Exam (elaborations)
KEY CRITICS FOR HAMLET
A variety of critics for Hamlet divided into themes.
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35. .Explore how ● Melancholy as a mental affliction - considered a form of madnessShakespeare
presents ideas ● Hamlet feigns madness as a tool
about madness.
● The ambiguity of Hamlet’s madness - some argue that it is genuine
● Ophelia’s madness as a foil to Hamlet’s
36. Explore how ● Corruption and moral decay as rife in the court and the wider setting of Denmark
Shakespeare
presents ideas ● Women, specifically female sexuality, as corrupt
about corruption.
● Corruption pervades even the noble Hamlet
● Explores punishments for corruption, including Denmark’s loss of sovereignty
37. Explore how ● Hamlet’s worshipful admiration of his father
Shakespeare
presents ● Hamlet’s inability to emulate the heroic nature of his father - leads to self-loathing/melancholy
father-son
relationships. ● Fathers having a severe - even sinister - level of control over their sons
● Hamlet as more motivated by his mother - perhaps due to a coldness in his relationship with his
father?
38. Explore how ● Women as undeveloped characters, especially Gertrude
Shakespeare
presents women. ● Women live under the control of men
● Women as corrupt
● The significance of Hamlet’s relationship with his mother
39. To what extent is ● Hamlet’s nobility and superiority established at the beginning
Hamlet presented
as a noble ● However, Hamlet lacks the qualities of medieval chivalric nobility
character?
● Hamlet loses his moral superiority
● Hamlet regains his nobility at the end of the play, although this remains ambiguous
40. Explore how ● Death has had a profound impact on him at the beginning - arguably the cause of his melancholy -
Shakespeare the death of his father
presents ideas
about death. ● Hamlet longs for the ease of death - insight into his melancholy
● Hamlet’s uncertainty about death and what happens after death - leads to his delay
● Hamlet arguably overcomes his fear of death, enabling him to act
● The symbolic death of Ophelia
, 41. Explore how ● Revenge is structurally important to the play - 3 sons avenging their fathers
Shakespeare
presents ideas ● Hamlet as an unusual and unsuitable revenge hero - deeply contemplative
about revenge.
● Hamlet’s obstacles as internal - subversion of Senecan revenge tragedies
● Is Shakespeare exploring the corruptive nature of revenge? Consider the effect that the task of
revenge has on Hamlet
● The effects of the revenge quest on Hamlet’s sanity - ‘remember me’
42. Explore how ● Polonius’s control over his children
Shakespeare
presents the ● A ruthless and Machiavellian politician, at the heart of the Danish nation
character of
Polonius. ● Interactions with Hamlet highlight Hamlet’s moral superiority
● The symbolic significance of Polonius’s death and his rotting body
43. Explore how ● An atmosphere of uncertainty from the beginning - establishing Elsinore as a setting where
Shakespeare appearances cannot be trusted.
presents ideas
about uncertainty. ● Uncertainty about the ghost’s identity - explores contemporary uncertainties about death and the
afterlife
● Hamlet’s other uncertainties about enacting revenge - is he suitable for and capable of the role?
● Overcomes his uncertainty
44. Explore the ● Ophelia as controlled by men
significance of
Ophelia. ● Ophelia’s madness as a foil to Hamlet’s feigned madness
● Ophelia’s madness as transgressive - an act of agency
● Ophelia’s symbolic death - exposing the powerlessness of women in the court
45. How does ● Hamlet’s own sense of entrapment is mirrored in the claustrophobic and confined setting
Shakespeare use
setting? ● The contrast between characters in private and in public
● Private settings convey an intimacy between characters
● The setting of the graveyard - Hamlet experiences an epiphany
46. How does ● The symbolism of decay runs through the play - Denmark as full of moral decay and corruption
Shakespeare use
symbolism? ● The symbolism of ears - you cannot trust what you hear
● Ophelia’s symbolic death - symbolic of a woman’s place within the court?
● The symbolism of Yorick’s skull - leads to realisations and an epiphany for Hamlet - changes his
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