William Shakespeare

Most influential writer in English literatureb. April 23, 1564 in Stratford-upon-AvonAttended only grammar school1582: Married Anne Hathaway

He was 18, she was 26Had 3 children

Susannatwins Hamnet and Judith

Hamnet died at age 111590: left his family to go to London to work

as an actor and playwright

Wrote his first play in 1591Became the most popular playwright in

EnglandWas favored by both monarchs of his lifetime

Elizabeth IJames I

James gave Shakespeare’s company the title of the King’s Men (a very high honor)

1610: retired to Stratford, very wealthy and well-known

d. April 23, 1616 (his 52nd birthday)Overall, wrote 37 plays and 154 sonnets

Written in 1600 or 1601; first performed in 1602

1601: Both Shakespeare’s father and his son Hamnet died

Tone of Shakespeare’s plays became somber, sad, and bitter

People believed in ghostsMarriage to in-laws was considered incestSuicide was forbidden; those who killed

themselves could not have a holy burial

Shakespeare borrowed the idea for the story from other sources (common practice)

Based on a Norse legend written in Latin around 1200 AD. Two brothers (Orvendil and Fengi) are appointed

to rule over Jutland, and Orvendil weds the king's beautiful daughter, Geruth. They have a son, Amleth. But Fengi, lusting after Orvendil's new bride and longing to become the sole ruler of Jutland, kills his brother, marries Geruth, and declares himself king over the land. Amleth is desperately afraid, and pretends to be crazy to keep from getting murdered. He plans revenge against his uncle and becomes the new and rightful king of Jutland.

In Shakespeare’s story, Hamlet is philosophically-minded and doesn’t kill his uncle right away; his knowledge of what happened to his father is uncertain

1. Revenge must be on an individual level against some insult or wrong

2. The individual must not have recourse to traditional means of punishment (courts or police) because the person who committed the wrong is above the law

3. The lust for revenge is an internal desire, only satisfied by personally carrying out the revenge

4. The revenger must make the intended victim aware of why the revenge is being carried out

5. Revenge is a universal decree that supersedes any particular religious doctrine (incl. Christianity)

Appearance vs. Reality: Seemingly healthy exterior concealing an inner sickness or evil (also sanity vs. insanity)Poison: it spreads through the body to infect an

individual, just as bad individuals can infect an entire court/nation

The impossibility of certainty / indecisionHamlet worries about trusting secondhand

informationHamlet worries about acting effectively; seeing

others pay for doing what they feel is appropriate justifies his procrastination

Death / MortalityHamlet is obsessed with spiritual and physical

deathWhat is the meaning of life?

Revenge: Hamlet searches continuously for the answer to the question of whether or not he should avenge his father’s death.

Relationships and how they work / affect othersFather/sonMother/sonFriendshipLove relationships

Youth and ageCorrupt power / power corrupting

Not what decisions he should make, but whether he will be able to make any decisions at all.Goes against the traditional tragic

hero roleHamlet is very philosophical and

contemplativeThere is always more to him than

other characters can figure out