Shakespeare "Hamlet" - analysis. Analysis of the tragedy “Hamlet, Prince of Denmark”

The famous English playwright and poet William Shakespeare is the author of the immortal tragedy about Prince Hamlet - a mournful character who arose at the border of two worlds - the old world of feudalism and the emerging world of capitalist relations.

It is quite obvious that the tragedy of Hamlet is the tragedy of humanism of that time. Using the example of the personality of the Danish prince and the rest of the characters in the play, Shakespeare reveals the topic of human personality and its formation, which was relevant for that time.

Its main character and the rest of the characters know only the illusory appearance of human happiness and can only dream about it. They try to follow the principles of life that were accepted in their era, but they cannot change its course and realize their dreams and desires. The fate that the talented Shakespeare rewards them with is that they cannot realize the real paths and methods that could lead them to a happy and truly spiritualized and joyful life.

Such opportunities are not available to them due to the very structure of the world in which they are forced to live; in such a life, even freedom of thoughts and desires is not available to them. It is the discord between their ideals, dreams and the cruel reality that they are forced to face that causes their so-called “Hamlet” grief.

Dreams and their destruction

In 1601, William Shakespeare recreated in his play the famous, ancient legend of the Danish Prince Hamlet. The events described in Hamlet date back to much more ancient times than the era in which the author himself lived and worked (the legend of Hamlet dates back to the 9-10th century). But the people he describes, their thoughts, desires, feelings, experiences, vices and virtues accurately reflect the reality in which Shakespeare lived. In a dramatic play about the tormented Hamlet, the author talks about how, with the death of his father, The young prince's ideals begin to crumble and his life changes completely. He understands that his ideal mother is unrealistic, that his father was killed by his own uncle, and he desperately wants to restore justice.

Hamlet does not think about the consequences, he administers the highest justice, being an honest and noble man, he wants the person responsible for the death of his father, Claudius, to realize his crime and suffer punishment for it. On the path of his revenge, Hamlet stops at nothing, but at the same time he cannot give up his noble character, he is tormented by constant doubts. He prepares a trap for the killer, into which he himself falls - because of his deep, honest and open will to God's human nature. It is Hamlet’s torment and fate that shows the reader in what conditions honest people who were truly devoted to the principles of nobility and honor were in Shakespeare’s era. The author sought to show the main character how the ideal Renaissance man.

Thinking characters in Hamlet

Shakespeare raises acute and relevant questions and problems for his time, but the immortality of his work “Hamlet” suggests that issues of life and death, honor and justice are issues outside of time and outside of different cultures and traditions. His colorful characters think and feel according to the times in which they live, but we see that they are desperately trying to escape from the prison of their own limitations. They want to think and feel more, to be above circumstances and conditions. In this play, Shakespeare's characters are living and the most characteristic manifestations of human nature: devotion, honesty, envy and selflessness, baseness and nobility, hatred and love, selflessness and self-interest.

Introduction Shakespeare character plot Hamlet

The tragedy "Hamlet - Prince of Denmark" was written by William Shakespeare in 1600-1601. In those same years, this play was staged at the Globus Theater. The play consists of five acts and is the longest play written by Shakespeare. The tragedy is based on the legend of the Prince of Denmark, where the prince seeks revenge for the death of his father. The play is relevant to this day, this can happen in any country at any time, in the book “My Friend Sergei Dovlatov.” The student returned home after graduating from college, and his father died under strange circumstances, and his mother lives with his brother.

I chose this play not only because of my love for William Shakespeare. But because this is one of the author’s greatest works, although it is obscured in modern times, films have already been made, plays have been staged in theaters, with their own additions and modifications. People's opinions about this work differ. Therefore, I decided to analyze this play and perhaps see what others will not write or say. Express your opinion. Before analyzing this play, I had one opinion, subjective, philistine, but now, having at least some skills, I looked at the tragedy from the other side. And this is what I got.

The play "Hamlet - Prince of Denmark" consists of five acts; The action takes place in Elsinore.

Brief retelling of the plot:

Hamlet cannot come to terms with his father's death; he believes that his father's death was not accidental, but a malicious murder. Later, Hamlet meets the ghost of his father, who talks about the regicide, and here Hamlet also doubts the veracity of the ghost’s words. Hiding behind a mask of madness, Hamlet finds a way to verify what his father’s ghost told him. Hamlet wants to restore justice, that is, take revenge. And it leads to a series of tragic events, almost everyone dies.

Here we see several parallel plot lines: the murder of Hamlet’s father and Hamlet’s revenge, the death of Polonius and Laertes’ revenge, Ophelia’s love story, Fortinbras’s line, the development of the episode with the actors, Hamlet’s trip to England. Based on all of the above, we can say that the plot is complex - woven (multi-level).

