英国文学选读hamlet

Hamlet

TheTragicalHistoryofHamlet,PrinceofDenmark

Theplay,setintheKingdomofDenmark,recountshowPrinceHamletexactsrevengeonhisuncleClaudiusformurderingtheoldKingHamlet(Claudius'sbrotherandPrinceHamlet'sfather)andthensucceedingtothethroneandmarryingGertrude(theKingHamlet'swidowandmotherofPrinceHamlet).SupplementaryPartsto

thePlotSummaryGertrudesummonsHamlettoherclosettodemandanexplanation.Onhisway,HamletpassesClaudiusinprayer,buthesitatestokillhim,reasoningthatdeathinprayerwouldsendhimtoheaven.However,itisrevealedthattheKingisnottrulypraying,remarkingthat"words"nevermadeittoheavenwithout"thoughts”.AnargumenteruptsbetweenHamletandGertrude.Polonius,spyingonthescenefrombehindanarrasandconvincedthattheprince'smadnessisindeedreal,panicswhenitseemsasifHamletisabouttomurdertheQueenandcriesoutforhelp.Hamlet,believingitisClaudiushidingbehindthearras,stabswildlythroughthecloth,killingPolonius.WhenherealisesthathehaskilledOphelia'sfather,heisnotremorseful,butcallsPolonius"Thouwretched,rash,intrudingfool.“TheGhostappears,urgingHamlettotreatGertrudegently,butremindinghimtokillClaudius.UnabletoseeorheartheGhostherself,GertrudetakesHamlet'sconversationwithitasfurtherevidenceofmadness.Acourtier,Osric,interruptstoinviteHamlettofencewithLaertes.DespiteHoratio'swarnings,Hamletacceptsandthematchbegins.Afterseveralrounds,GertrudetoastsHamlet—againsttheurgentwarningofClaudius—accidentallydrinkingthewinehepoisoned.Betweenbouts,LaertesattacksandpiercesHamletwithhispoisonedblade;intheensuingscuffle,HamletisabletouseLaertes'sownpoisonedswordagainsthim.Gertrudefallsand,inherdyingbreath,announcesthatshehasbeenpoisoned.AnalysisandCriticism

Fromtheearly17thcentury,theplaywasfamousforitsghostandvividdramatisationofmelancholyandinsanity.Thoughitremainedpopularwithmassaudiences,late17th-centuryRestorationcriticssawHamletasprimitiveanddisapprovedofitslackofunityanddecorum.Thisviewchangeddrasticallyinthe18thcentury,whencriticsregardedHamletasahero—apure,brilliantyoungmanthrustintounfortunatecircumstances.Notuntilthelate18thcenturydidcriticsandperformersbegintoviewHamletasconfusingandinconsistent.Beforethen,hewaseithermad,ornot;eitherahero,ornot;withnoin-betweens.Thesedevelopmentsrepresentedafundamentalchangeinliterarycriticism,whichcametofocusmoreoncharacterandlessonplot.Bythe19thcentury,RomanticcriticsvaluedHamletforitsinternal,individualconflictreflectingthestrongcontemporaryemphasisoninternalstrugglesandinnercharacteringeneral.Thentoo,criticsstartedtofocusonHamlet'sdelayasacharactertrait,ratherthanaplotdevice.Thisfocusoncharacterandinternalstrugglecontinuedintothe20thcentury,whencriticismbranchedinseveraldirections.DramaticStructure

Hamletdepartedfromcontemporarydramaticconventioninseveralways.Forexample,inShakespeare'sday,playswereusuallyexpectedtofollowtheadviceofAristotleinhisPoetics:thatadramashouldfocusonaction,notcharacter.InHamlet,Shakespearereversesthissothatitisthroughthesoliloquies,nottheaction,thattheaudiencelearnsHamlet'smotivesandthoughts.Theplayisfullofseemingdiscontinuitiesandirregularitiesofaction.Atonepoint,asintheGravediggerscene,HamletseemsresolvedtokillClaudius:inthenextscene,however,whenClaudiusappears,heissuddenlytame.Scholarsstilldebatewhetherthesetwistsaremistakesorintentionaladditionstoaddtotheplay'sthemeofconfusionandduality.Finally,inaperiodwhenmostplaysranfortwohoursorso,thefulltextofHamlet—Shakespeare'slongestplay,with4,042lines,totalling29,551words—takesoverfourhourstodeliver.Eventodaytheplayisrarelyperformedinitsentirety,andhasonlyoncebeendramatisedonfilmcompletely,withKennethBranagh's1996version.HamletalsocontainsafavouriteShakespeareandevice,aplaywithintheplay,aliterarydeviceorconceitinwhichonestoryistoldduringtheactionofanotherstory.Language

