Mel Gibson's "Hamlet" and Shakespeare's language

Shakespeare's Language

You have been working on an essay about this. I will give a short presentation about aspects of this that you should know about and try to apply in your writing, specially in the Explorative Study for your coursework later.

Mel Gibson's "Hamlet"

We will be watching parts of this and taking notes on similarities and differences between Gibson and Brannagh's interpretations of the play.

Your Creative Critical response will require you to think about the reception of the play in context.

Marlowe's "Doctor Faustus"

You will need to buy this text so that we can begin exploring some key scenes from this second text. You will need to read the complete text so that you can refer to it in your coursework. We have elected to go for the Longman edition.

A picture of the edition and an amazon link is given here.

Homework:

1.Write a summary of similarities and differences between you impressions of the Brannagh and Gibson "Hamlet"s. Try to refer to the script if possible.

2.Read one of the articles on Shakespeare's Catholicism listed on the sidebar to the left. We will divide them up in class. Make some notes to present some of the main ideas for class discussion.

3.Get "Doctor Faustus".

Language in "Hamlet"

I'm not in school today, so in my absence, please prepare an essay with this title:

Compare and contrast two extracts from "Hamlet" exploring how Shakespeare uses language to develop character, action and theme.

Make sure you focus especially on:

Imagery, metaphor, poetic effects (like rhyme/blank verse), repetition, verse/prose.

I will give you a short presentation about Shakespeare's language next week but to get further help you could visit these links:

Folger Shakespeare Library

About.com:Shakespeare

Please also look at the new side-bar about Shakespeare's language to the left - scroll down until you find it beneath the new picture of Christopher Marlowe.

800 words, word-processed and double-spaced (1.5 spacing works well). Hand in 28th November 2008.

Dr.M.

PS Note new links on Shakespeare's Catholicism on the left. We will be covering this topic as part of your coursework preparation and part of the study of contexts for Renaissance drama. You should have an advanced look at any of these links!

Image: Laurence Olivier's "Hamlet".

"Hamlet" Act 5: Now cracks a noble heart!

Task 1:

In pairs or small groups, prepare a brief presentation of material you found about the Elizabethan/Jacobean period from homework.

Task 2:

We will watch the remainder of Brannagh's "Hamlet"!

Task 3: The Graveyard Scene (5.1)

In groups, discuss:

1. What this scene reveals about Hamlet?

2. What kind of humour is evident in the scene?

3. How language makes the scene memorable - think of/find examples of imagery that is memorable and vivid in this scene.

Homework:

1. Summarise Acts 4-5 of the play on A4 paper.

2. Choose two short extracts from the play to compare and contrast (50-100 lines each). Make notes on how they are similar and different, especially in terms of language. You could photocopy them and annotate each.

For help with Shakespeare's language go here:

Internet Shakespeare Editions

Dr.M.

You could also try:
http://cummingsstudyguides.net/xShakeSph.html#top
☺Dr. M

Hi,
Here is a link that i have found particularly useful for the Elizabethan England research task.
http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/
I hope it comes in handy, should you choose to use it.
From Lucy Coatsworth.

Death and madness: The return of Laertes and Hamlet

Task 1:

Just for fun, share the sonnet you found with a partner and tell them about it. Be prepared to read it out and explain what you think about it to the group.

Task 2:

We will continue our study of "Hamlet" with Acts 4.4 to 5, focusing on Laertes, Ophelia and Hamlet's return from England. We will watch Brannagh's production.

What do we learn about Hamlet and Ophelia from Act 4 scenes 5 & 6?

Re-read the Queen's description of Ophelia's death at the end of Act 4 scene 7. How has it been written to create sympathy for Ophelia but retain some doubt about the manner of her death?

Homework (7th November 2008):

Task 1: Contextual research

Find out about life in Elizabethan England. This could include information about religion, politics, monarchy, everyday life, crime or the family. You could start by going to:

The Shakespeare Resource Centre (Click on this link).

Prepare notes to discuss in class.

BEWARE: The history of this period has, until recently been mainly based on what is called the "Whig" interpretation of the period. This is a largely Protestant version of the period written by the winners (Protestantism) of a religious conflict called the Reformation in which Catholicism was suppressed, often violently in England during this period (1517 - 1621).

I will be delivering a lecture about this to you shortly!

Task 2: What is a man?

Re-read Hamlet's soliloquy "How all occasions do inform against me" (Act 4 scene 4) and his letter to Horatio in Act 4 scene 6.

What do we learn about Hamlet and his circumstances from them?

Make notes on a side of A4 paper for next week.

Enjoy! Dr.M.

Image: Ophelia by Sir John Everett Millais, 1852.