacted to modern society. What aspects of the future would he appreciate? What social norms would shock him? Would he be more comfortable in our period?
• Evaluate all the relationships in Hamlet’s life. What’s the most significant one? Why? What relationships changed throughout the play?
• Comment on contradictions in the play. What contradictions does Hamlet face? Is he himself a contradictory character? Provide examples of Hamlet’s contradictions
• Explore the fencing in the last scene of Hamlet . What does it contribute to the story? Does it affect the end of the duel?
• Elaborate on the gravediggers. How did their job affect their attitude towards death? Comment on their humor and whether it’s a coping mechanism. Does it illustrate their perception of life?
• Compare Claudius and King Hamlet. What qualities differentiate them? What do they have in common? Speculate on who was a more talented politician and a better leader.
• Think of comic relief in Hamlet . Comment on how Polonius, Osric, gravediggers, and Hamlet’s dialogues with them enlighten the mood. Was the humor appropriate for revenge tragedies before Shakespeare?
• Consider foreshadowing in the play. What events are foreshadowed early on in Hamlet ? Present lines and features from act 1 that indicate the tragic end.
• Elaborate on justice and truth . How does Shakespeare show attitude towards justice common for this time? Does Hamlet approach fairness differently from the others? Elaborate on how Hamlet both pursue the truth and ignores it.
• Examine the “Get thee to a nunnery, go.” sentence. Why did Hamlet say so to Ophelia? What made the prince think that she was vicious?
• Comment on Hamlet’s cruelty. When does Hamlet become cruel towards other characters? Is he cruel towards himself? Analyze situations where Hamlet talks viciously and whether it’s intentional or not.
• Explore Hamlet’s character . Why is the prince such an unusual figure for revenge tragedies? Explain how Shakespeare created the hero who struggles to act with firmness and constantly reflects on his actions and decisions. Is he easy to understand and relate to?
• Analyze the play within the play. What’s its role in plot development? Why did Hamlet let the play take place? Explain what scene he added and why. Elaborate on the title The Mousetrap .
• Examine the consequences of revenge . What conclusion does Shakespeare provide for the theme of revenge? Explain how does it influence the deaths of Hamlet and Laertes, the absolute victory of Fortinbras.
• Reflect on Hamlet’s hesitance to kill Claudius . Why does he consider murdering his uncle in act 1? What stops him? Illustrate all the occasions when Hamlet could’ve killed Claudius but didn’t, and one time he did. What pushed him in the end?
• Compare Claudius to Laertes. Are there any similarities? How do these characters form an alliance by the end of the play?
• Comment on Gertrude’s guiltiness . Hamlet considers his mother guilty of too many crimes, but was she guilty of anything? Speculate whether she participated in King Hamlet’s murder or had an affair with Claudius before her husband’s death. Was she loyal to Hamlet?
• Elaborate on the “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark …“ line. Who says it? Explain the context of the line, its meaning, and what it foreshadows.
• Examine Polonius’ advice to Laertes. Provide its meaning and reflect on Polonius’ intentions. Why is this speech ironic?

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AP English Literature and Composition

Put words under a magnifier.

Announcement- Holiday Assignments

1. Read three articles of literary criticism on Hamlet from the anthology I created for the class. Read one on Hamlet, one on Gertrude and one on Ophelia.

2. Watch youtube or PBS video clips on the following scenes-

• Ophelia and Hamlet ( Ophelia was sent to spy on Hamlet)
• Hamlet in Gertrude’s chamber
• Hamlet’s dueling with Laertes
• Be sure to observe the details in each scene.

3. Complete the AP Exam and turn it in the complete exam( including the three essays) on Jan. 6, 2014.

4. We’ll study Hamlet’s final two soliloquy on Thursday. Be prepared.

Hamlet E-Text

Hamlet Audio 

Reading Quiz

Reading Quiz on Hamlet (Acts I & II)

Acts III, IV, and V

Pre-Reading Lessons

Objectives: Students will answer the question: why do we still read Hamlet? How relevant is the character to our life?

Aim; Why is Hamlet still relevant?

Materials: the Video Clip from PBS Shakespeare uncovered

Assessment: Quick Write: How do we see ourselves in the character of Hamlet?

• Watch the video
• Students use their notes to share their perceptions on Hamlet
• Respond to the Quick Write

Learning Sequence

• Why Shakespeare’s Hamlet? Based on our reading about the play, why do you think are we still drawn to this tragedy? Do Think-Pair-Share activity.
• Watch the video clip and listen to David Tennant’s interviews and narration about why he is fascinated by the role. Take notes when necessary.
• Discuss our notes.

Quick Write: How do we see ourselves in the character of Hamlet?