Peripeteia. The first twist, or rather a dramatic situation. This is the appearance of the ghost and conversation with Hamlet. In the conversation, Hamlet learns about the regicide, the ghost demands revenge. Hamlet becomes infected with the idea of ​​revenge for his father. Hamlet puts on a mask of madness in order to make sure that the ghost’s words are correct. Hamlet's internal state changes, his ideals have collapsed. In order to verify the veracity of the ghost’s words, Hamlet asks the visiting actors to play a scene, the so-called “mousetrap” scene. Thanks to this scene, Hamlet finds confirmation in the words of the ghost, because Claudius was present at the actors’ performance and could not hide his emotions and, without waiting for the end of the performance, retired to his chambers. Next, Hamlet has a chance to kill Claudius during his prayer, but Hamlet did not allow himself to be killed from behind, since Hamlet did not become like his father’s murderer. Hamlet goes to his mother to reveal the secret of his father's murder. In this scene there is a twist, after which the course of action reaches its climax, after which the action develops rapidly. This is the murder of Polonius. Hamlet, being in the Queen's chambers, realizes that they are being overheard. Hamlet thinks it was Claudius hiding behind the carpet. Without hesitation, Hamlet pierces the carpet with the words “Rat!” Polonius falls and dies. Hamlet made a mistake and said: “Misfortunes have begun, prepare for new ones!”

The role of recognition in the play is great. The first recognition is a meeting with a ghost, the second recognition is in the scene with the “mousetrap”, followed by the fatal recognition - the murder of Polonius, after which Hamlet is sent to England where he is to be executed, he learns this from the letter that Claudius handed to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Hamlet flees when their ship is attacked. Upon his return, Hamlet learns of Ophelia's death, at which point Hamlet has already weakened his ardor for revenge.

There are several conflicts in the play, but I chose one, the most important one, which runs through the entire play. This is an internal conflict. Hamlet longs for revenge, but for him revenge is not just murder. He is concerned about the fate of the century, the meaning of life. The main question: to be or not to be? To be for him means to think, to believe in a person, to act in accordance with his convictions, that is, to be on the side of good. Not to be is to die. But Hamlet rejects such a decision.

Hamlet longs not so much for Claudius's death as for his exposure. Hamlet is obliged to fulfill his duty, that is, to take revenge. All this leads him to an internal conflict with himself.

The conflict ends when Hamlet returns. This can be seen in the scene in the cemetery. When Hamlet picks up Yorick's skull and asks the question “To be or not to be?” The monologue “To be or not to be” is the highest point of the hero’s thoughts and doubts. The point is, did Hamlet stop at these reflections or are they a transitional step to further things? The action of the play clearly shows that, no matter how important the monologue is, no matter how deep its thoughts, Hamlet’s spiritual development did not stop there. Although important, it is just a moment. Yes, he reveals to us the soul of the hero, who finds it extremely difficult in the world of lies, evil, deception, and villainy, but who nevertheless has not lost the ability to act.

The initial conflict is that the country is in martial law, Fontibrass’s army is marching on Denmark to establish its own law. It turns out that Hamlet is mad and cannot lead the army, the country remains defenseless.

The plot is set up by all five scenes of the first act, and it is clear that the moment of highest excitement is Hamlet's meeting with the Ghost. When Hamlet learns the secret of his father's death and the task of revenge is entrusted to him, then the plot of the tragedy is clearly defined.

Starting from the first scene of the second act, the action develops, arising from the plot: Hamlet’s strange behavior, causing the king’s fears, Ophelia’s grief, and the bewilderment of the others. The king takes measures to find out the reason for Hamlet's unusual behavior. This part of the action can be defined as complication, “increase”, in a word, the development of a dramatic conflict.

The second stage of the action includes the monologue “To be or not to be?”, and Hamlet’s conversation with Ophelia, and the presentation of the “mousetrap”. The turning point is the third scene of the third act, when all this has already happened and the king decides to get rid of Hamlet. Is this too much for a punchline? Of course, you can limit yourself to one thing, for example, exposing the king: the king guesses that Hamlet knows his secret, and from here everything else follows. Hamlet finally gained confidence that he had reasons for action, but at the same time he gave away his secret. His attempt to act resulted in him killing the wrong person. Before he can strike again, he will be sent to England.

It has already been said that the tragedy reveals in the course of the action the relationship between all the main characters: Hamlet - Claudius, Hamlet the queen, Hamlet - Ophelia, Hamlet - Polonius, Hamlet - Laertes, Hamlet - Horatio, Hamlet - Fortinbras, Hamlet - Rosencrantz and Guildenstern; Claudius - Gertrude, Claudius - Polonius, Claudius - Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, Claudius - Laertes; Queen - Ophelia; Polonius - Ophelia, Polonius - Laertes; Laertes - Ophelia.

Hamlet is a man of philosophical thought. The ability to think delays his actions in the fight. The events that take place at court lead Hamlet to general conclusions about man and the world in general. If such evil is possible in the world, if honesty, love, friendship, human dignity perish in it. Hamlet is distinguished by his nobility. He is capable of great and faithful friendship. He values ​​people for their personal qualities, and not for the position they occupy. His only close friend turns out to be student Horatio. Hamlet is loved by the people, as the king speaks with alarm about.

Polonius is a resourceful courtier with the guise of a sage. Intrigue, hypocrisy, and cunning became the norm of his behavior in the palace and in his own home. Everything with him is subject to calculation. His distrust of people even extends to his own children. He sends a servant to spy on his son, makes his daughter Ophelia an accomplice in spying on Hamlet, without worrying at all about how this hurts her soul and how it humiliates her dignity. He will never understand Hamlet's sincere feelings for Ophelia, and he ruins him with his vulgar interference.

