How does Shakespeare’s Hamlet use dramatic and literary techniques to explore ideas that continue to resonate with us today?Through the use of dramatic and literary techniques, Shakespeare has created a metatheatrical play which would have resonated with Elizabethan audiences and which still resonates with us today.
I'd prefer you to establish the ideas/themes that are resonating with us BEFORE hitting us with the technique stuff. Hamlet (1601) explores the hamartia of indecision as a man is confronted by a world in figurative decay and a change in the zeitgeist from the medieval to the humanist. Through the character of Hamlet, we see a man attempting to confront these realities in his existential search for meaning in order to come to an understanding of his role in the world and the nature of reality. In this way he embodies the human condition which has universal resonance.
Oversall, a fairly strong introduction. Answers the question and sets up your themes well, I think it would be benefit from being a little longer Shakespeare’s Hamlet explores the pertinent question of mortality and death as Hamlet is unable to understand his purpose and role in the world much like we do today.
Solid introduction, be careful not to make these too character focused though. It should be more conceptual/thematic in its approach. Confronted by a world in constant change due to the murder of his father and the adultery of his mother, Hamlet sinks into deep melancholia and explores many of the questions that we still find significant today.
Retell, be careful you aren't using the story to convey ideas! It is all about techniques. Initially, Hamlet questions why he is forced to suffer in this world “O God! O God! / How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable/Seem to me all the uses of this world!”
Retell. The use of soliloquy enhances a personal connection with the audience as we establish his reaction to his father’s death but the biblical reference shows Hamlet’s anger that god does not permit him to enter the afterlife through his suicide.
Good audience reference, but this is just retelling the story a little bit, and soliloquy isn't really a technique. This is continued through the garden imagery: “That grows to seed. Things rank and gross in/nature” which shows how the “weeds” in society, the corruption, has led to him being in a position to kill himself decides that death is something to be wished “’tis a consummation/Devoutly to be wish’d.”
Better in terms of technique, but still a very character focused approach. You aren't considering what the audience is shown about the theme more generally. But Hamlet ultimately comes to the opinion that it is “the dread of something after death,” which prevents people from killing themselves.
Retell. Hamlet’s final view on death is in act 5 when he is holding a memento mori object, the skull of Yorick, “A fellow of infinite jest… and now/ how abhorred in my imagination it is,” reminding the audience, then and now, of our mortality.
Retell. Enjambment is used to illustrate how Hamlet sees death as an equalising point as all that you have done before that is forgotten. Hamlet ultimately comes to the realisation that death is a final point of existence and as such, it makes no difference when we die so long as we are ready for it.
Too character focused, Hamlet doesn't think anything, he is Shakespeare's puppet! Shakespeare explores this through the aphorism “If it be now, ‘tis not to come; if it be not to come, it will be now; if it be not now, yet it will come- the readiness is all.”
Try and go for shorter quotes where you can - If only for your own benefit and ease Shakespeare continues to resonate with us today as Hamlet explores the difficulties of understanding mortality, a central aspect of the universal human condition.
I'd swap the words Hamlet and Shakespeare in that sentence - It is the text Hamlet that resonates, as Shakespeare uses it to explore mortality.
Through the analysis of doubt and inaction, Shakespeare explores how humanist philosophy and overthinking overcomplicates simple action.
Good, see how this is purely thematic? Better. Hamlet sees man as “passion’s slave” unable to escape the will of murder and revenge however when he is given this task, he is unable to take fervent action.
Retell. Hamlet begins to punish himself for his lack of action as he even sees actors in the play within a play “Murder of Gonzago” being more emotive than he is “why what an ass I am! This is most brave/that I, the son of the dear murdered…must like a whore unpack my heart with words”.
Retell, see how you are just recalling some of Hamlet's actions? The use of animalistic imagery and irony convey Hamlet’s self-loathing as he forces himself to think about the consequences of his actions rather than to just act.