Homework: Visit the site about  Elizabethan England . Read about the Elizabethan time and have a true understanding of Shakespearean period’s audience. Be ready to share your notes in class for the next lesson.

Lesson 1-4 Based on Act I

Lesson 1 Act 1 Scene 1

Objectives:Students will identify the elements in the beginning scene of the play and discuss the effect of them.

Aim: What is the mood of the opening scene? What are the implications and complications set in motion by the ghost scene?

• Folger Edition Hamlet
• Hamlet with David Tennant
• Full Video of Hamlet by Shakespeare Royal Theater
• Death and Dying in Hamlet and Macbeth
• Timeline of Shakespeare’s Plays

Which Shakespeare character are you? Take a survey.

What are some of the effects of setting a play in motion by having a ghost appear? How would an audience be affected today? How might Elizabethan audiences have been stirred? Why?

Visit the site about  Elizabethan England . Read about the Elizabethan time and have a true understanding of Shakespearean period’s audience.

Procedures:

• Listen to  Act I, Scene 1.  See Folgers’ text of Hamlet
• How does Shakespeare set a mood, explain to the reader what has gone before, build suspense, and also foreshadow things to come?
• As the play opens, what is Bernardo’s state of mind when he asks ,”Who is there?” What are we told immediately about the time, place, and atmosphere of scene 1?
• Who is Horatio? How does the encounter with the Ghost help to characterize Horatio?
• Describe the appearance, identity, and actions of the Ghost.
• What background information do we learn from Horatio?
• Upon the Ghost’s second appearance, what three possibilities does Horatio suggest for the appearance of spirits? Why does the Ghost disappear? What do we learn here about the superstitious beliefs of the times?
• What future events in the play are foreshadowed at the end of the scene?

Homework Assignment #1

1.Answer questions 4-8 in the lesson. Provide textual evidence for your responses.

2.In the 1 st  scene of a play a playwright often tries to:

• Set the mood of the play
• Fill in the past for the reader or audience
• Introduce the main themes
• Create interest by building suspense.
• Introduce the main characters
• Foreshadow future events.

How well has Shakespeare fulfilled these tasks in the 1 st  scene of  Hamlet ? To what extent would you agree that the 1 st  scene is the “embryo” of the play’s later development?

Lesson 2 Act I Scene 2 See  Folgers’ text of Hamlet

Objectives: Students will identify Hamlet’s character based on the his attitude toward his mother, Gertrude’s remarriage.

Aim: How does the event of Gertrude’s remarriage shed light on the character of Hamlet?

Do Now: Journal #2

What reactions would the American people have had if Jacqueline Kennedy had remarried soon after the death of President Kennedy in 1963? What is considered ” a decent period of mourning” in your culture? And in America today?

I. Review: From the opening scene, what predictions can we make about the future events ?

II. Listen to Act 1 scene 2 . Did you come across any situation in scene1&2 that could cause problems for Prince Hamlet?

III. Discuss the following questions:

• How does Claudius’ initial speech reveal his character?
• use of royal “we”
• Antithesis-the balancing of two contrasting ideas, words, phrases, or sentences in parallel  grammatical form, i.e.”with mirth in funeral and with dirge in marriage”. What feelings do these juxtapositions evoke?
• Choice of words : why does Claudius remember old Hamlet with “wisest sorrow” rather than “deep sorrow”?
• Order of ideas he presents: Although Hamlet’s mourning is of major concern to Claudius., why does he justify his marriage to Gertrude, deal with Norway’s impending invasion, and respond to Laertes’ petition before he address Hamlet?

2.. Addressing the court, Claudius uses the expression, “With mirth in funeral, and with dirge in marriage”, what does this line of contrasts mean beyond his own situation?

3. Why was Claudius not Hamlet made king after the death of Old King Hamlet? Where had Hamlet been at the time of his father’s death?

4. What is meant by the word  incest ? How has the connotation of the word changed?

5. In his first formal address, how does Claudius justify his present situation? When he turns to affairs of state, how competent an executive does he prove himself to be?

6. Who is Laertes?

7. Explain the two puns made by Hamlet. What do they show about Hamlet’s state of mind.

• What is the double meaning in Hamlet’s response to his mother,”Ay, madam, it is common?” Why does Hamlet scornfully list all of the usual signs of mourning ? What comfort does Claudius offer Hamlet for the death of his father? Is it natural for men to be as objective as Claudius would have us act?
• What is Claudius’ answer to Hamlet’s request to return to Wittenburg? Why does Gertrude intercede? How is Hamlet’s rude reply accepted by Claudius? Why?
• When Hamlet is left alone after the departure of the rest of the court, how must he feel?
• Read Hamlet’s 1 st  soliloquy. What action is Hamlet contemplating? Why? What does this show about his character? What holds him back from acting out his desire? How does Hamlet explain Gertrude’s great ” sin and crime”? What does he mean by “Frailty, thy name is women”? Why must he hold his tongue?
• Find lines in the soliloquy that show feelings of despair, grief, bitterness, anger, and resignation; or any word that gives clues to Hamlet’s innermost thoughts.
• Why does Hamlet insist on knowing the details of the Ghost’s appearance and actions?
• Where does Hamlet show determination?
• Characterize the young Hamlet. How has his mood changed throughout his part of the scene? Could such a prince make a successful sovereign? Explain.