Gertrude is a weak-willed, although not stupid, woman. Behind her majesty and external charm, you cannot immediately determine that the queen has neither marital fidelity nor maternal sensitivity. Hamlet's biting, frank reproaches addressed to the Queen Mother are fair. And although at the end of the tragedy her attitude towards Hamlet warms up, the accidental death of the queen does not evoke sympathy among readers, since they see in her an indirect accomplice of Claudius, who herself turned out to be an unwitting victim of his next atrocity. Then, obeying her father, she dutifully helps carry out the “experiment” over the supposedly insane prince, which deeply hurts his feelings and causes disrespect for himself.

Laertes is straightforward, energetic, brave, loves his sister tenderly in his own way, wishes her well and happiness. But judging by how, burdened by home care, Laertes strives to leave Elsinore, it is difficult to believe that he is very attached to his father. However, having heard about his death, Laertes is ready to execute the culprit, be it the king himself, to whom he took the oath of allegiance. He is not interested in the circumstances under which his father died, and whether he was right or wrong. The main thing for him is to take revenge. The viewer understands the state of Laertes the son, but until he enters into an agreement with the king, and completely does not accept Laertes when he goes out to compete with the prince, having a poisoned weapon: Laertes neglected knightly honor, dignity and generosity, because before With the competition, Hamlet explained to him and Laertes extended his hand to him. Only the proximity of his own death, the consciousness that he himself was a victim of Claudius’s treachery, forces him to tell the truth.

The image of Claudius captures the type of bloody usurper monarch so hated by humanists. While maintaining the mask of a respectable person, a caring ruler, a gentle spouse, this “smiling scoundrel” does not bind himself to any moral standards. He breaks his oath, seduces the queen, kills his brother, and carries out insidious plans against the rightful heir. At court, he revives old feudal customs, indulges in espionage and denunciations. Claudius is shrewd and careful: he cleverly prevents Fortinbras from attacking Denmark, quickly extinguishes the anger of Laertes, turning him into an instrument of reprisal against Hamlet.

Conclusion

Hamlet has attracted many generations of people. Life changes, new interests and concepts arise, and each new generation finds in tragedy something close to itself. The power of tragedy is confirmed not only by its popularity among readers, but also by the fact that for almost four centuries it has occupied one of the first, if not the very first place in the repertoire of theaters in Western countries, and is now conquering the stages of theaters of other cultures. Productions of the tragedy invariably attract spectators. The popularity of Hamlet in recent decades has been greatly facilitated by its film adaptation and television showings. Two films received especially wide recognition: one directed by English actor Laurence Olivier, the other created by Soviet director Grigory Kozintsev. To understand Hamlet and sympathize with him, you don’t need to find yourself in his life situation - to find out that his father was villainously killed, and his mother betrayed her husband’s memory and married someone else. Of course, those whose fate is at least partly similar to Hamlet’s will more vividly and acutely feel everything that the hero experiences. But even with the dissimilarity of life situations, Hamlet turns out to be close to readers, especially if they have spiritual qualities similar to those inherent in Hamlet, a tendency to peer into themselves, immerse themselves in their inner world, painfully perceive injustice and evil, feel other people’s pain and suffering as their own own.

Bibliography

1. “Hamlet - Prince of Denmark: Tragedy” / Trans. from English B. Pasternak. - St. Petersburg.

Publishing house ABC 2012

Dramaturgy of the 16th - 17th centuries was an integral and perhaps the most important part of the literature of that time. This type of literary creativity was the closest and most understandable to the broad masses; it was a spectacle that made it possible to convey to the viewer the feelings and thoughts of the author. One of the most prominent representatives of dramaturgy of that time, who is read and reread to this day, performances based on his works are staged, and philosophical concepts are analyzed, is William Shakespeare.

The genius of the English poet, actor and playwright lies in the ability to show the realities of life, to penetrate the soul of every viewer, to find in it a response to his philosophical statements through feelings familiar to every person. The theatrical action of that time took place on a platform in the middle of the square; the actors could descend into the “hall” during the play. The viewer became, as it were, a participant in everything that was happening. Nowadays, such an effect of presence is unattainable even when using 3D technologies. The more important the word of the author, the language and style of the work received in the theater. Shakespeare's talent is manifested largely in his linguistic manner of presenting the plot. Simple and somewhat ornate, it differs from the language of the streets, allowing the viewer to rise above everyday life, to stand for a while on a par with the characters in the play, people of the upper class. And the genius is confirmed by the fact that this has not lost its significance in later times - we get the opportunity to become for some time accomplices in the events of medieval Europe.

Many of his contemporaries, and after them subsequent generations, considered the tragedy “Hamlet - Prince of Denmark” to be the pinnacle of Shakespeare’s creativity. This work of a recognized English classic has become one of the most significant for Russian literary thought. It is no coincidence that Hamlet's tragedy has been translated into Russian more than forty times. This interest is caused not only by the phenomenon of medieval drama and the literary talent of the author, which is undoubtedly. Hamlet is a work that reflects the “eternal image” of a seeker of truth, a moral philosopher and a man who has stepped above his era. The galaxy of such people, which began with Hamlet and Don Quixote, continued in Russian literature with the images of “superfluous people” by Onegin and Pechorin, and further in the works of Turgenev, Dobrolyubov, Dostoevsky. This line is native to the Russian seeking soul.

