Characters
Ms. Peterson's cat
Ophelia
Two events bring many of our characters to Denmark at the beginning of the play. What has just happened?
King Hamlet's Funeral
and
Claudius & Gertrude's Marriage
Define denial and provide an example
Denial= Arguing against an anxiety provoking stimuli by believing it doesn’t exist
Queen Gertrude refuses to acknowledge the depth of Hamlet’s grief and the moral implications of her hasty remarriage to Claudius, her former husband's brother.
A specific moment is in Act 1, Scene 2, when she tells Hamlet:
"Good Hamlet, cast thy nighted color off,
And let thine eye look like a friend on Denmark.
Do not forever with thy vailèd lids
Seek for thy noble father in the dust."
Here, Gertrude is essentially telling Hamlet to stop mourning his father and move on, even though King Hamlet has only recently died. She’s denying how inappropriate and unsettling it is that she remarried so quickly — especially to her husband's brother — and expects Hamlet to ignore his very real and justified emotions.
Define irony and give one example of how we see it in the play
Irony: the use of a word/statement that is the opposite of what is expected. Variations can be seen in verbal irony, situational irony, and dramatic irony.
Hamlet spends most of the play delaying the murder of Claudius because he wants to make sure it’s justified and that Claudius suffers spiritually (not just dies). Ironically, by waiting, Hamlet causes more death — including Ophelia, Polonius, Laertes, Gertrude, and himself.
He thinks he’s buying time to make the “perfect” move, but his inaction leads to a massive tragic chain reaction. The irony is that the delay was supposed to prevent wrong or rash action, but it causes even more destruction.
Joseph Pearce, who wrote the introduction in our book, argues that Hamlet is insane. True or False?
False
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
Hamlet devises a plan for determining Claudius' guilt after a troupe of actors come to the castle. What does he do?
Hamlet has the players act a play that is similar to the way Claudius killed Hamlet Sr
Explain the model of the psyche according to Freud (what makes up the mind, need all three components)
Ego, Id, Superego
Id – The Basic Desire
The completely unconscious part of the psyche that serves as a storehouse of our desires, wishes, and fears.
The Id is “the location of our drives.”
The Id is the “animal” in us.
Superego- The Moral Guide
also a completely unconscious part of the psyche that is thought of as one's "conscience"
the superego operates "like an internal censor [encouraging] moral judgments" (Siegel).
Ego – Reality
Mostly (to partially) conscious part of the psyche
Processes experiences and operates as a referee or mediator between the Id and Superego.
Consider the following quote:
"'tis an unweeded garden, That grows to seed; things rank and gross in nature Possess it merely."
From an archetypal standpoint, what does the garden mean? How can we apply the archetype to the context of Hamlet?
Gardens - a place of “perfection” with a flaw at center, natural abundance, beauty
In Hamlet, Hamlet repeatedly uses garden imagery in a negative context. Outwardly, everything may be fine, but we, as the audience, are well aware that things are not what they appear.
A character speaks for many lines alone on stage, where no other character can hear. Oftentimes to share inner thoughts with the audience. What is this called?
Soliloquy
Who believes that Hamlet should not follow the ghost because it "might deprive your sovereignty of reason and draw you into madness"?
Horatio
While yelling at his mother in her bedroom, Hamlet finally takes action when he hears someone behind a tapestry. What does Hamlet do?
He stabs Polonius, mistaking him for Claudius
Define displacement and give an example
Displacement= Taking out impulses on a less threatening target
Hamlet's anger toward his mother, Gertrude, is a displacement of his rage toward Claudius.
Act 3, Scene 4 (the “closet scene”):
“You are the queen, your husband's brother's wife,
And—would it were not so—you are my mother!”
Here, Hamlet unleashes intense fury on Gertrude, accusing her of betrayal and moral weakness. But the real source of his rage is Claudius for murdering his father. Since Claudius is dangerous and powerful, Hamlet redirects that rage toward his mother — a safer emotional target.
Define literary foil character and give an example of two characters who could be considered foils to each other.
A foil is a character that contrasts with another to highlight or emphasize certain qualities. It is used to make another, often the protagonist, seem more prominent or interesting by providing a contrasting point of reference.
Hamlet vs. Laertes
Hamlet vs. Fortinbras
Name of the play that is performed for Claudius and his court.
The Murder of Gonzago
Also accepted: The Mousetrap
Assumes the Danish throne after the deaths of King Claudius and Hamlet
Fortinbras
What happens at sea that allows Hamlet to escape his fate in England?
Pirates lay siege to their ship and take Hamlet prisoner
Define the Oedipus Complex and explain where characters in Hamlet would fit
"a murderous rage against the father...and a desire to possess the mother"
Child: Hamlet
Father: Claudius
Mother: Gertrude
Define an archetypal character of your choice and give an example of this archetype.
Tragic Hero - a heroic character who makes a judgment error that ultimately leads to their own destruction - It cannot be avoided. The “death” of a tragic hero can reinforce important cultural lessons or ideas.
Hamlet
After Hamlet discovers the letter to the King of England from Claudius asking that Hamlet be put to death, Hamlet rewrites the letter and forges the seal of the King. How is Hamlet able to reseal it?
Hamlet has his father's signet ring which bears the royal seal of Denmark
The name of the Jester whose skull Hamlet picks up at the end of the play
Yorick
Explain the deaths of ALL significant characters
Hamlet Sr
Hamlet
Claudius
Gertrude
Laertes
Polonius
Ophelia
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern
Hamlet Sr-poison in ear (Claudius)
Hamlet-stabbed with poison sword (Laertes)
Claudius-stabbed with poison sword (Hamlet)
Gertrude-drinks poison (Claudius)
Laertes-stabbed with poison sword (Hamlet)
Polonius-stabbed with sword (Hamlet)
Ophelia-commits suicide (self)
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern-executed (Hamlet through King of England)
Pick an ego defense mechanism not previously discussed.
Define it, and provide an example.
1- Denial= Arguing against an anxiety provoking stimuli by believing it doesn’t exist
2- Displacement= Taking out impulses on a less threatening target
3- Intellectualization= Avoiding unacceptable emotions by focusing on the intellectual aspects
4- Rationalization= Supplying a logical or rational reason as opposed to the real reason
5- Repression= Unknowingly “forgetting” a painful feeling or experience
6- Suppression= Actively trying to “forget” a painful feeling or experience because it causes anxiety/stress
7- Sublimation= Acting out unacceptable impulses in a socially acceptable way
8- Splitting= Looking at everything as all good/all bad with nothing in between
Define recurrence and give an example that we see throughout the play
Recurrences - the repetition of an event or scene
Revenge (Hamlet's for his father, Laertes' for his father/sister)
Betrayal (Claudius of Hamlet Sr, Hamlet of R & G)
In Hamlet's "To be or not to be" soliloquy, what metaphor does Hamlet use to discuss death?
Sleeping/Dreaming
To die, to sleep—
No more—and by a sleep to say we end
The heartache, and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to. ’tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wish’d. 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—there’s the respect
That makes calamity of so long life.