IV. Visualize the soliloquy. Discuss “what is really bothering Hamlet?”

Homework Assignment #2

1. Analyze Claudius ‘ speech by considering the following-

2. Write a micro essay on Hamlet’s 1st soliloquy. How does Shakespeare use diction, figures of speech and tone to reveal Hamlet’s state of mind.

Lesson 3 Act I Scene 3 See  Folgers’ text of Hamlet

Objectives: Students will examine the child-parent relationship describes in this scene within Polonius’s family based on the textual evidence.

Aim: What is the child-parent relationship describes in this scene within Polonius’s family?

Do now: Journal #3

The complaint is often voiced today that the younger generation is out of control and that is the parents who are to blame. How true is the statement? Should love or obedience to parents’ wishes prevail when a conflict between the two develops? Comment on it.

• At the end of Scene 2, what do you expect to happen next in the play? Why does Shakespeare shift the attention to the development of minor characters?
• What are the feelings that exist between Hamlet and Ophelia?
• What advice does the departing Laertes give to his sister about Hamlet? What does this advice reveal about Hamlet, and Laertes himself? Why does he not trust Hamlet?
• How does Ophelia receive her brother’s advice?
• In your opinion, how worthy of serious consideration are the words of Polonius to his son? How do you interpret the three lines beginning, “This above all…”? What ideas are especially meaningful for our time? Which precept has great values for adolescents? Why?
• How do you react to the suggestion that these lines “are not at all idealistic but merely practical considerations for worldly success”?
• How do you react to the suggestion that these line are “empty, pompous words delivered by a bumbling old man”?
• How appropriate is Polonius’s supervision of his children? How might the apparent absence of a mother for his children alter his role?
• Paraphrase the language of Polonius’ advice in colloquial English and make up a paralle situation in which the words make sense.
• What can we infer about Polonius from his choice of words? What do Polonius’ words reveal about his belief, philosophy, and values?
• How does the suspicious nature of Polonius show itself soon after Laertes leaves?
• By modern standards, how wise is Polonius in his advice to his daughter?
• When Ophelia says to her father: “I shall obey.” Should we expect her to keep her word? What is your understanding of a dutiful child of current time?
• Characterize Ophelia from what you have observed in this scene.
• What is the relationship like in Polonius’ family? What does each of the family members want?

Homework Assignment #3

Write a micro essay on how Shakespeare uses diction and structure to reveal Polonious character as a father.

Lesson 4  The Time is Out of Joint (Act I,  scene 4  &  scene 5 ) See  Folgers’ text of Hamlet

Objectives: Students will analyze Hamlet’s character through his initial reaction to the ghost’s tale.

Aim: What decision should Hamlet make in facing such a revelation by the ghost? What’s more added to Hamlet’s problem?

Do now: Journal Writing:

Who is or might be a tragic hero in this play based on your knowledge of a tragic hero. Do inner or outer forces work to make the tragedy? Can an intellectual-like Hamlet- be a tragic hero?

• Read scene 4 & 5
• Before you come to any conclusions about Hamlet’s reactions to the Ghost, read this document  of “Ghosts and Spirits”.  It is an extract from  Of Ghosts and Spirits Walking by Night , translated into English in 1572. Note, though, that it presents a Protestant view of the subject, while Hamlet’s Denmark is Catholic.
• Discuss the following questions after finishing reading the two scenes.
• How does Shakespeare repeat his device for surprising the audience at the entrance of the Ghost?
• Some critics have seen Hamlet’s speech about drinking as a restatement of Aristotle’s idea of the importance of the  hamartia , or tragic flaw, in drama. In which lines does Hamlet express the Aristotelian concept of tragic flaw?
• How does Hamlet’s first speech to the Ghost show the doubts that exist in his mind about the nature of his apparition?
• How does Hamlet respond to the attempts of Horatio to stop him from following the Ghost? How do these actions deny the idea that Hamlet is little more than a dreamer?
• The Ghost is evidently in purgatory. What does this mean?
• What does Hamlet say “O my prophetic soul”?
• What further shocking disclosure does he Ghost make to Hamlet?
• Why does Shakespeare have the Ghost go into such detail about the murder itself?
• What demand does the Ghost make upon Hamlet about Claudius? About Gertrude? What effect does the Ghost’s revelation have on Hamlet?
• Why does not Hamlet immediately tell all to Horatio? How can you explain Hamlet’s odd, almost farcical, behavior towards the end of the scene?
• Examine Hamlet’s language after he sees the Ghost and during his conversation with Horatio and Marcellus. What assumptions can we make about Hamlet’s state of mind from the words he uses and the way he speaks to his companions at this point of the play? Speculate on why Hamlet decides to put on an “antic disposition”.