History of creation - The tragedy of Hamlet in the romanticism of the 17th century

Just as many of Shakespeare’s works are based on short stories from early medieval literature, he borrowed the plot of the tragedy Hamlet from the Icelandic chronicles of the 12th century. However, this plot is not something original for the “dark time”. The theme of the struggle for power, regardless of moral standards, and the theme of revenge are present in many works of all times. Based on this, Shakespeare's romanticism created the image of a man protesting against the foundations of his time, looking for a way out of these shackles of conventions to the norms of pure morality, but who himself is a hostage of existing rules and laws. The crown prince, a romantic and a philosopher, who asks the eternal questions of existence and, at the same time, is forced in reality to fight in the way that was customary at that time - “he is not his own master, his hands are tied by his birth” (Act I, scene III ), and this causes an internal protest in him.

(Antique engraving - London, 17th century)

In the year the tragedy was written and staged, England was experiencing a turning point in its feudal history (1601), which is why the play contains that certain gloom, real or imaginary decline in the state - “Something has rotted in the Kingdom of Denmark” (Act I, Scene IV ). But we are more interested in the eternal questions “about good and evil, about fierce hatred and holy love,” which are so clearly and so ambiguously spelled out by the genius of Shakespeare. In full accordance with romanticism in art, the play contains heroes of clearly defined moral categories, an obvious villain, a wonderful hero, there is a love line, but the author goes further. The romantic hero refuses to follow the canons of time in his revenge. One of the key figures of the tragedy, Polonius, does not appear to us in an unambiguous light. The theme of betrayal is discussed in several storylines and is also presented to the viewer. From the obvious betrayal of the king and the queen’s disloyalty to the memory of her late husband, to the trivial betrayal of student friends who are not averse to finding out secrets from the prince for the king’s mercy.

Description of the tragedy (the plot of the tragedy and its main features)

Ilsinore, the castle of the Danish kings, the night guard with Horatio, Hamlet's friend, meets the ghost of the deceased king. Horatio tells Hamlet about this meeting and he decides to personally meet with his father's shadow. The ghost tells the prince the terrible story of his death. The king's death turns out to be a vile murder committed by his brother Claudius. After this meeting, a turning point occurs in Hamlet’s consciousness. What is learned is superimposed on the fact of the too-quick wedding of the king’s widow, Hamlet’s mother, and his murderer brother. Hamlet is obsessed with the idea of ​​revenge, but is in doubt. He must see for himself. Feigning madness, Hamlet observes everything. Polonius, the king's advisor and the father of Hamlet's beloved, tries to explain to the king and queen such changes in the prince as a rejected love. Previously, he forbade his daughter Ophelia to accept Hamlet's advances. These prohibitions destroy the idyll of love and subsequently lead to depression and insanity of the girl. The king makes his attempts to find out the thoughts and plans of his stepson; he is tormented by doubts and his sin. Hamlet's former student friends, hired by him, are with him inseparably, but to no avail. The shock of what he learned makes Hamlet think even more about the meaning of life, about such categories as freedom and morality, about the eternal question of the immortality of the soul, the frailty of existence.

Meanwhile, a troupe of traveling actors appears in Ilsinore, and Hamlet persuades them to insert several lines into the theatrical action, exposing the king of fratricide. During the course of the performance, Claudius betrays himself with confusion, Hamlet’s doubts about his guilt are dispelled. He tries to talk to his mother, throw accusations at her, but the ghost that appears forbids him to take revenge on his mother. A tragic accident aggravates the tension in the royal chambers - Hamlet kills Polonius, who hid behind the curtains out of curiosity during this conversation, mistaking him for Claudius. Hamlet was sent to England to hide these unfortunate accidents. His spy friends are going with him. Claudius gives them a letter for the King of England asking them to execute the prince. Hamlet, who managed to accidentally read the letter, makes corrections in it. As a result, traitors are executed, and he returns to Denmark.

Laertes, the son of Polonius, also returns to Denmark; the tragic news of the death of his sister Ophelia as a result of her insanity due to love, as well as the murder of his father, pushes him into an alliance with Claudius in the matter of revenge. Claudius provokes a sword fight between two young men, Laertes' blade is deliberately poisoned. Without stopping there, Claudius also poisons the wine in order to make Hamlet drunk in case of victory. During the duel, Hamlet is wounded by a poisoned blade, but finds mutual understanding with Laertes. The duel continues, during which the opponents exchange swords, now Laertes is also wounded with a poisoned sword. Hamlet's mother, Queen Gertrude, cannot stand the tension of the duel and drinks poisoned wine for her son's victory. Claudius is also killed, leaving only Hamlet's only true friend Horace alive. The troops of the Norwegian prince enter the capital of Denmark, who occupies the Danish throne.

Main characters

As can be seen from the entire development of the plot, the theme of revenge fades into the background before the moral quest of the protagonist. Committing revenge is impossible for him in the expression that is customary in that society. Even after being convinced of his uncle’s guilt, he does not become his executioner, but only his accuser. In contrast, Laertes makes a deal with the king; for him, revenge is above all, he follows the traditions of his time. The love line in the tragedy is only an additional means of showing the moral images of that time and highlighting Hamlet’s spiritual search. The main characters of the play are Prince Hamlet and the king's advisor Polonius. It is in the moral foundations of these two people that the conflict of time is expressed. Not the conflict of good and evil, but the difference in the moral levels of two positive characters is the main line of the play, brilliantly shown by Shakespeare.

