Extra credit question

Ophelia's crazy sing-songiness in Act 4:5 is very significant. Often in Shakespeare's plays he includes characters like the "fool" or the "clown" who on the surface appear dense (or in this case, insane) but there is hidden meaning and much significance within their words. How does Ophelia fit this description of "the fool." Give specific examples/references/line #'s. Anyone may respond for 1,2,or 3 extra credit points (depending on the brilliance/insightfulness of your response) attached to their next batch of logs. Oh, and you can't repeat something someone else has already blogged...duh.

Hire's Hamlet Log Act 5

Act 5:1

Number 3: Why is the gravedigger so worked up about how Ophelia died? Isn’t his job just to dig graves? Why does he care? Is he a comic relief character? He says some pretty funny stuff. And you thought I laid on the sarcasm pretty thick. For example: Hamlet asks: “who’s grave is this” GD responds “mind, my lord.” Haha. I love this guy. Anyways, I think they are obsessing over her death because 1) Shakespeare wants the audience to think about it, put that idea of suicide that has been talked so much about in this play back into our brains…noting everyone’s religious background and all... and 2) comic relief…hey it’s Act 5 and it was always a “tough crowd” in Shakespeare’s day.

Number ? (The quotes one…) What line… said by Gertrude…is quoted in a famous horror flick. Oh the irony… I’ll make that an extra credit question! First to respond correctlywith the line and the movie name gets a late pass. (Hurry, or Sreyas will Google it first!)

Number 8: Now, Shakespeare plays only include significant stage directions. We have in this scene both Laetres and Hamlet jumping into Ophelia’s grave and fighting. What a sweet fight scene! Shakespeare, you are genius. Thank you for being born.

Act 5:2

Orsic – another great comic relief character.

How did R&G die? Parallel Polonius?

What do you think the fencing scene looks like on stage?

Is Hamlet’s revenge fulfilled?

Hire's Hamlet Log Act 4

ACT 4 (in little nutshells)

Scene 1: The King hears Gertrude’s “profound heaves” (sighs) and asks her what the heck just happened. Poor Gertrude just witnessed a murder, saw her son starring off into space at a ghost ex-husband, and was threatened never to sleep with her current husband again. She lies to Claudius saying that “he weeps for what he has done.” So Claud sends old Rosencranz and Guildenstern to go get Hamlet and find the body. Poor guys. Now Claudius is like “dang, this just keeps getting worse….”
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Scene 2: R&G find Hamlet who is acting kooky again. He’s playing hide and seek with Polonius’s body. He rudely calls his ex-friends “sponges” meaning that they are meaningless vessels of transporting information. (soaking it up and someone else squeezing it out) Cool metaphor. Go Shakespeare go.
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Scene 3: Hilarious scene where Hamlet outwardly mocks Claudius and basically says that someday he’s gonna get pooped out of a worm like the rest of us. He sends Hamlet off to England as punishment for killing Polonius (oh benevolent Claudius…) Then he tells the audience that he’ll have Hamlet killed whilst in England.
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Scene 4: These are great lines here! K.B. really overdoes it in my opinion but this is a turning point in Hamlet’s mind. All blank verse in this scene and it seems as if his reasoning is sound…although when you think about it, it’s kind of weird being inspired by a guy who’s going off to kill 20,000 innocent people all for a little pocket of land. Could that favor the madness side of Hamlet?
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Scene 5: The longest scene in act 4. The crazy Ophelia scene. I like when Claudius says “O’ my dear Gertrude, this, like to a murd’ring piece, in many places/Gives me superfluous death.” (101) He’s beginning to get what he deserves…things are cascading in a downward spiral all around him. Speaking of that, right after he says that, Laertes fans bust down the door demanding answers surrounding Polonius’s death. Claudius really has to think on his toes now to cover his tracks…
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Scene 6: Letter from Hamlet – “Dear Horatio, I’ve had an epiphany! Give these other letters to the King for me. So anyway, I got captured by this pirate ship and all sorts of crazy things happened to me. Rosencranz and Guildenstern are still on their way to England…wait till I tell you what happened to them! See ya, Hamlet”
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Scene 7: Letter from Hamlet – “Dear King, I’m coming back, unarmed, to tell you something. Hamlet”

Then, Claudius really is buttering up Laertes and telling him how great a fencing dude he is. He also mentions that Hamlet has been talking smack about his mediocre fencing skills. So he suggests a duel to settle the score! Laeartes agrees and even offers to put poison on the end of his sword thingy so that he’ll kill him for sure! Claudius thinks that backup plans are a great idea and suggests poisoning a drink too…so that Hamlet can drink it if the stabbing plan falls through too! Gertrude tells everyone that Ophelia is drowned. Now…was it suicide? This gets Laetres even more worked up!

here's two for you white day folks...