Quick Write: What’s your first impression of Hamlet’s character through his initial reaction to the ghost’s tale?

Homework Assignment #4:

Hamlet concludes the scene with the rhyme tag:  The time is out of the joint. O cursed spite/ That ever I was born to see it right.  What feelings are expressed in these lines? Why is the task before Hamlet not an easy one? How well is Hamlet suited by his temperament and character to fulfilling the Ghost’s wish? What do you expect him to do next? Do you think Hamlet will take revenge? Before you make any decision, read  Francis Bacon’s short essay  that provides a marvelous insight into the attitudes of intellectuals during Shakespeare’s time towards revenge. The essay is slightly cut here. What is particularly interesting is the attitude it takes towards natural feelings, which strongly contrast the ghost’s.

Lesson 5  “What A Rogue, Peasant Slave am I” Soliloquy Act 2 Scene 2

Objectives: Students will examine Hamlet’s self-perception by analyzing the diction, figures of speech and syntax of the soliloquy.

Aim:  How does Hamlet perceive himself?  How does Shakespeare use language to reveal it?

Materials:  a hard copy of the soliloquy; online dictionary access; an Analysis Tool; audio recording of Hamlet Act 2 Scene 2 ( http://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/94/hamlet/1673/act-2-scene-2/ )

Assessment:  Students will write a micro essay  to analyze Hamlet’s self-perception  through diction, imagery and syntax.

Do Now : Journal writing- From the first two acts we have read, what is your impression of Hamlet’s character? Write for about 4 minutes to describe Hamlet’s character.

Learning Sequence:

• We’ll use Think-Pair-Share activity to share our understanding of the speech- Read around in pairs line by line of the soliloquy. Read around by the period or exclamation marks, or question marks.
• Think to yourself after reading. Use the annotations you have made. What is Hamlet talking about? What words or phrase or lines stand out the most or show hamlet’s feelings or thoughts? Why?  Write freely in your notebook your initial understanding of the speech.
• Share with a partner your writing. Talk to each other about the speech using ideas from your free writing. Jot down new ideas you have gained from the pair –share.
• We’ll unpack the meaning by discussing the following Text-Based Questions-
• What examples of diction paint a vivid picture of Hamlet?
• Who is Priam? Hecuba? What book is Aeneid? What’s it about?
• How does Hamlet comment on the player’s acting of  the speech from Aeneid?
• How does the player express Hecuba’s feelings and reactions to her husband, Priam’s murder?
• How, according to Hamlet, will the player act like if the player knows Hamlet’s feelings towards his father’s murder?
• Make a list of names that he called himself in the soliloquy.
• Quick Write: How does Hamlet characterize himself at this point
• How accurate a description is it of his character (second section)? Find lines and phrases that explain why Hamlet thinks himself a coward. Do you think he is a coward, or is he acting by looking for external evidence to prove Claudius’ guilt?
• At what line does Hamlet’s self-castigation reach its peak?
• Why is “O vengeance!” a line by itself? How does this line deflate Hamlet’s pent-up emotions?
• What plan does Hamlet reveal to the audience at the end of this soliloquy.

Assessment: write a micro essay  to analyze Hamlet’s self-perception  through diction, imagery and syntax.

Homework Assignment: Finish the micro essay to analyze Hamlet’s self-perception through diction, imagery and syntax.

Analysis Tool

Lesson 6 Hamlet and Ophelia  Act III, scene 1

• To study and understand Hamlet’s desperate feelings as expressed in the “To be or not to be” soliloquy
• To experience the heartbreak of renunciation scene in terms of Hamlet’s and Ophelia’s expression of their feelings and attitudes

Aim: How does Shakespeare use language to show Hamlet’s question about his existence?