An intelligent, devoted and honest servant of the king and fatherland, a caring father and a respected citizen of his country. He is sincerely trying to help the king understand Hamlet, he is sincerely trying to understand Hamlet himself. His moral principles are impeccable at the level of that time. Sending his son to study in France, he instructs him in the rules of behavior, which can still be cited without changes today, they are so wise and universal for any time. Worried about his daughter’s moral character, he admonishes her to refuse Hamlet’s advances, explaining the class difference between them and not excluding the possibility that the prince’s attitude towards the girl is not serious. At the same time, according to his moral views corresponding to that time, there is nothing prejudiced in such frivolity on the part of the young man. With his distrust of the prince and the will of his father, he destroys their love. For the same reasons, he does not trust his own son, sending a servant to him as a spy. His surveillance plan is simple - to find acquaintances and, having slightly denigrated his son, lure out the frank truth about his behavior away from home. Overhearing a conversation between an angry son and mother in the royal chambers is also not something wrong for him. With all his actions and thoughts, Polonius appears to be an intelligent and kind person; even in Hamlet’s madness, he sees his rational thoughts and gives them their due. But he is a typical representative of society, which puts so much pressure on Hamlet with its deceit and duplicity. And this is a tragedy that is understandable not only in modern society, but also in the London public of the early 17th century. Such duplicity causes protest with its presence in the modern world.

A hero with a strong spirit and an extraordinary mind, searching and doubting, who has become one step above the rest of society in his morality. He is able to look at himself from the outside, he is able to analyze those around him and analyze his thoughts and actions. But he is also a product of that era and that connects him. Traditions and society impose a certain stereotype of behavior on him, which he can no longer accept. Based on the plot of revenge, the whole tragedy of the situation is shown when a young man sees evil not just in one vile act, but in the entire society in which such actions are justified. This young man calls on himself to live in accordance with the highest morality, responsibility for all his actions. The family tragedy only makes him think more about moral values. Such a thinking person cannot help but raise universal philosophical questions for himself. The famous monologue “To be or not to be” is only the tip of such reasoning, which is woven into all his dialogues with friends and enemies, in conversations with random people. But the imperfection of society and the environment still pushes him to impulsive, often unjustified actions, which are then difficult for him and ultimately lead to death. After all, the guilt in the death of Ophelia and the accidental mistake in the murder of Polonius and the inability to understand Laertes’ grief oppresses him and fetters him with a chain.

Laertes, Ophelia, Claudius, Gertrude, Horatio

All these persons are introduced into the plot as Hamlet’s entourage and characterize ordinary society, positive and correct in the understanding of that time. Even considering them from a modern point of view, one can recognize their actions as logical and consistent. The struggle for power and adultery, revenge for a murdered father and a girl's first love, enmity with neighboring states and the acquisition of lands as a result of knightly tournaments. And only Hamlet stands head and shoulders above this society, bogged down to the waist in the tribal traditions of succession to the throne. Hamlet's three friends - Horatio, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern - are representatives of the nobility, courtiers. For two of them, spying on a friend is not something wrong, and only one remains a faithful listener and interlocutor, a smart adviser. An interlocutor, but nothing more. Hamlet is left alone before his fate, society and the entire kingdom.

Analysis - the idea of ​​​​the tragedy of the Danish prince Hamlet

Shakespeare's main idea was the desire to show psychological portraits of his contemporaries based on the feudalism of the "dark times", a new generation growing up in society that could change the world for the better. Competent, searching and freedom-loving. It is no coincidence that in the play Denmark is called a prison, which, according to the author, was the entire society of that time. But Shakespeare's genius was expressed in his ability to describe everything in halftones, without slipping into the grotesque. Most of the characters are positive people and respected according to the canons of that time; they reason quite sensibly and fairly.

Hamlet is shown as an introspective man, spiritually strong, but still bound by conventions. The inability to act, the inability, makes him similar to the “superfluous people” of Russian literature. But it carries within itself a charge of moral purity and the desire of society for the better. The genius of this work lies in the fact that all these issues are relevant in the modern world, in all countries and on all continents, regardless of the political system. And the language and stanza of the English playwright captivate with their perfection and originality, forcing you to reread the works several times, turn to performances, listen to productions, look for something new hidden in the depths of centuries.

W. Shakespeare. Tragedies "Hamlet". Analysis of the work

Time and history of creation

William Shakespeare's five-act play “The Tragic Story of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark” or simply “Hamlet” was written in 1600-1601.

The tragedy is based on the legend of a Danish ruler named Amletus, recorded by the Danish chronicler Saxo Grammaticus, and is primarily concerned with revenge - in it the protagonist seeks revenge on the death of his father. The plot of the play was borrowed by Shakespeare from Thomas Kyd's play about Prince Hamlet.

Officers standing guard appear in front of the castle in Elsinore. They are later joined by Horatio, a friend of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. He came to verify the story of the nightly appearance of a ghost similar to the Danish king who had recently died. At midnight, a menacing ghost appears. Horatio tells Prince Hamlet about his night vision. Hamlet's grief is aggravated by the fact that his mother married his brother soon after his father's death. She, “without wearing out the shoes in which she followed the coffin,” threw herself into the arms of an unworthy man.

The ghost of Hamlet's father told of a terrible crime: when the king was resting peacefully in the garden, his brother poured the deadly juice of henbane into his ear. The ghost asks Hamlet to avenge him.

Hamlet vows to avenge his father. He asks his friends to keep this meeting secret and not to be surprised at the strangeness of his behavior. From this moment his life turns upside down: he must “connect the joints of the dislocated eyelid.”