1) What ARE the two movie titles in Hamlet's "to be or not to be" monologue? Extra credit for both correct movie titles. (if there are more than 2, let me know!)

2) Shakespeare doesn't like to reinvent the wheel... In 3:1...Hamlet says "be all my sins remembered" as Ophelia enters the room. Name the line from another Shakespearian tragedy that speaks of remembering sins again... Give the play AND the line for the extra credit!

Hire's Hamlet Log 3:4

3:4

Someone dies in this scene…what are your thoughts? Did he get what he deserve? (Fate?) Or is Hamlet a horrible person? Are you mad at Hamlet because of it? Admit it, did you kind of smirk when he got stabbed while spying? But you have to think about his family! I think there was some genuine love in that family…awkwardly as it may have been portrayed…but this event gets the snowball rolling even faster!
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Uh oh…this is the Freudian scene. Anyone a Freud buff/fan? What are your thoughts? Wait till you see K.B.’s interpretation! (You thought Ophelia and Laertes were affectionate siblings…)
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The ghost returns! Good to see you again, Old Hamlet! Hamlet’s words to his mother are harsh…and he goes on and on about how ashamed/disgusted/angry he is with her actions (or inaction…) that the ghost HAS to come back in order for Hamlet to actually get back to the whole revenge on Claudius deal…and leaving Gertrude to heaven! Either that…or Hamlet is getting SO worked up (with dagger-like words) that the ghost fears that those word daggers may turn into actual daggers, and he promised his mother no physical harm. The ghost buts in in lines 130 – 133 and Hamlet’s official madness shows through. “This is the very coinage of your brain!” Gertrude witnesses Hamlet’s freakiness in words and actions.

Hire's Hamlet Log 3:3

Act 3:3

This scene contains Claudius’s SECOND actual confession…can you find the FIRST? One late pass to the first person who posts a correct response. (I want line #’s!)
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Number 8: staging is important in this scene because Hamlet has to walk on stage mid Claudius monologue with a sword! I like how K.B. interprets the scene as Claudius in a confessional…and then Hamlet appears where the priest usually is on the other side. I think Claudius could be anywhere though…it would be way cool if he was back out in the garden…still kneeling, still praying…but to put the scene back where the crime took place I think would be very powerful. Hamlet could be hiding behind a tree or something.
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Questions: why the heck doesn’t Hamlet just get it over with and kill Claudius!! I guess it’s a decent reason that he doesn’t want to send him to heaven (belief of repenting of sins…) It would be more perfect I guess to kill him doing something “bad” but come on, Hamlet! What insights into Hamlet’s character does this suggest? Well, I guess compassion…but more so, weakness! He’s already said that his life isn’t worth a “pins fee” so we know he doesn’t fear death. I guess it’d be scary to go through with murder…but when the ghost of your father comes back to earth to tell you to do something…that’s a tough one…but easier said than done. I think it also shows Hamlet’s indecisiveness and also actual madness…the fact that he doesn’t know what to do…or he knows exactly what to do but can’t go through with it!

