DRJ #4: Hamlet, Act IV & Act V
When Claudius knew that the people would hate him for having Hamlet punished, it reminded me of this one episode of “Hey Arnold” where all the girls were trying to bring down the popular, nice girl because everyone liked her. It isn’t exactly the same because Claudius wants Hamlet dead so that he is safe, where as these girls want to bring her down and embarrass her because they are jealous. Either way they were going to be hated by others for doing such things. I’ve mentioned Ophelia many times but I can kind of relate to how she feels since she is a female. She’s driven insane by Hamlet’s insanity. Ophelia was obviously in love with Hamlet, and seeing being insane and cruel to her caused it. Love hurts.
Hamlet is the true tragic hero of his story. His father is dies because his uncle kills him for power and his uncle also takes away his mother and they get married. It’s pretty cruel for him to go through such a conflict and it hurts even more. He definitely fits the role of a tragic hero, because even I as an audience character feel bad for what he goes through and the insanity that is caused by his pain. Hamlet blames himself for not moving forward into taking revenge on his uncle. His flaw is that he does not take action into revenge right away, he puts it off and doesn’t make a decision until the last minute.
At this point I feel as if the theme in Acts IV and V are about Life and Death. Hamlet says, (Act IV, Scene IV Lines 53-55) “Is not to stir without great argument, But greatly to find quarrel in a straw, When honor’s at the stake,” Hamlet was talking about how these two countries who are wealthy and at peace would cause war between each other over a small piece of land, they will fight for their pride. All these characters fight for their pride, for their wants and they die in the end. Shakespeare uses symbolism through the gravedigger digging a grave. The gravedigger and the other man talk about how Ophelia killed herself. This is important because she allowed herself to die, she didn’t drown so technically she shouldn’t be having a proper burial, but she is rich so she can have one. Then the final battle takes place in which everyone bets on either Hamlet or Laertus. Gertrude drinks the poison, Hamlet and Laetrus stab each other and Hamlet stabs Claudius. Later on Guildenstern and Rosencrantz are executed. All of this happens because each of their motives and they tried to get to their own wants and satisfaction. Laertus had a grudge over Hamlet, Gertrude wanted Hamlet to be normal again. Hamlet and Claudius wanted each other dead and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern wounded up being puppets. They were all fools and died in the end. Horatio was the only one alive to tell about the lives they lived and why and how they died.
At this point I feel as if the theme in Acts IV and V are about Life and Death. Hamlet says, (Act IV, Scene IV Lines 53-55) “Is not to stir without great argument, But greatly to find quarrel in a straw, When honor’s at the stake,” Hamlet was talking about how these two countries who are wealthy and at peace would cause war between each other over a small piece of land, they will fight for their pride. All these characters fight for their pride, for their wants and they die in the end. Shakespeare uses symbolism through the gravedigger digging a grave. The gravedigger and the other man talk about how Ophelia killed herself. This is important because she allowed herself to die, she didn’t drown so technically she shouldn’t be having a proper burial, but she is rich so she can have one. Then the final battle takes place in which everyone bets on either Hamlet or Laertus. Gertrude drinks the poison, Hamlet and Laetrus stab each other and Hamlet stabs Claudius. Later on Guildenstern and Rosencrantz are executed. All of this happens because each of their motives and they tried to get to their own wants and satisfaction. Laertus had a grudge over Hamlet, Gertrude wanted Hamlet to be normal again. Hamlet and Claudius wanted each other dead and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern wounded up being puppets. They were all fools and died in the end. Horatio was the only one alive to tell about the lives they lived and why and how they died.
Oh my gosh! Hey Arnold bring me back to my childhood! :D I relate to Ophelia as well, she was driven mad by Hamlet's harshness and his decision to stop loving her. I agree with you about Hamlet's tragic flaw of inaction. I like how you used the Gravediggers to contrast life and death. All the characters tried to fight for what they thought was important, or their pride; however, it only lead to their downfall in the end.
ReplyDeleteRight? I love Hey Arnold (:
DeleteNice choice about the themes of life and death. Shakespeare compares these two subjects with each other using contrasting images of life and death. I definitely agree about the "love hurts"; Ophelia thought Hamlet was insane and his inability to prove otherwise, both to her and the audiences caused her to commit suicide. Just curious, do you think Hamlet is insane? You don't have to answer, I’m just curious. Well written post.
ReplyDeleteThank you! (= You're comment made my day! I honestly think Hamlet is an intelligent man, he seems insane but I don't think he is. Maybe his intelligence is taken for insanity. He has every right to be insane because of what happened to him. Everyone thinks he's insane but he's not, it's only natural he would be acting the way he does. Humans are flawed, and even I can be crazy when things happen so I can see why he is considered insane.
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