...''Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work.'' Or “The main subject that is being discussed or described in a piece of writing, a movie, etc.” Theme is a word having etymology from the Greek, "placed" or "laid down". Its origin is 1250–1300; Greek théma proposition, deposit, akin to tithénai to put, set down. In contemporary literary studies, a theme is the central topic a text treats. Themes can be divided into two categories: a work's thematic concept is what readers "think the work is about" and its thematic statement being "what the work says about the subject". The most common contemporary understanding of theme is an idea or concept that is central to a story, which can often be summed in a single word (e.g. love, death, betrayal). Typical examples of themes of this type are conflict between the individual and society; coming of age; humans in conflict with technology; nostalgia; and the dangers of unchecked ambition. A theme may be exemplified by the actions, utterances, or thoughts of a character in a novel. An example of this would be the theme loneliness in John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, wherein many of the characters seem to be lonely. It may differ from the thesis—the text's or author's implied worldview. A story may have several themes. Themes often explore historically common or cross-culturally recognizable ideas, such as ethical questions, and are usually implied rather than stated explicitly. An example of this...
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...writers on your OIB program deal with the theme of madness It is not rare that the theme of madness whether it is feigned or not to be presented in literary works. William Shakespeare and Euripides depict this theme in their works Hamlet and Medea. Medea and Hamlet have experienced familial hardships; as a result they believe that the only way to obtain what they desire is through manipulation. Indeed both characters have become masters at the art of deceiving. In both works the theme of madness can be discussed as we cannot be certain that these personas are truly lunatics. Madness can be here considered as a tool to achieve ones end. Indeed Medea and Hamlet feign insanity in order to achieve revenge over their disloyal family. Medea and Hamlet have been betrayed by their family, the first through the murder of his father by his uncle and the marriage of his mother to the same man and the second by her husband who has agreed to marry somebody else. Both are left alone dealing with these events. As madness may be described as “mental incapacity caused by an unmentionable injury”, it is with no surprise that Hamlet or Medea would fall in the hands of insanity. However their actions and words prove the opposite. We can thus suppose that they are both feigning madness to achieve revenge. Medea thinks about the consequences before taking action “what state would take me in? What friend would offer me his land as refuge”. Hamlet weighs also his options as he does not know...
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...August 8, 2013 Is Hamlet Primarily a Tragedy of Revenge? The play Hamlet has several occurring themes, romance, sex, madness, suicide, or even death. It is a very famous play written by Shakespeare in the early 1600's, which is also known for the many different perspectives it gives readers. Despite all these themes being present in Hamlet, Shakespeare may have intended another topic to be the prominent theme in this tragedy. The main event which sets the story, is the murder of Prince Hamlet's father, King Hamlet. The ghost of King Hamlet tells his son to seek out his killer and avenge him. The most primary theme in the tragedy of Hamlet is definitely revenge. The idea of “an eye for an eye” revenge is demonstrable in several circumstances in the play, since Hamlet swears to carry out revenge on his uncle Claudius, Prince Fortinbras of Norway vows revenge on the state of Denmark, and Laertes swears revenge on Hamlet. During the onset of the play, a ghost appears to Hamlet, and claims he is his deceased father, and that he was murdered by Hamlet's uncle Claudius in order to steal the throne of Denmark. It is evident the ghost wants Hamlet to seek revenge, since he tells hamlet he must do it by his command: "So art thou to revenge, when thou shalt hear"(1.5.7). The ghost also reminds Hamlet his purpose on multiple occasions. Hamlet is very distraught at the thought of his mother marrying his...
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...William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, there are many themes of betrayal, plotting, deceit, and revenge. With so much going on it can be hard to distinguish a character’s motives and plots, especially with regards to the main protagonist, Hamlet. This clearly disturbed character, whose problems over the course of the story take their toll on his emotional as well as physical health. His plot for revenge is never explicitly clear to the reader, as his monologues get more and more dark and vague. This leaves a lot of his actions up to interpretation, most clearly his descent into madness, which while some see as an act, others see as the result of a deep depression. Many people have vastly different opinions on the topic, and for the rest of time they will only be that, as Shakespeare is no longer here to give a definitive answer of his intentions. That is not to say that these different ideas have no merit however, as it has been a topic that has been heavily debated for years. Some say that Hamlet was driven insane by the death of his father, and the “betrayal” of his mother. Others say that his madness was all a plot to trick and confuse the antagonist, Claudius. While others even see it as a mixture of both, with Hamlet slowly losing his mind over...