Hire's Hamlet Log 3:2

Act 3:2

Insight into Character: Ok, so some of the stuff that Hamlet says in this scene contradicts what I just talked about with him trying to protect Ophelia in the previous “get thee to a nunnery” scene. Oh well…perhaps this just plays up his madness; it makes me believe that this madness is more genuine…but perhaps he is acting out so that the K&Q will witness this madness. [Some of the stuff] = lines 119 – 130, 158 – 175, 269 – 275.
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Number 8: this scene has to be portrayed very carefully on a stage or screen. The dumb play (play within a play) is acted out twice…once pantomimed with no words and then once with words. Hamlet has to be acting crazy the entire time…either that or very overly cynical and sarcastic when he is making his comments in the middle of the play. I think that the spectators of the play should overhear Hamlet’s comments for them to be more effective…meaning…the spectators will start to realize Claudius’s guilt as well…instead of him just sneaking off. When Claudius gets up to leave, it just has to be like mass hysteria…audience members should be gasping, rumors and murmurs flying everywhere! I mean…the play stops as soon as Claudius rises…If a movie suddenly just ended these days, people would be pissed and demand a refund or something! After the house clears…Hamlet is alone again…one step closer to sealing the deal with the ghost.
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Significance of scene – we’re gonna talk about this during class… but just like Act 2:2, don’t just skim over the Player’s lines!! There is much significance in his the diction and figurative language within his lines. Go back and read the Player’s speech again!

Hire's Hamlet Log 3:1

Act 3:1

Number 3 (kind of?): Sketchy lines…
Queen Gertrude says “I shall obey you” in line 41. Does Gertrude agree with Claudius and Polonius’s weird plan to spy (again) on her son and Ophelia in this arranged meeting? Is she really for it…or does she just accept her place as “not in charge” and go with it because what she may have to say doesn’t matter? “Obey” is a loaded word…it has connotations of inferiority and taking orders rather than being a part of these secret plans. Her extra formal speech…shall…could be another indication of these feelings. Hmmm. What do you think?
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Significant lines:

To be or not to be… (lines 64 – 96) Yeah, yeah, here is emo Hamlet again…is it better to live in this world with constant trouble and decision making (you know…whether or not to kill Claudius, what to do with a girlfriend who suddenly doesn’t speak to you anymore, pesky spies who you thought were your friends, etc) Or is it better to just end it all, kill yourself and then it would be just like sleeping right? Wait…if death is like sleep, then what about dreams…what would I dream of? My sins? The things I never accomplished? (a.k.a. killing Claudius, the girlfriend thing, acting “mad” towards your friends, never explaining yourself to your mother…etc) He’s stuck between a rock and a hard place, total catch 22. Poor guy – here he is being completely indecisive again and making excuses for going through with his father’s ghostly demands. (by the way, how many movie titles were bourn from that monologue) (why is it a monologue?)

“Get thee to a nunnery…” (lines 131 – 162) – wow, lots of good lines in this act/scene! (this was a choice for commentary last year) I’m a huge fan of these lines because of all the double entendres in the diction. Also…I think these lines could be directed mainly and literally at Ophelia…but also at his mother, Gertrude. First, a nunnery is a place where girls go to be chaste and holy. Or…a nunnery could be used mockingly as a place where girls go to be just the opposite of that (see footnotes). So his words directed towards Ophelia have two possible meanings…both of which she probably is aware of. He means both: I hope you never allow anyone to give you tenders (the way he did) anymore, AND I hope you go and give everyone with a heartbeat tenders, you… I think Hamlet is both hurt and offended, but mainly hurt. His next line “breeders of sinners” I think lumps both of the women in Hamlet’s life together. He mentioned earlier in his “to be or not to be” monologue how he considered himself a sinner…therefore Gertrude is a breeder of sinners. He tells Ophelia to get to a nunnery (definition #1) so that she won’t make the same mistakes Gertrude did (her o’erhasty 2nd marriage for one…and a cowardly son for two). “Honest” also has a double meaning…could be truthful, could be chaste…in this line (134) he references his mother directly and hints at the whole ‘if only I’d never been born’ idea. Basically he’s like “I can’t believe you got yourself mixed up with a guy like me…” In a weird way, I think he’s trying to protect Ophelia. It’s twisted and coming across way wrong from Ophelia’s perspective (ex: when he says “I loved you not”….ouch) but I think that his intentions are to “save” Ophelia…besides he couldn’t continue a relationship after he kills Claudius (or anyone else…) So…it’s the whole “it’s not you, it’s me” scenario. (I could go on and on…but I have more logs to write…)
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Insight into character: OK, so after spying on Ham and O, Claudius is convinced that it is NOT love that is making Ham mad. But…Old Polonius is still not sure...perhaps he is starved for attention and wants Hamlet’s madness to be centered around his family…or perhaps he is just genuinely worried about his daughter and can’t get the idea out of his head. Still, my point is that he is going to continue to pry into other people’s lives/relationships and I foresee negative vibes in Polonius’s near future…