Comparedwithlanguageinamodernnewspaper,magazineorpopularnovel,Shakespeare'slanguagecanstrikecontemporaryreadersascomplex,elaborateandattimesdifficulttounderstand.Remarkably,itstillworkswellenoughinthetheatre:audiencesatthereconstructionof'Shakespeare'sGlobe'inLondon,manyofwhomhaveneverbeentothetheatrebefore,letalonetoaplaybyShakespeare,seemtohavelittledifficultygraspingtheplay'saction.MuchofHamlet'slanguageiscourtly:elaborate,wittydiscourse.Claudius'sspeechisrichwithrhetoricalfigures—asisHamlet'sand,attimes,Ophelia's—whilethelanguageofHoratio,theguards,andthegravediggersissimpler.Claudius'shighstatusisreinforcedbyusingtheroyalfirstpersonplural("we"or"us"),andanaphoramixedwithmetaphortoresonatewithGreekpoliticalspeeches.Hamletisthemostskilledofallatrhetoric.Heuseshighlydevelopedmetaphors,stichomythia,andinninememorablewordsdeploysbothanaphoraandasyndeton:"todie:tosleep—

/Tosleep,perchancetodream".Incontrast,whenoccasiondemands,heispreciseandstraightforward,aswhenheexplainshisinwardemotiontohismother:"ButIhavethatwithinwhichpassesshow,