The nobleman Polonius sends his son Laertes to study in Paris. He gives his brotherly instructions to his sister Ophelia and warns her against Hamlet’s love. Her father also forbids her to spend time with Hamlet. Ophelia tells her father that Hamlet seems to be out of his mind. Polonius decides that he is "mad with love."

The king is concerned about Hamlet's behavior. He asks Rosencrantz and Guildestern, Hamlet's friends, to find out his secret from the prince. They unsuccessfully try to find out the prince's secret: he understands that they were sent by the king.

The actors, the capital's tragedians, arrived, and Hamlet comes up with the idea of ​​​​using the actors to make sure of the king's guilt. He agrees that they will play a play about the death of Priam, into which he will insert two or three verses of his composition.

The king questions Rosencrantz and Guildestern about the success of their mission. They admit: “He doesn’t allow himself to be questioned and sneaks away with the cunning of madness...”

Hamlet is thinking about what to do. He pronounces a monologue: “To be or not to be...”. One of the questions he is trying to resolve is: why do we hold on so much to a life in which “the mockery of the century, the oppression of the strong, the mockery of the proud”? And he answers:

The fear of something after death - an unknown land from where there is no return to Earthly wanderers - confuses the will.

Polonius sends Ophelia to Hamlet. Hamlet realizes that they are being overheard and that Ophelia is serving as a tool in the game of the king and father. He plays the role of a madman and gives her advice to go to a monastery.

The show begins. Hamlet comments on it throughout the play. During the murder scene, the king cannot overcome his feelings: he is exposed. A commotion begins. The actors stop playing. Hamlet and Horatio are convinced of the king's crime - he gave himself away completely.

Polonius calls Hamlet to his mother, the queen. The king is tormented by a bad conscience. But he has already committed a crime, “his chest is blacker than death.” He kneels down and prays. Hamlet, going to his mother's chambers, sees the king praying, but does not want to kill him during prayer.

Polonius hides behind the carpet in the queen's chambers to overhear Hamlet's conversation with his mother. The Queen suffers from her son's reproaches. Polonius finds himself behind the carpet, Hamlet, shouting “Rat, rat,” pierces him with his sword, thinking that it is the king. The Queen begs Hamlet for mercy:

You directed my eyes straight into my soul, And in it I see so many black spots that nothing can remove them...

A ghost appears and demands to spare the queen.

The king decides to immediately send Hamlet to England, accompanied by Rosencrantz and Guildestern, who will be given a secret letter to the Briton about the death of Hamlet.

Having learned about the death of his father, Laertes returns from Paris. Ophelia, under the burden of grief, went crazy. Laertes seeks revenge. The king directs Laertes' anger at Hamlet. The messenger brings the king a letter in which Hamlet announces his return.

The king proposes a duel between Laertes and Hamlet. And to make sure the murder takes place, Laertes suggests smearing the end of his sword with deadly poison. He agrees.

They report the death of Ophelia: she “tried to hang her wreaths on the branches, the treacherous branch broke, she fell into a sobbing stream.”

Cemetery scene. Two gravediggers are digging a grave. Hamlet and Horatio appear. Hamlet reasons: “Alexander died, Alexander was buried, Alexander turns to dust; dust is earth; clay is made from earth; and why can’t they plug up a beer barrel with this clay into which he turned?”

The funeral procession is approaching. Ophelia is buried. Laertes jumps into the grave and asks to be buried with his sister; Hamlet cannot stand the false note. A conflict arises between them. Hamlet says:

I loved her; forty thousand brothers with all the multitude of their love would not be equal to me.

The king separates them. He is not happy with the unpredictable fight. Hamlet tells Horatio that he managed to read the king's letter, which contained a request to immediately execute Hamlet. He replaced the letter in which he wrote: “The givers must be killed immediately” - Rosencrantz and Guildestern are sailing towards their death.

Hamlet is ready for revenge.

The king's close associate reports that the king has bet that Hamlet will defeat Laertes in a duel. Hamlet agrees to the duel. Before the fight, he asks Laertes for an apology.

The king puts out a goblet of poisoned wine to give it to Hamlet when he is thirsty. Laertes wounds Hamlet, they exchange rapiers, Hamlet wounds Laertes. The Queen drinks poisoned wine for Hamlet's victory. The king does not have time to stop her. The queen dies, but manages to say: “Oh, my Hamlet, drink! I was poisoned." Laertes, dying, confesses his betrayal to Hamlet: “The king, the king is guilty...”

Hamlet strikes the king with a poisoned blade. And he dies himself. Horatio wants to drink the poisoned wine so he can follow the prince. But the dying Hamlet asks:

Breathe in the harsh world to tell my story.

Horatio informs Fortinbras and the English ambassadors about the tragedy that has occurred.

Poetics, composition, idea

The genre of the work is high tragedy.

The work depicts the fate of a person in a society full of cruelty and selfishness. The main character of the tragedies comes into conflict with the world, goes through cruel trials, experiences severe torment and inevitably dies. The action of the tragedy reflects historical and social conflicts and covers many phenomena of life. At the heart of the conflicts in Shakespeare's tragedies is the concept of human self-sufficiency.

“Hamlet, Prince of Denmark” is not just a story of a son’s revenge for the murder of his father, but a tragedy of the gradual awareness of the degree of evil, deceit, disharmony and lack of freedom in the world and the hero’s understanding of the severity of the burden he has taken on.