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...Horatio, to watch with them. When he sees the ghost, he decides they should tell Hamlet, the dead King's son. Hamlet is also the nephew of the present King, Claudius, who not only assumed his dead brother's crown but also married his widow, Gertrude. Claudius seems an able King, easily handling the threat of the Norwegian Prince Fortinbras. But Hamlet is furious about Gertrude's marriage to Claudius. Hamlet meets the ghost, which claims to be the spirit of his father, murdered by Claudius. Hamlet quickly accepts the ghost's command to seek revenge. Yet Hamlet is uncertain if what the ghost said is true. He delays his revenge and begins to act half-mad, contemplate suicide, and becomes furious at all women. The Lord Chamberlain, Polonius, concludes that Hamlet's behavior comes from lovesickness for Ophelia, Polonius's daughter. Claudius and Gertrude summon two of Hamlet's old friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, to find out what's wrong with him. As Polonius develops a plot to spy on a meeting between Hamlet and Ophelia, Hamlet develops a plot of his own: to have a recently arrived troupe of actors put on a play that resembles Claudius's alleged murder of Old Hamlet, and watch Claudius's reaction. Polonius and Claudius spy on the meeting between Ophelia and Hamlet, during which Hamlet flies into a rage against women and marriage. Claudius concludes Hamlet neither loves Ophelia nor is mad. Seeing Hamlet as a threat, he decides to send him away. At the play that night, Claudius runs...
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...John Doe English 2 H April 1, 2015 Hamlet Theme Essay The themes of Appearance vs. Reality are very prominent in the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare. Throught the story many characters act in a deceitful manner in an attempt to seem like an innocent pawn in the game of life, when in reality they are the most corrupt characters in the play. Polonius an excellent example of appearance vs. reality. Throught the story Polonius seems to be a loyal servant to the kingdom, serving the previous and current king as a personal adviser. To the average citizen in the kingdom Polonius seems to be just as loyal of an adviser to King Claudius, but Hamlet exposes Polonius to be a deceitful man, who by supporting the new king has betrayed his previous ruler and the honor of the kingdom. Hamlet's mother Gertrude can also be used as an example of appearance vs. reality. To the people of the kingdom Gertrude appears to be an honest woman who remarried because of her love for Claudius, but in reality she remarried solely to stay in power and continue her luxurious life as a queen. Hamlet himself is also an ideal example of appearance vs reality, because of his constant act of insanity which causes him to appear mad when in reality he is perfectly sane and simply acting to benefit himself. Polonius a textbook example of appearance vs. reality. Almost immediately after the death of Hamlet’s father, Polonius readily accepts Claudius as his new ruler which is seen as a betrayal to the previous...
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...In the play Hamlet, madness is very prevalent and is a major theme in the play. Madness is defined as mental delusion or eccentric behavior from it; and in this case Hamlet's madness changes his perception and affected his judgment. When people are mad, people start to react to things instead of thinking them through and do not act normally. Through Hamlet's apparent madness, Shakespeare illuminates the danger that Hamlet's flawed decisions made from poor judgment pose to other, especially those closest to him. Hamlet in the play makes flawed decisions because of his mental state. The madness contributes to his poor judgment. In act one scene five, Hamlet says “As I perchance hereafter shall think meet To put an antic disposition on” (1.5.28). This is Hamlet blatantly stating that he is going to pretend to act crazy. But the premise of it is a bit insane itself. He makes this decision from seeing the ghost of King Hamlet. It is strange that nobody except Hamlet has heard the ghost told. And even later in act three, scene four, Hamlet talks to the ghost in front of Gertrude, but Gertrude acts confused as if she never seen the ghost. The fact that Claudius killed his brother and married King Hamlet's wife upsets Hamlet and causes him to make these rash decision. Another example of his decision making is in act two scene two, where he makes fun of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Hamlet confronts Rosencrantz and Guildenstern about them spying on him for the king and queen. Although...
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...Hamlet Movie Scene Comparison Act II, scene 2 is the longest scene in Hamlet. In this scene, Rosencrantz and Guildernstern come to the King, Voltimand and Cornelius report the message from Norway, Polonius suggests to Claudius and Gertrude the reason of Hamlet’s madness, Hamlet calls Polonius a “fishmonger”, Rosencrantz and Guildernstern bring in the players, Hamlet decides to let the players play the Old King’s murder. Scene 2 is divided into sub-sections in a way to present the plot and the theme more clearly. The “fishmonger scene” refers to the part from Polonius’s explanation of Hamlet’s madness “Your noble son is mad” (2.2.92) to the end of Hamlet and Polonius’s first interaction “except my life” (2.2.210), initiates Hamlet’s actions on revenge and vouchsafes how other characters view his “madness”. This essay will compare the actors’ gestures and line arrangements from directors Kenneth Branagh and Franco Zeffirelli to depict the different effects in Hamlet’s madness. First, the actors’ gestures between Kenneth Branagh version and Mel Gibson version show differences to the interpretations of Hamlet’s madness. There are not many gestures in the Kenneth Branagh film, which can mean something. When Polonius talks to Claudius and Gertrude, also when he talks to Hamlet, he does not have obvious big body movement, but instead just standing straight, walking steadily, behaving perfectly like a honorable and educated man; Hamlet as the noble son of the King and Queen, and the...
