Hamlet Lecture Notes

Causes of Tragedy: the range of Hamlet’s mind and education is reflected in his attempt to understand why tragedy occurs in life

  1. Aristotle’s view of the tragic flaw (hamartia)
  2. The tragic hero ( a noble) possesses a “fatal” flaw
  3. This flaw leads to his (her) downfall
  4. Results in personal tragedy
  5. Questionable personal responsibility
  6. Boethius’ The Consolation of Philosophy
  7. Fortuna spinning her wheel
  8. Might suggest a lack of personal responsibility for downfall
  9. Machiavelli: “Fortune is a woman, and the man who wants to master her must beat and bully her”
  10. Prophetic theory
  11. Isaiah—God selects human agents to function as scourges and ministers
  12. Tragedy is part of God’s plan; He is making sure justice is done
  13. God picks a particular man to bring another from prosperity to tragedy
  14. Scourge vs. minister—depends on the nature of the man
  15. Hamlet doesn’t know where he falls on this spectrum: he’s very concerned about whether there is forgiveness (protestant concern)
  16. scourge—invites the wrath of God, but may be used to accomplish purpose
  17. minister—anointed by God
  18. and the questions continue…….

Claudius

  1. Played in a variety of ways
  2. Repulsive king in early portrayals; drunkard
  3. Contrast to Gertrude who is young, beautiful
  4. Affable in more modern versions
  5. However he is played, his guilt eventually becomes clear
  6. Moving, tragic prayer scene (review Claudius’ soliloquy)
  7. Shows us the picture of the usurper, guilty of the “oldest primal curse” of fratricide.
  8. He knows what he’s done; what he’s done to himself

Gertrude

  1. the extent of Gertrude’s awareness of what is going on in Elsinore is not clear in the script
  2. some modern performances attempt to clarify the ambiguity of her character
  3. is she guilty of adultery? (my most seeming virtuous queen)
  4. she doesn’t seem to know Claudius is a murderer

Hamlet

  1. His tragedy is the tragedy of youth. He is trying to cope with problems not of his creation
  2. He struggles to coordinate his excellent mind and education with his passionate feelings and impulses
  3. His ideas/learning prove inadequate to make sense of what is happening (Aristotle, Boethius, Isaiah)
  4. He represents the quintessential college student: full of ideas
  5. He admires both the stoical Horatio and the emotional player
  6. His feelings toward Ophelia veer from love to profound mistrust
  7. In the grave scene, he professes love
  8. But, in his suspicion, he actually insults her (Act III)

d. In one soliloquy he rages at Claudius and then mocks his own age

Hamlet the Protestant Hero:

I. the play and the man are plagued by the doubt characteristic of the Protestant Reformation (Wittenberg—that Protestant, Humanist university)

  1. Martin Luther—the Protestant Reformation
  2. Did away with all of the intermediaries between God and man
  3. Political effects—no need for a king, other social orders
  4. May explain why Hamlet does not seem concerned that he has lost the throne
  5. Left individuals alone with an ability to respond to God who is far too ambiguous/unknown
  6. Erasmus, the exemplary Christian Humanist, cleaved to the Church of Rome despite misgivings; but he “laid the egg” that Martin Luther “hatched”
  7. Salvation is attained by faith alone (contradicts the Epistle of James)
  8. Reformation Doctrines—original sin exists (Calvin called it the total depravity of the human will)
  9. Eroded confidence in the potential of man as typified by early humanists
  10. Protestants believe in God’s grace
  11. how can one know when God is speaking to him/her?
  12. how does one know they have received grace?
  13. It’s between God and Man (not a priest)
  14. John Milton argues that original sin put man in the place of fallen and fallible. We can be redeemed only though grace
  15. Hamlet embodies Protestant doubts and anxieties, the isolated soul without the clear guides provided by the Catholic Middle Ages
  16. His soliloquy (“what a piece of work is man”) shows an awareness of medieval humanistic doctrine, yet he can’t assent to it
  17. He’s read books, taken note, but he still doesn’t know what to do with this information
  18. Eventually he resolves his problems. Returning from his sea voyage, he shows a belief in the divine governance of the world. (“There is a special providence in the fall of a sparrow”—the gospel according to Matthew)—fatalist attitude
  19. Hamlet stops trying to control things from this juncture forward
  20. that’s what he had been trying to do with all of those philosophical discussion
  21. Since God governs all things, we do not need to look for explanation in theories (Aristotle, Boethius, Isaiah)
  22. Rather, “readiness’ is all” and Hamlet is now ready to act

Critics’ response to Hamlet

  1. Hamlet’s wide ranging search for the origins of tragedy has been followed by many critics seeking the reason’s for Hamlet’s own trouble
  2. Goethe suggested that Hamlet was too delicate, too sensitive
  3. Coleridge thought that Hamlet was constitutionally given to thought and indisposed to action
  4. The critic Kitto suggests Hamlet is too shocked by his father’s death and his mother’s rapid remarriage to his uncle to do anything
  5. Freud held that Hamlet was unable to revenge himself because of his own Oedipal fantasy.

Questions for discussions:

1. What are your thoughts as to the reason for Hamlet’s lack of action? Do you agree with any of these philosophies?

2. Why is it important to make the distinction of Hamlet as a Protestant hero since there is no overt theology or religion in the play? Can Hamlet be considered a hero in any other context?

3. What is your opinion of Claudius?

4. What are some reasons as to the popularity of Hamlet? What aspects of the text solidify its place as a “common” text? (widely read)