/Thesebutthetrappingsandthesuitsofwoe".Attimes,hereliesheavilyonpunstoexpresshistruethoughtswhilesimultaneouslyconcealingthem.His"nunnery"remarkstoOpheliaareanexampleofacrueldoublemeaningasnunnerywasElizabethanslangforbrothel.Hisveryfirstwordsintheplayareapun;whenClaudiusaddresseshimas"mycousinHamlet,andmyson",Hamletsaysasanaside:"Alittlemorethankin,andlessthankind."Anasideisadramaticdeviceinwhichacharacterspeakstotheaudience.Byconventiontheaudiencerealisesthatthecharacter'sspeechisunheardbytheothercharactersonstage.Itmaybeaddressedtotheaudienceexpressly(incharacterorout)orrepresentanunspokenthought.Anunusualrhetoricaldevice,hendiadys,appearsinseveralplacesintheplay.ExamplesarefoundinOphelia'sspeechattheendofthenunneryscene:"Th'expectancyandroseofthefairstate";"AndI,ofladiesmostdejectandwretched".ManyscholarshavefounditoddthatShakespearewould,seeminglyarbitrarily,usethisrhetoricalformthroughouttheplay.OneexplanationmaybethatHamletwaswrittenlaterinShakespeare'slife,whenhewasadeptatmatchingrhetoricaldevicestocharactersandtheplot.LinguistGeorgeT.Wrightsuggeststhathendiadyshadbeenuseddeliberatelytoheightentheplay'ssenseofdualityanddislocation.PaulineKiernanarguesthatShakespearechangedEnglishdramaforeverinHamletbecausehe"showedhowacharacter'slanguagecanoftenbesayingseveralthingsatonce,andcontradictorymeaningsatthat,toreflectfragmentedthoughtsanddisturbedfeelings."ShegivestheexampleofHamlet'sadvicetoOphelia,"gettheetoanunnery",whichissimultaneouslyareferencetoaplaceofchastityandaslangtermforabrothel,reflectingHamlet'sconfusedfeelingsaboutfemalesexuality.FeministInterpretationInthe20thcenturyfeministcriticsopenedupnewapproachestoGertrudeandOphelia.NewHistoricistandculturalmaterialistcriticsexaminedtheplayinitshistoricalcontext,attemptingtopiecetogetheritsoriginalculturalenvironment.TheyfocusedonthegendersystemofearlymodernEngland,pointingtothecommontrinityofmaid,wife,orwidow,withwhoresaloneoutsideofthestereotype.Inthisanalysis,theessenceofHamletisthecentralcharacter'schangedperceptionofhismotherasawhorebecauseofherfailuretoremainfaithfultoOldHamlet.Inconsequence,Hamletloseshisfaithinallwomen,treatingOpheliaasifshetoowereawhoreanddishonestwithHamlet.Ophelia,bysomecritics,canbehonestandfair;however,itisvirtuallyimpossibletolinkthesetwotraits,since'fairness'isanoutwardtrait,while'honesty'isaninwardtraitCarolynHeilbrun's1957essay"TheCharacterofHamlet'sMother"defendsGertrude,arguingthatthetextneverhintsthatGertrudeknewofClaudiuspoisoningKingHamlet.Thisanalysishasbeenchampionedbymanyfeministcritics.HeilbrunarguedthatmenhaveforcenturiescompletelymisinterpretedGertrude,acceptingatfacevalueHamlet'sviewofherinsteadoffollowingtheactualtextoftheplay.Bythisaccount,noclearevidencesuggeststhatGertrudeisanadulteress:sheismerelyadaptingtothecircumstancesofherhusband'sdeathforthegoodofthekingdom.Opheliahasalsobeendefendedbyfeministcritics,mostnotablyElaineShowalter.Opheliaissurroundedbypowerfulmen:herfather,brother,andHamlet.Allthreedisappear:Laertesleaves,Hamletabandonsher,andPoloniusdies.Conventionaltheorieshadarguedthatwithoutthesethreepowerfulmenmakingdecisionsforher,Opheliaisdrivenintomadness.Feministtheoristsarguethatshegoesmadwithguiltbecause,whenHamletkillsherfather,hehasfulfilledhersexualdesiretohaveHamletkillherfathersotheycanbetogether.ShowalterpointsoutthatOpheliahasbecomethesymbolofthedistraughtandhystericalwomaninmodernculture.Psychoanalytic

InterpretationInthefirsthalfofthe20thcentury,whenpsychoanalysiswasattheheightofitsinfluence,itsconceptswereappliedtoHamlet,notablybySigmundFreud,ErnestJones,andJacquesLacan,andthesestudiesinfluencedtheatricalproductions.InhisTheInterpretationofDreams(1900),Freud'sanalysisstartsfromthepremisethat"theplayisbuiltuponHamlet'shesitationsoverfulfillingthetaskofrevengethatisassignedtohim;butitstextoffersnoreasonsormotivesforthesehesitations".Afterreviewingvariousliterarytheories,FreudconcludesthatHamlethasan"Oedipaldesireforhismotherandthesubsequentguilt[is]preventinghimfrommurderingtheman[Claudius]whohasdonewhatheunconsciouslywantedtodo".Confrontedwithhisrepresseddesires,Hamletrealisesthat"hehimselfisliterallynobetterthanthesinnerwhomheistopunish".FreudsuggeststhatHamlet'sapparent"distasteforsexuality"—articulatedinhis"nunnery"conversationwithOphelia—accordswiththisinterpretation.JohnBarrymoreintroducedFreudianovertonesintohislandmark1922productioninNewYork,whichranforarecord-breaking101nights.Beginningin1910,withthepublicationof"TheOedipus-ComplexasAnExplanationofHamlet'sMystery:AStudyinMotive,"ErnestJones—apsychoanalystandFreud'sbiographer—developedFreud'sideasintoaseriesofessaysthatculminatedinhisbookHamletandOedipus(1949).InfluencedbyJones'spsychoanalyticapproach,severalproductionshaveportrayedthe"closetscene",whereHamletconfrontshismotherinherprivatequarters,inasexuallight.Inthisreading,Hamletisdisgustedbyhismother's"incestuous"relationshipwithClaudiuswhilesimultaneouslyfearfulofkillinghim,asthiswouldclearHamlet'spathtohis