Try and put the technique in the same sentence as the quote, purely for clarity for the marker. You don't want them to think you've missed a technique only to discover it later, keep it all in one spot. Hamlet uses the excuse of needing more evidence as a method to justify his procrastination as seen in the personification “catch the conscience of the king”.
Retell. But even when he confirms Claudius is the killer “Now might I do it pat, now a is a-praying/and now I’ll do’t and so a goes to heaven and so am I revenged”, he is still unable to kill him as he uses another excuse, the fact that he is praying, to justify even more procrastination as seen by the enjambment “send/to heaven”.
Retell. Shakespeare suggests that Hamlet is incapable of taking action, at least while he has time to over think the action.
What does this show the audience about the theme? In act IV, Hamlet finally comes to the realisation that he must kill Claudius as otherwise he is “A beast, no more”.
Retell. This is exemplified by the simile “Examples gross as earth exhort me”, which shows how his action in this instance requires no thought as seen by his final resolution “from this time forth/my thoughts be bloody or be nothing worth.”
What does it show the audience about your theme more broadly? Although this is the case, even when he returns from England, he still doesn’t take decisive action until he is called to take action by Laertes which he replies “Let be” indicating that it is no longer his decision to take revenge but an external force.
Retell. The use of Laertes as a foil and an example of the medieval philosophy of “an eye for an eye” is also shown through Shakespeare’s depiction of Fortinbras. He is shown to uphold a code of chivalry and takes action to avenge the death of his father even if it is irrational “The imminent death of twenty thousand men/that for a fantasy and trick of fame”. Shakespeare uses the metatheatrical nature of the play to analyse how Hamlet is aware of his shortcomings in inaction yet he is still incapable of making decisive action.
Some good bits in this paragraph, but a large part of it is retelling the story and/or describing the experiences of the character of Hamlet. This isn't what you need. You need what Shakespeare is doing to convey ideas/perspectives to his audience, and how this resonates with us in the modern day.Tensions between Hamlet’s struggle for the truth and authenticity in the world are opposed to widespread corruption which lead Hamlet to asking his and our existential questions about the nature of truth in the world.
A little too character focused. Caught between ‘authentic’ and ‘responsible’ action, Hamlet remains “unpregnant” of his cause and thus puts on an “antic disposition” in order to figure out if Claudius actually killed King Hamlet.
Retell. This is emblematic of the entire play as characters all place disguises to cover their true actions.
Retell. Claudius presented himself as a virtuous king seen through the double entendre when a distraught Ophelia exits: “Follow her close; give her good watch, I pray you.”
Retell. Although it appears as though he cares for Ophelia’s safety, he actually afraid of the political implications when others learn of Polonius’s death.
Retell - Right now you are explaining the intricacies of the plot of the play, but it is still retell! The hiding of one’s true meaning is also seen in Polonius who although seems to be a moral person as seen by the aphorism: “This above all: to thine own self be true,” is actually being more concerned with his political standing than his children.
Retell, describing a character. The use of threatrum mundi in which the characters of the play reflect the aspects of society causes Hamlet to play many roles in society from a mourner to a madman and his father’s avenger in an attempt to find the one that he sees as correct. This causes him to embody many of the roles in our society, enhancing Hamlet’s universality and why it continues to resonate with us today. It also causes Hamlet to embody a Montaignesque character as he becomes sceptical of everyone around him: “For they are actions that a man might play. /But I have that within which passeth show; /These but the trappings and the suits of woe.” As a result, Hamlet’s character and his world resonates with us today as we continue to question whether everyone is as genuine as they seem or if they have hidden motives.
An easy way to tell this paragraph isn't analysing Shakespeare's choices, is that you've not used Shakespeare's name in this paragraph. Meaning, at no point did you acknowledge Shakespeare making a compositional choice (using a technique) to communicate ideas to his audience. This unfortunately means that nothing in this paragraph is answering the question directly.
Shakespeare’s Hamlet continues to resonate with us today as it explores the universal notion of the human condition by exploring the notions of death, authenticity and doubt. In doing so, Shakespeare constructs a character who undergoes immense suffering as he finds truth in his world and confronts his role in society.