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...Name Subject Professor Date Hamlet’s Insanity In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, the theme of insanity is portrayed through Hamlet. Hamlet’s mental state mirrors the play’s ambiguity. Hamlet’s character elicits different hypotheses that include the following: First, Hamlet is sane throughout the play but opts to feign insanity. Secondly, Hamlet’s insanity was latent but fully developed after the play produced by the hero. Hamlet claims he will take on an “antic disposition” ( Bloom, 45). The first thing that indicates his insanity is his madness. His madness can be hypothesised as an indication of this disposition. His madness is further shown when it is stated that he was only mad after an interview with a ghost. This interview with a ghost is by all reasons, an indication of madness. Therefore, Hamlet is insane and its insinuation in the play is not a ploy. Secondly, the suicidal tendencies of Hamlet justify his insanity. When the play opens, Hamlet wishes that his, “flesh” would melt and, “dissolve” (Thiher, 39). Hamlet’s need for self-slaughter is brought out and portrayed throughout the play. Besides, the murder of his father and the betrayal of his mother make him be of the belief that the world is a very corrupt place: Of, that this too solid flesh would melt Thaw and resolve itself into a dew! Or that the Everlasting had not fix'd His canon 'gainst self-slaughter! O God! God How weary, stale, flat and unprofitable. (Shakespeare, 1.2.6-11) One of the factors that impair Hamlet’s...
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...To Be or Not to Be… Mentally Ill? In Shakespeare’s play: “The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark”, the principle character, Hamlet, is a young man who decides to pretend he is mentally ill (“mad”) to avenge his father’s murder. However, Hamlet’s actions, his behavior, and his general persona indicate otherwise and suggest that he is in fact mentally ill. The first part of this play foreshadows Hamlet’s mental stress. As the play unfolds, he no longer seems to be “pretending madness”, as ultimately multiple deaths occur. “Mad as the sea and wind when both contend Which is the mightier. In his lawless fit, Behind the arras hearing something stir, Whips out his rapier, cries, “A rat, a rat!” And in this brainish apprehension kills The unseen good old man.” (IV.i 8-13) This quote in Act IV, scene i is the turning point in the play when clearly Hamlet’s “pretend” madness is no longer an act, but truly indicative of “madness”, leading to the question: Does Hamlet’s “madness”, his ascent from sanity to insanity, result in the tragedy in “The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark”? The first part of this play foreshadows Hamlet’s mental decline. He has many of the risk factors for depression such as his age (clinical depression often first occurs in late adolescence or early adulthood), and he has had many life changing events happen in a relatively short period of time such as his father unexpectedly dying (possibly murdered), his mother remarrying shortly...
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...Kaplan English 12 P.4 28 March 2012 The Difference of Insanity: Hamlet against Ophelia In the Renaissance, madness was the theme of William Shakespeare's writings. He attended grammar school, but nothing further. So for his writings to be written with intelligence, it was greatly admired by many. Shakespeare’s career was in the time of Elizabeth I, 1558-1603 and James I, 1566-1625. His writings were not his own original work. It has been said that he took the story, Hamlet, from Saxo Grammaticus and changed the way Hamlet was portrayed from his story into a more “mad” version of Hamlet that waits to get revenge and is not truly mad from the start. It is also said that Shakespeare stole a majority of his stories from other writers during his time, making them more well-known and changing the moral of the story. In the Renaissance, people looked at insanity as if it were a crime. It was looked down upon. People did not understand that it was something that occurred within the mind, so they thought if they sprayed people with water it would shock them out of their insanity. The Renaissance culture also gave an intellectual rendition to three specific kinds of madness: folly, demonic possession and melancholia. In that time, thoughts of madness were confused by religious beliefs and sometimes even mistaken for nonsense. The dictionary defines madness as “extreme anger, excitement, or foolishness” and in Hamlet, Hamlet is characterized as insane because he fits the definition the...
