Hamlet Portfolio:

The purpose of this assignment is for you to acquaint yourself well with the text through a variety of formats and approaches. You have some creative liberty in selecting your activities; however, there are some parameters, and your recorded commentary (in Reading Analysis) is required. All written work must be typed.

Choose a total of 5 activities. At least one must come from each of the three areas; no more than two may come from one area. If the requirements for any of the listed items seem vague, please ask for clarification.If you have an idea that is not on the list, please mention it to me—I’m open to additions.

  1. Reading analysis: due at the beginning of class on Monday, 28 November*
  • Answerselected questions from the study programme at the end of the text: your answer should take the form of a brief (3-5 paragraph) essay
  • Choose from the “Questioning the text” questions for each act—most of these will be acceptable choices, but check with me first
  • Choose from the “Study questions” from pages 439-40—all of these are acceptable choices
  • Mark up key passages with color-coding (choose 2 from any of the below)
  • Hamlet’s soliloquys and speeches on pages 35, 155, 169, 271, 339, or 371
  • The ghost’s speech to Hamlet on page 75
  • Gertrude’s speech to Laertes and Claudius on page 313
  • Claudius’ soliloquy on page 223
  • Polonius’ speech to Laertes on page 53
  • * Record a commentary on a key passage: we will conduct this during class (required)
  1. Interpretation: due in class on Thursday, 24 November
  • Memorize and perform a passage or scene(30+ lines—for longer scenes, you may use a notecard after the memorized portion)
  • Write and present a soliloquy on the topic of your choice in imitated Shakespearean language(250+ words)
  • Write a modern version of a letter from Ophelia to Hamlet(500+ words)
  • Write a modern version of a letter from Gertrude to Hamlet(500+ words)
  1. Free Choice: due at the beginning of class on Monday, 28 November*
  • Turn a scene into a cartoon
  • Draw Ophelia from Hamlet’s perspective
  • Draw Hamlet from Ophelia’s perspective
  • Make a collage about Ophelia
  • Take a photograph of yourself as a character from Hamlet and attach a line from the play. Include a brief written explanation of the elements you place in the photo.
  • Create a Hamlet-themed t-shirt
  • Review one of the film versions of Hamlet after watching it (you may use our viewing of the Kenneth Branagh version, but only if you watch the film in full—it will be shown in my room on 15 & 17 Nov.)
  • Review a television show, movie, book, poem, song or other creation that makes meaningful(consult with me if in doubt about this criterion) use of the Hamlet story, focusing specifically on how that story is employed, and your evaluation of its effectiveness
  • Study and review one of the other popular revenge plays from the Elizabethan or Jacobean periods (i.e., Kyd’s The Spanish Tragedy, Webster’s The White Devil or The Duchess of Malfi, or Tourneur’s The Revenger’s Tragedy), explaining how it mirrors or differs substantially from Hamlet
  • Create a piece of art or music of your own design based on a scene from the play (please tell me about your idea before you create it)

* Note: students with IOCs scheduled on the 28th may request an extension to Wednesday (30 November) for these assignments.

English A1/12 Hamlet Portfolio (weight of 5)

Adaptation of Writing Style to Specific Task (#1x2) / Conventions (#3x1) / Analytical Reading & Understanding (#6x2)
2 / Non-existent or extremely superficial mark up. Thoroughly unimpressive selection and execution of free-choice activity/activities. / Numerous grammatical, mechanical and stylistic errors. Frequent spelling mistakes. / Almost no evidence of reading or understanding. No quotations. Ineffective performance.
3 / Limited or difficult-to-understand mark up of assigned passage. Ultra-easy free-choice activities, hastily or superficially executed. / Frequent grammatical, mechanical or stylistic errors (especially pronoun or verb agreement). / Little evidence of reading or understanding. Hardly any quotations. Awkward memorization or performance with many hesitations and inaccuracies.
4 / Adequate mark up of assigned passage. Free-choice activity or activities completed, possibly selected with an eye to ease of execution rather than literary merit. / Some significant stylistic errors. Limited word choice; bland student voice. / Superficial reading, disappointingly literal understanding. Little analysis or textual substantiation. Some hesitations in memorized or performed lines.
5 / Good mark up of assigned passage. Competent selection and execution of free-choice activity/activities. / Essentially correct grammar, mechanics and stylistic conventions. Some indications of an emerging personal voice. Only a few significant stylistic lapses. / Some evidence of critical and analytical reading and understanding. Some good quotations. Competent memorization or performance.
6 / Very good mark up of assigned passages. Well-balanced selection of free-choice activity or activities. / Correct conventions. Very few errors. Evidence of personal voice. Almost no significant stylistic lapses. / Good critical and analytical reading of the play and understanding of its socio-cultural context. Solid textual support. Some expressiveness in memorized/performed lines.
7 / Excellent and instructive mark up of assigned passages. Challenging, well-executed selection of free-choice activity or activities. / Elegant, expressive, engaging, error-free prose. Non-linguistic elements—creative, original and insightful. / Mature, profound and precise insights into Hamlet, both the play and the character. Sensitive awareness of Shakespeare’s use of language. Flair in memorization/performance. Abundant, effective and purposeful quotations.

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