Shakespeare depicted an exceptional villainy - brother killed brother. Hamlet perceives this fact as one of the expressions that evil has become ubiquitous and has taken deep roots in society. He tells Polonius: “To be honest with the way this world is is to be a man caught out of ten thousand.”

The depiction of the main character of the work is psychological. This is a strong and controversial image. In his solution one can see the principles of Renaissance realism. Hamlet is the son of his age, who proclaimed the ideas of freedom. He is a man of new times, his strength and weapon is thought, which is also the source of his misfortunes. Hamlet is by nature a dreamer and philosopher, a humane person, but by life purpose he is an avenger, surrounded by enemies. The tragedy of this hero is that he saw the terrible sides of life - deceit, treason and murder. Hamlet has lost faith in people, in love, and life has lost value for him. He could not pretend and adapt to the world of evil, and he did not know how to fight and defeat it. Desperation leads him to the need to act. The hero faces a tragic choice. Hamlet must rush into the abyss of evil in order to fight it.

Before our eyes, he kills Polonius, sends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to certain death, defeats Laertes in a duel and kills Claudius. Indirectly, Hamlet is the culprit of Ophelia's madness and death.

But still, the most tragic thing in this is not the external events, but the emotional experiences of the hero. Hamlet is torn apart by the most painful contradictions. He is forced to affirm goodness using the weapons of evil. He suffers the torment of all humanity. Hamlet is the conscience of his age and of every other age, when the contradictions of life become unbearable.

Hamlet's painful hesitation is the highest point of the tragedy. Shakespeare shows that not only is reality tragic, in which evil is so powerful, but it is also tragic that this reality can lead a beautiful person like Hamlet to an almost hopeless state.

The immortality of Shakespeare's tragedy "Hamlet" is that questions of life and death, honor and justice are questions outside of time. On the one hand, his characters think and feel according to the time in which they live, but they are desperately trying to escape from the prison of their own limitations. They want to be above circumstances and conditions. This play by Shakespeare clearly reflected the principles of Renaissance humanism.

Analysis of the tragedy “Hamlet, Prince of Denmark”

Subjects

Theme of betrayal

The theme of betrayal in William Shakespeare's tragedy “Hamlet” is one of the most important and interesting topics, as it allows not only to approach in more detail the disclosure of the artistic idea of ​​the tragedy, but also to penetrate into the mystery of human characters and destinies.

Speaking about betrayal, Shakespeare tries to show the essence of this phenomenon. King Claudius of Denmark kills his brother, thereby betraying a loved one, his country, and his own honor. His betrayals are fundamentally vile and criminal. Bearing the mark of Cain in his artistic image, the Danish king multiplies it by committing adultery with the wife of the deceased. Using the example of the death trap set by the Danish king for Hamlet, we see that the actions of the former are strictly thought out and terrible in their criminal precautions.

It is quite difficult to discuss the reasons that led to the betrayal of Hamlet’s mother, Queen Gertrude, to the memory of her husband; one can only emphasize that Gertrude committed it consciously. Hamlet is deeply disappointed in his mother, who was once his ideal woman. The prince does not understand how she, who seemed to love her father so much, could commit such vile haste - “throw herself so onto the bed of incest”:

“Two months since he died! Less even.

Such a worthy king! Compare them

Phoebus and the Satyr. He cherished my mother so much,

That I wouldn’t let the winds touch the sky

Her faces. O heaven and earth!

Should I remember? She was drawn to him

As if the hunger was only increasing

From saturation. And a month later -

Don't think about it! Mortality, you

You are called: woman! - and shoes

Without wearing out what she was wearing after the coffin,

Like Niobe, all in tears, she -

Oh God, a beast without reason,

I would have missed you longer!” (5, p.8)

According to Hamlet, Gertrude did:

“..that’s the thing,

Which stains the face of shame,

Calls innocence a liar, on the forehead

Holy love replaces the rose with pestilence;

Transforms marriage vows

In the player's promises; such a thing.

Which is made of flesh contracts

Takes away the soul, transforms faith

In a confusion of words; the face of heaven is burning;

And this stronghold and dense bulk

With a sad look, as if before a court,

Grieves for him” (5, p.64)

Omitting the minor betrayals of the servants of the Danish throne, dictated by a banal desire to curry favor, we will dwell in more detail on the betrayal of Laertes. It was in this hero, in our opinion, that that very involuntary betrayal, due to an unfavorable combination of circumstances for him, manifested itself. Dejected by the death of his father and outraged by the latter’s clearly non-Christian burial, Laertes easily falls into the networks of deception skillfully set by Claudius, and then, upset by the death of his sister, does not have the strength to listen to his former friend and find out the truth.

To summarize all of the above, we can say that the theme of betrayal in Shakespeare's tragedy is multifaceted and multifaceted. The author not only reveals to the reader the essence of this phenomenon, but also tries to comprehend both its true causes and philosophical origins. Betrayal in Shakespeare does not have a homogeneous structure: a person can be aware of it and commit treason unwittingly; only in one thing is betrayal constant - in the tragedy that it brings into a person’s life.

Revenge theme

The theme of revenge in Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet is embodied in the characters of Hamlet, Laertes and Fortinbras. Compositionally, Hamlet stands in the center, and not only because of his personal significance. Hamlet's father was killed, but Hamlet's father killed Fortinbras' father, and Hamlet himself kills Laertes' father.