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...analysis: Hamlet and The Lion King Hamlet is a 1990 drama film based on a tragic play with the same name, written by William Shakespeare. On the other side The Lion King is an animated musical movie. Walt Disney Pictures released the movie in 1994. As the movie Hamlet, The Lion King was also influenced by Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet. Both the movies are about revenging the death of a cherished family member but in different ways. Since a long time the idea of revenge has existed in our human nature. It has been our instinct to take back for a person that has been hurt. Today we find that many literary works uses revenge as a theme for the plot but how it is shown depends from a character to another. Hamlet and The Lion King are two superb examples. In the castle of Elsinore in Denmark, prince Hamlet sees his father’s ghost. Through the ghost Hamlet learns that his own brother, Claudius, who wants the thrown to Denmark had murdered his father and married his dead brothers wife, the queen Gertrude. The spirit tells Hamlet to, “revenge his foul and most unnatural murder” (1.5.25 Shakespeare) and Hamlet obeys the spirit’s wishes. He then begins to seek more evidence on Claudius and his betrayal towards his brother. Hamlet enters into a deep melancholy and appears to be in madness, which makes Claudius and Gertrude worry about his erratic behavior. They employ Hamlet’s friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to watch over him and to discover the cause of his madness. While...
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...Otu Ms.Cincinelli ENG4U1 July 19, 2016 Hamlet Quotations Choice 1 Mad as the sea and wind when both contend Which is the mightier. In his lawless fit, Behind the arras hearing something stir, Whips out his rapier, cries, “A rat, a rat!” And in this brainish apprehension kills The unseen good old man. This quotation is said by Gertrude, the Queen, also known as Hamlets mother, in Act 4, Scene 1, 8-12. This passage serves to develop the character of Hamlet, and show how much he has grown mad in comparison to his visitation to Ophelia, which is when they begun to believe he has actually lost his mind. This passage also serves to develop conflict because Hamlet has just killed Laertes’s father, and Claudius’s good friend. This can develop conflict between the men because just as Hamlet wanted to seek revenge for the murder of his father, Laertes will also desire to do the same, as we see in Act 4, Scene 5, 104-110. This passage also serves to develop theme of death because this makes two deaths. Two deaths that have driven the characters to insanity. As we see in the text Hamlet first decides to put on an act, as he said he may find it fit to in Act 1, Scene 5, 171-173. Although, as we can see, the events that begin to take place in his life gives way for his acting to become reality, and the death of his father being one of the few reasons. As for Ophelia, she became crazy very soon after the death of her father, whom Hamlet killed. A key literary device used to achieve...
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...The Effect of Allusions in Hamlet Sometimes it takes a clearly conveyed comparison to fully understand a difficult concept. The greatest authors of all time create novels with important points that are not quite so obvious, and the reader has to do a little digging to grasp the intended meaning. When regarding Shakespearean plays, readers will surely notice that they are riddled with enigmas. How does Shakespeare give the reader clues to help grasp the novel? He uses allusions, carefully-placed references to something else. One of the finest places to look for Shakespearean allusions is Hamlet, a tragedy about the negative effect of ambition and revenge. The result of William Shakespeare incorporating allusions into Hamlet is the readers have a more sophisticated understanding of themes, characters, and conflicts. In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, he uses allusions in order to develop themes in the play. One of the major themes in the play is action vs. inaction. In Act 1, Scene 5, Hamlet talks with the ghost of his father about the cause of his death. The ghost informs him that it was his uncle Claudius, as he suspected, and that it is imperative that he seek revenge at once. The ghost says, “I find thee apt. And duller shouldst thou be than the fat weed that roots itself in ease on Lethe Wharf, wouldst thou not stir in this.” The ghost sees that Hamlet is eager to get revenge, but little does he know, this allusion is a prediction of what is to come. The ghost’s statement...
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...Allusion |Literal Meaning |How it develops Theme |Sources | | |I would have such a fellow|The meaning is that Hamlet |This quote helps develop theme |http://www. | |whipped for o'erdoing |would beat up a man for |because it represents the theme |bignerds.com/papers/86464/Theme-And-Understan| |Termagant |acting out.(Termagant-acting |of revenge and how it not only |ding/ | | |like a shrew) Tergament is an|effects one person but others | | | |allusion to a God that the |around them. | | | |Elizabethans believed that | | | | |the Muslims worshipped | | | |It out herods Herod |Hamlet wants Ophelia to avoid|This quote develops the theme of |http://www.gradesaver.com/hamlet/q-and-a/i-ne| | |acting like a termagant or a |state of mind in hamlet because |ed-to-post-an-allusion-from-either-act-i-ii-o| | |Herod. Also to not be more |it gives us an idea of the |r-iii-its-literal-meaning-its-implicit-meanin| | |like Herod...
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