Materials: copies of Soliloquy, master reading of “To Be or Not To Be” ( http://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/94/hamlet/1674/act-3-scene-1/ ), analysis tool

• Listen to the recording ( http://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/94/hamlet/1674/act-3-scene-1/ ). Annotate while listening.
• Hamlet on Hamlet: Introspective Action(To be or not to be soliloquy) Convert the Soliloquy to an argument: Select two students with contrasting voices and ask them to read the selected “to be or not to be script”. HAMLET

Reader1: To be, or not to be: that is the question: Reader 2: Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Read 1: Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them? Reader 2: To die: to sleep; No more; and by a sleep to say we end The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks That flesh is heir to, Reader 1: ’tis a consummation Devoutly to be wish’d. Reader 2: To die, to sleep; To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub; For in that sleep of death what dreams may come When we have shuffled off this mortal coil, Must give us pause: Reader 1:there’s the respect That makes calamity of so long life; Reader 2: For who would bear the whips and scorns of time, Reader 1:The oppressor’s wrong, Reader2: the proud man’s contumely, Reader 1: The pangs of despised love, Reader 2: the law’s delay, Reader 1:The insolence of office Reader2: and the spurns That patient merit of the unworthy takes, When he himself might his quietus make With a bare bodkin? Reader 1: who would fardels bear, To grunt and sweat under a weary life, Reader 2: But that the dread of something after death, Reader 1: The undiscover’d country from whose bourn No traveller returns, Reader 2: puzzles the will And makes us rather bear those ills we have Reader 1: Than fly to others that we know not of? Reader 1 and 2 : Thus conscience does make cowards of us all; And thus the native hue of resolution Is sicklied o’er with the pale cast of thought, And enterprises of great pith and moment With this regard their currents turn awry, And lose the name of action.–Soft you now! The fair Ophelia! Nymph, in thy orisons Be all my sins remember’d.

• Had Hamlet revealed such desperate feelings that he thought of suicide? When? (refer to the1st soliloquy)
• How has Hamlet reason to be more despondent than he was earlier?
• Some critics view this speech as a general philosophical discussion. Can you justify this point of view?
• What view of death does Hamlet have in this speech? How does it compare with his view of life in the same speech?
• What are some of the things that he says make a long life calamity?
• How personal does he intend these slings and arrows to be? What would a modern life’s ills include?
• Why does Hamlet reject the idea of suicide at last?
• How reasonable is his implication that to live is cowardly, to die courageous? What unfinished business may play a part in Hamlet’s decision to live?
• When Ophelia appears, why does Hamlet say,” Nymph, in thy orisons be all my sins remembered’?

Part B: Hamlet and Ophelia

• How much Ophelia feel, knowing that she is performing for an audience and the King? How genuine are the emotions she expresses?
• What beautiful poetic lines can you find in Ophelia’s utterances?
• What’s the double meaning of Hamlet’s word  honest ? In what respects has Ophelia been honest with him?
• Why does Hamlet tell her to enter a nunnery? Is his self characterization in this speech a valid one? Discuss.
• Argue:  Hamlet knows from the very beginning of the scene that Polonius and Claudius are watching him ; Hamlet does not know until later in the scene that he is being watched; Hamlet is unaware that he is being watched throughout the nunnery scene.
•  For each interpretation, what is Hamlet’s objective? What specific gestures, inflections, movements, or pause could an actor use to show this objective? How does the objective affect the subtext?
• What is the “calumny” to which Hamlet refers? Explain Hamlet’s strange use of the word  monstrous .
• When Hamlet castigates Ophelia for the falseness and deceitfulness of women, is he thinking of her, of his mother, or of women in general?
• In her final speech, what picture does Ophelia paint of the Hamlet that once was? How deep was her love for him? How much love still remains?

10. Assessment: Quick Write – In this scene, Hamlet’s actions are viewed from several angles. Is he acting from a grand plan? Yes? No? Why? What reasons must Hamlet have had in his renunciation of Ophelia ? How might he have been trying to protect her?

11. What are the full implications in Claudius’ closing line: “Madness in great ones must not unwatched go”? Does Claudius actually believe that Hamlet is mad?

Homework Assignment: Use the Analysis Tool to help you read closely of “To Be or Not To Be” Soliloquy. Write a micro essay to discuss Hamlet’s state of mind through diction, figures of speech and syntax.

The Queen’s Closet Act III Scene 4

Objectives 1. Students will analyze how Shakespeare uses diction, tone and extended metaphor to reveal Hamlet’s relationship to his mother. 2. To explore a possible basis for understanding Hamlet’s action in this scene

Aim: How does Shakespeare uses diction, tone and extended metaphor to reveal Hamlet’s relationship to his mother? What’s  the possible  basis for Hamlet’s action?