The solution of the problem of revenge by the characters of the tragedy breaks Shakespeare's humanistic approach to this moral problem. Laertes solves the problem very simply. Having learned that his father was killed, he is not interested in the circumstances of the death of Polonius, hastily returns to Denmark, starts a riot, breaks into the palace and rushes at the king, whom he considers to be the culprit in the death of the old courtier. He rejects all other moral duties. He doesn’t care that Polonius exposed himself to the prince’s blow. Upon learning of his sister's death, he becomes even more determined in his intentions to take revenge on Hamlet, and enters into a vile conspiracy with the king to kill Hamlet.

“So, my noble father died;

My sister is thrown into hopeless darkness,

Whose perfection - if can be reversed

Go praise - defied the age

From their heights. But my revenge will come" (5, p.81)

If Laertes reaches the extreme limit of meanness in his desire for revenge, then Fortinbras shows complete disregard for the task of revenge. We do not know the reasons for this, but the circumstances set out in the plot suggest that Fortinbras has no real reason for revenge. His father himself challenged Hamlet's father to a duel and was defeated in fair combat.

Having learned from the ghost of his father the true cause of his death, Hamlet vows to avenge his death; from that moment on, the thirst for revenge takes first place in his life, but for this he, an adherent of humane views, must commit evil himself. Hamlet accepts the task of revenge. He is prompted to this by his love for his father and equally by his hatred of Claudius, who was not only a murderer, but also a seducer of Hamlet’s mother.

“I, whose father is killed, whose mother is in disgrace,

Whose mind and whose blood are outraged...

Oh my thought, from now on you must

Be bloody, or dust is your price! (5, p. 72)

When Hamlet had the opportunity to avenge his father's death, Claudius was in prayer, and such a death, according to Hamlet, would be a reward for the murderer. Hamlet decides to wait, but, postponing revenge, the prince scolds himself for inaction and lethargy.

Having fulfilled the oath given to the ghost of his father, Hamlet betrays himself, betrays his principles and beliefs. Only God is capable of giving and taking life from a person. Hamlet acted as an avenger for what he himself had done to others. He repays evil for evil.

Thus, the theme of revenge is present throughout the work, serves as a motive for vile acts and betrayals and itself gives rise to evil, which represents a great moral problem.

Theme of morality

In Shakespeare's tragedy, two principles, two systems of public morality collided: humanism, which asserts the right of every person to his share of earthly goods, and predatory individualism, which allows one to trample on others and even everyone. The humanistic ideal met the interests of the people and all humanity. The predatory egoism of the Claudii corresponded to the worst aspects of life practice, both of the old ruling class of feudal lords and of the rising bourgeoisie.

Hamlet speaks about the corruption of morals:

"Stupid revelry to the west and east

Disgraces us among other nations...” (5, p.16)

He notices people's insincerity, flattery and sycophancy, which degrade human dignity. The idea that evil has penetrated into all pores of society does not leave Hamlet even when he talks with his mother about her guilt in front of the memory of the late king. He says:

“After all, virtue in this fat age

I must ask forgiveness from vice,

Bent over to pray to help him” (5, p. 54)

All such speeches expand the scope of the tragedy, giving it great social meaning. The misfortune and evil that struck Hamlet's family is only an isolated incident typical of society as a whole.

For Prince Hamlet, the basis of order and justice is morality. He abandons revenge as an outdated form of punishment. He dreams of justice and tries to assert it with his actions. However, the prince, like his ancestors, usurps the right to decide a person's fate. The goal of his life becomes the establishment of moral laws in his father’s country through the disgrace or destruction of those responsible, in his opinion, for the fact that “something has rotted in our Danish state.”

Shakespeare shows that not only is reality tragic, in which evil is so powerful, but it is also tragic that this reality can lead a beautiful person like Hamlet to an almost hopeless state.

Theme of life and death

The solution that the hero is looking for is not what is better, more convenient or more effective, but that one must act in accordance with the highest concept of humanity. The choice Hamlet faces is:

"..submit

To the slings and arrows of furious fate

Or, taking up arms in the sea of ​​turmoil, defeat them

Confrontation? (5, p. 43)

To suffer silently from evil or to fight against it is only one side of the issue. Submission to fate can manifest itself in the decision to voluntarily die. At the same time, active struggle can destroy a person. The question “to be or not to be?” closes with another - to live or not to live?

The theme of death constantly arises in Hamlet's reasoning: it is in direct connection with the awareness of the frailty of existence.

Life is so hard that to get rid of its horrors it is not difficult to commit suicide. Death is like a dream. But Hamlet is not sure whether a person’s mental torment ends with death. Dead flesh cannot suffer. But the soul is immortal. What kind of future is prepared for her “in the sleep of death”? A person cannot know this, for on the other side of life is “an unknown land from where there is no return for earthly wanderers.”

Hamlet's reasoning is by no means abstract. Before him, a man of enormous imagination and subtle sensitivity, death appears in all its painful tangibility. The fear of death that he speaks of arises within himself. Hamlet is forced to admit that thoughts and premonitions of death deprive a person of determination. Fear sometimes prompts you to give up action and fight. This famous monologue reveals to us that Hamlet has reached the highest limit in his doubts. It is fair that the magnificent words in which Shakespeare framed the thoughts of his hero were remembered by everyone as the highest expression of doubt and indecision.