• “ Introductory Lecture on Shakespeare’s Hamlet “
• Ernest Jones’s  Hamlet and Oedipus ( http://www.shakespeare-navigators.com/jones/ )
• Text ( The Queen’s Closet Act III Scene 4 )
• Norman Holland and Psychoanalysis 

Do Now  : Journal Writing Some critics interpret use the  “Oedipus complex” theory to interpret Hamlet’s actions throughout the play. “Oedipus complex” is a subconscious sexual attachment to his mother, remaining from his earlier childhood. Critics usually cite the words of Act III, scene 4 as evidence for this interpretation. What is your reaction to a psychoanalytical interpretation of a work of literature that was written hundreds of years before Freud outlined his theories of human behavior?

Activities Part 1 Before the Killing of Polonius 1. Polonius has decided once more to resort to spying as a method of gaining information. When has he done so before? 2. How does Gertrude interpret Hamlet’s state of extreme agitation? 3. How important is Hamlet’s behavior toward his mother in the beginning of this scene? 4. When Hamlet hears Polonius call out from behind the arras, he immediately stabs through the arras and kills him. Why was this act so uncharacteristic of Hamlet? How do you explain his sudden rashness of spirit? 5. What lines show us that Hamlet thought that he was stabbing the king? 6. How do you explain Hamlet’s lack of remorse over the death of Polonius?

Part II After the Killing of Polonius 1. What accusations does Hamlet make against his mother? How does she react at first? 2. What evidence is there that Gertrude had no knowledge of the murder of King Hamlet? 3. How does Hamlet compare his father and his uncle? 4. How does he explain his mother’s actions in marrying Claudius? 5. What finally touches the conscience of the Queen? What word “enter like daggers” into her ears? 6. Where does Hamlet once again show that he considers Claudius a usurper? 7. Why does the Ghost appear at this point?How is his appearance different from his earlier appearance? 8. How do you explain that this time only Hamlet sees the Ghost when all who were present saw him on his other appearances? 9. How does Gertrude explain Hamlet’s conversation with the Ghost? To what extent does she seem to accept Hamlet’s denial of madness? 10. How do you explain Hamlet’s insistence that Gertrude “go not to my uncle’s bed”? 11. Hamlet says “Good night” to his mother four times before he finally leaves. Why does he linger each time? 12.What danger does Hamlet anticipate in England? What foreshadowing of his own plans does he provide us with? 13. The scene ends with a serious of puns after a coarse remark about “lugging the guts” out of the room. How can you explain this mixture of humor with the horror of the scene? 14. Both mother and son have ambivalent feelings about each other. Show how this is true for each. Hamlet said he is being cruel only to be kind. How much kindness is there in his treatment of his mother?

Homework  Assignment: 1. Write a micro essay on how Shakespeare uses diction, tone and extended metaphor to reveal Hamlet’s relationship to his mother.

2. Read “ Introductory Lecture on Shakespeare’s Hamlet ” and find different interpretations of Hamlet’s problems. Keep a “Doubting and Believing ” journal to criticize the lecture.

3.Read excerpts from  Ernest Jones’s  Hamlet and Oedipus  ( http://www.shakespeare-navigators.com/jones/ )

4.  Read Norman Holland’s Shakespeare and Psychoanalysis ( page 59)  http://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00002277/00001/67j

• To become aware of a changed Hamlet in decline, being acted upon rather than acting
• To analyze Hamlet as a personality in contrast to Fortinbras

Do now: Journal Writing-Sometimes we see a color more clearly when it is contrasted with another color.  Why can we often see our own situation more clearly when we compare it with some other person’s?  Can you illustrate this from you own experience?

New Concept-Fortinbras may be seen as a contrast to Hamlet.  In drama we often call such a person a  “foil “(read about the origin of  foil  ).  Although his problems are some what similar, his manner of dealing with them is much different.  Notice how Hamlet himself sees the parallel between himself and Fortinbras

HAMLET VIS-A-VIS FORTINBRAS

•  Fortinbras, until this point only talked about, finally appears on the scene in this act.  What kind of man is he?  What is the meaning of his name?
•    How does Fortinbras happen to be traveling through Denmark at this time? (Check out  the map of Denmark )(Also check out  the map of Norway ).
•  What is the Captain’s attitude towards the battle he is about to engage in?  Does Shakespeare expect us to look upon the expedition of Fortinbras with admiration or with irony?  How might he have looked upon it had this incident occured early in Act I?
•  Before the reading of the soliloquy, ask:  What part of this speech presents the theme or underlying idea?  Which part points up the startling contrast between Hamlet and Fortinbras?
•  How is Hamlet’s soliloquy’s, beginning on line 34, similar to the soliloquy delivered after he heard the First Player recite the lines about Hecuba?  What triggered each train of thought?  How does Hamlet compare himself with another in each of these speeches?  How does each conclude?
•  Where does Hamlet once again hint that he is coward?  What is Hamlet’s attitude towards Fortinbras’s expedition?  What would a modern opinion be of such a war?  Under what conditions is “honor” worth the loss of life?

HW. Analyze Hamlet’s soliloquy in Act IV Scene 4( the turning point of Hamlet’s character”). How does Shakespeare use imagery, tone and diction to reveal the dramatic changes in Hamlet.

Lesson 9 Ophelia’s Madness  Act IV, scenes  5 .  6 .  7 .

• To understand possible reasons for Ophelia’s madness and death
• To compare the character of Laertes with that of Hamlet

Journal response- Formative Assessment

a. How would you define true madness? How does it differ from Hamlet’s feigned insanity? b. What severe strains has Ophelia been subjected to that might explain her loss of reality? What kind of person might she be originally? What evidence can we find from the play to show that she might very well be susceptible to a mental breakdown?

Learning Activities:

Ophelia’s Madness

1. How do the two verses sung by Ophelia at first give an explanation of her breakdown? How do you explain Ophelia’s singing of a song like “Tommorrow is St. Valentine’s Day”?

2. How appropriate is Laertes’s epithet “Rose of May” to Ophelia?

3. When Ophelia distributes flowers to the King, Queen, and Laertes, each flower is meant to have symbolic meaning. What does each flower represent, and who should be given each flower?

Suggested Answer:

B. Laertes, Mad or Revenge

1. According to the King’s speech (lines 75-98), what have the people been whispering about the death of Polonius? What does this show about the kind of reputation Claudius must have had in and around Elsinore?

2.What is Laertes’s reason for bursting in on the King at the head of a mob? How does the King act in this dangerous situation? How is the situation of Laertes now similar to that of Fortinbras and that of Hamlet? Which of the two does Laertes most resemble in his actions? How does the King manage to calm Laertes’s rage?

3.What does the King seem to have in mind when he says to Laertes, ” Where the offense is let the great axe fall”?

4.In scene 7, what two reasons does Claudius give to Laertes for his relatively gentle treatment of Hamlet? How, at this point, might Laertes expect to have his revenge?

5.How does Claudius use flattery in preparing Laertes for his scheme against Hamlet? When Laertes shows a willingness to “cut his throat in the church,” how are we reminded of an earlier scene in the play? How does Laertes compare to Hamlet in this respect?

6.What plot does Claudius propose to Laertes? How does Laertes add some refinements of his own?

Quick Write: Why do you think Claudius responds as he does to Laretes?

Homework Assignment:

Were you surprised by the turn of events in this act( Claudius turned the table from being passive to plotting to kill Hamlet; Hamlet’s interactions with other characters) ?Describe your reactions.

Hamlet’s Return

a. What is the dramatic necessity of having the action-packed events of scene 6 described in a letter from Hamlet? How might a movie version of the play give added life to this scene?

b. Point out examples of disrespect and of threat in Hamlet’s brief letter to Claudius (scene 7).

Lesson 10 : Ophelia’s Death

The Queen’s description of the death of Ophelia is almost lyric. What is the effect of such a description? As it is described here, was the death of Ophelia accidental or was it a suicide?

Objectives: Students will be able to analyze the impact of Ophelia’s death and how it helps advance the plot and further reveals Hamlet’s character.

Aim: How does Ophelia’s death help advance the plot and further reveals Hamlet’s character?

Reading quiz- At her death, how does Ophelia appear to the audience? Are there any strength to compensate for her apparent weakness?

Activities/Lesson Development-

• When Ophelia dies, how villainous does the character of Laertes appear to be? Why?
• At Ophelia’s death, and Hamlet’s return, what state of mind is Claudius in? Why?
• Discuss Claudius’s lines in term of the three sons in Hamlet (Hamlet, Laertes, Fortinbras):

…what would you undertake

To show yourself your father’s son in deed

More than a words? Homework: 1. In this act, both Fortibras and Laertes are foils to Hamlet. What important aspects of Hamlet’s character are revealed by means of the contract between Hamlet and these two foil characters? Enrichment 2. Read J. Paris’s “Three Sons in Hamlet” in  The Atlantic , June 1959, to compare the ways the three sons reacted to the burdens placed upon them as a result of their father’s deaths. 3. Read  Mack, Maynard. “The World of Hamlet.”

The Graveyard Scene   Act V ,  scene 1

To enjoy and understand comic relief in Act V as a device to heighten drama

To contrast the grief of Hamlet with that of Laertes and that of the Queen

All of us have burst into “nervous” laughter in very tragic moments. (Discuss a situation or two from students’ own lives.) What purpose does such comic action serve? When has Shakespeare used it successfully in another tragedy?  Learning Activities

• Read aloud  of the entire scene .
• What questions are the gravediggers debating at the beginning of the scene? ( You should not be misled by the designation clown, which is merely a Shakespearean convention.) What sense of  class-consciousness  do the gravediggers reveal? (It should be noted that these clowns are Elizabethan, not Danish, types.)
• What kind of humor did Elizabethans engage in? (Quibbling, puns, and riddle-asking.) Find examples in this scene.
• What is Hamlet’s immediate reaction to the singing of the gravediggers when he comes on the scene? Journal Write an entry to interpret Hamlet’s proverb: ” The hand of little employment hath the daintier sense.” What examples of satirical criticism can you find in Hamlet’s remarks to the gravedigger?
• Show how the gravedigger outwits Hamlet in their bantering conversation. Journal  How is the age of Hamlet fixed in this dialog? Must we believe that Hamlet is thirty years old (according to some critics) after reading this passage? Has Hamlet acted like a thirty-year-old man throughout the play? Why or why not? Discuss.

Medial Summary

What is the significance of Hamlet’s speech while he is holding the skull of Yorick? How have the Hamlet’s ideas about life and death changed? (Why not, at this point, have the class learn correctly the often misquoted line, “Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio”?) Why does Shakespeare have the conversation take a serious, almost morbid, turn at this point?

Comic relief is to relieve audiences from the tragic tension. Do you agree? Explain.” What  other examples  in literature use such “comic relief”?(Read an example in  Twelfth Night  ) How does the Rainbow scene in  Silas Marner  or any other scene that heightens drama in a piece of literature? What does Shakespeare hope to accomplish by introducing two clown grave diggers in a graveyard? (To heighten the tragic grief of Hamlet, Laertes, and Gertrude.)

• Explain the debate between Laertes and the Priest. What emotional tone should Laertes exhibit? The Priest? Why/ At what point does Hamlet realize that the funeral is for Ophelia? How must he feel upon learning this? How sincerely had he loved the fair Ophelia?
• Is the wrestling match and ranting argument between Laertes and Hamlet in Ophelia’s grave too melodramatic, or can the audience accept it as realistic? Discuss. Why were such scenes included in Elizabethan plays? Which of the two really loves Ophelia more?

9.How does Gertrude feel about the death of Ophelia? Does Claudius show any grief at all?

1.Stage directors and film produces have had to face several major problems in presenting this scene. What are these problems? Hoe would you, as a director or producer, solve them?

2.How does this scene, so skillfully placed in the play at this point, help Claudius? Work against Hamlet? If you were a member of an Elizabethan audience, would you (or would you not) expect Hamlet to avenge his father’s death? Why? What most likely event would you expect to happen? Why?

What does Shakespeare hope to accomplish by introducing two clown grave diggers in a graveyard? (To heighten the tragic grief of Hamlet, Laertes, and Gertrude.)

Summative Assessment

Choose one of the questions below  to write an analytically essay on Hamlet.

2008.  In a literary work, a minor character, often known as a foil, possesses traits that emphasize, by contrast or comparison, the distinctive characteristics and qualities of the main character. For example, the ideas or behavior of a minor character might be used to highlight the weaknesses or strengths of the main character. Choose a novel or play in which a minor character serves as a foil for the main character. Then write an essay in which you analyze how the relation between the minor character and the major character illuminates the meaning of the work.

2002, Form B.  Often in literature, a character’s success in achieving goals depends on keeping a secret and divulging it only at the right moment, if at all. Choose a novel or play of literary merit that requires a character to keep a secret. In a well-organized essay, briefly explain the necessity for secrecy and how the character’s choice to reveal or keep the secret affects the plot and contributes to the meaning of the work as a whole.

2001.  One definition of madness is “mental delusion or the eccentric behavior arising from it.” But Emily Dickinson wrote

Much madness is divinest Sense- To a discerning Eye-

Novelists and playwrights have often seen madness with a “discerning Eye.” Select a novel or play in which a character’s apparent madness or irrational behavior plays an important role. Then write a well-organized essay in which you explain what this delusion or eccentric behavior consists of and how it might be judged reasonable. Explain the significance of the “madness” to the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot.

1998.  In his essay “Walking,” Henry David Thoreau offers the following assessment of literature:

In literature it is only the wild that attracts us. Dullness is but another name for tameness. It is the uncivilized free and wild thinking in  Hamlet   and  The Iliad , in all scriptures and mythologies, not learned in schools, that delights us.

From the works that you have studied in school, choose a novel, play, or epic poem that you may initially have thought was conventional and tame but that you now value for its “uncivilized free and wild thinking.” Write an essay in which you explain what constitutes its “uncivilized free and wild thinking” and how that thinking is central to the value of the work as a whole. Support your ideas with specific references to the work you choose.

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