Farce is a drama which contains improbable or absurd situations in order to excite laughter and action. To which class does Hamlet belong? Give examples of the above mentioned classes. III. PLOT. Plots may be simple or complex. The simple plot deals with one character or a single group of characters and follows their fortunes to the end. The complex plot contains several groups; it has a main story or action and one or more rival or secondary stories, or subactions. In other words, if the plot is not one story, but several stories told side by side, it is called complex. The Merchant of Venice has a complex plot, for it has a main action, that of the pound of flesh, and a subaction, the elopement of Jessica. Is the plot of Hamlet simple or complex? If complex, how many separate stories has it? Give examples of plays containing simple and complex plots. Source of Plot.-Shakespeare took the subject matter for his Greek and Roman plays from Plutarch's Lives, translated by North; his English and historical plays he took largely from Holinshed's Chronicle.1 The plots of other plays are taken from classical writers, such as Plautus, or Italian writers, as Ariosto (1474-1533). Did Shakespeare borrow his plots and enlarge upon them, or did he evolve the plots himself? What was his practice in this respect? Was Shakespeare gifted with much originality? To what extent do you find the story of Hamlet different from the original? 2 IV. SETTING. What is the historical period in which the play is supposed to oc cur? How much time does the action of the play cover? See Act I, Scene 2 and Act III, Scene 2. Where is the scene of the action laid? 1 Both books can be obtained. Morley's edition of the plays, in Cassell's National Library, gives ample information regarding the source of each play. 2 This may form the subject for a theme. Is it real or imaginary? Is there little or much description of place? Quote lines. Does the author introduce local color; that is, objects, customs, expressions, or details of dress peculiar to the place described? V. CHARACTERS. Make a study of the principal characters. Take up each character and follow him through the play and note his development or nondevelopment by what he says and does. A character is developing when the experiences he undergoes change him so that he is more generous, more cruel, or more serious, etc., than at the beginning of the play. A character is nondeveloping when in spite of experience his nature remains the same. Is Hamlet a developing or nondeveloping character? What group of characters are associated with him? What characters group themselves against him? Who is the central figure of the opposing group? Do any characters serve as connecting links between the two groups? If they do, they help give unity to the plot. Are the characters clearly distinguished? What can you say of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern as characters? Is Polonius a humorous character? How does his humor differ from that of the First Gravedigger? On the whole is there marked character development in the play? What can you say of the duration of action? Has the time scheme (length or brevity) anything to do with character development? What? Hamlet's Character.-What does his first speech reveal of his character? What does the Queen's reply reveal of it? His soliloquy? How is his morality and refinement shown here? Does he show traces of a suspicious nature when he greets Horatio? What lines show a philosophic trend of mind? Where does he show that he lacks steadfastness of purpose? A noted author once said, “Hamlet is Germany"resemblance? -can you see the In what way does Hamlet resemble Brutus in Julius Cæsar and Jaques in As You Like It? How are Brutus and Hamlet disqualified for action? (See Introduction.) What lines ought to dispel for all time questions as to Hamlet's sanity? Is Hamlet's description of Horatio's character in Act III a help in this respect? VI. STRUCTURE. (Mechanical.) The various steps in the development of the plot give rise to a division into acts and scenes. A Shakespearean play consists of five acts; the number of scenes varies. These acts have been described respectively by the following terms: Exposition, Ascending Action, Climax, Descending Action, and Conclusion. Act I (Exposition.) 1. The situation is outlined. 2. The chief characters are introduced. 3. The keynote of each character is given. 4. The main action is begun. Act II (Ascending Action.) 1. The plot begins to develop. 2. Characters are more clearly rounded out. 3. Motives are made known. 4. New characters are sometimes introduced. Act III (Climax.) 1. Turning point is reached. 2. The guilty one still has a chance to repent. If he do so, the threatened Tragedy is turned to Comedy. If he do not repent, however, he must go on to the end and suffer the consequences of his misdeeds. Then the play is a Tragedy. Act IV (Descending Action.) 1. This act works out the consequences of the result of the guilty one's decision in Act III. 2. New characters are often introduced-sometimes to take the places of others. In Tragedy the guilty one plunges still deeper into crime. Act V (Conclusion.) 1. Forces become reconciled. The discordant element is destroyed. Harmony is restored either through destruction of the criminal (cf. King Richard in Richard III), as in Tragedy, or through conformity to ethical laws, as in Comedy. VII. STRUCTURE. Let us now see how mechanical and dramatic structure go hand in hand. Act I (Exposition.) The first four scenes are preparatory. Scenes 1 and 4 especially arouse our interest. Can you see how? Scene 2 gives us the situation in Denmark-in particular the relation of Hamlet to the King and Queen. Scene 3 gives Hamlet's relations to Ophelia. The keynotes of the principal characters are struck-Hamlet in Scenes 2 and 5, and Ophelia in Scene 3. What can you say of the characters so far? Scene 5 begins the main action of the play. What is it? To sum up, in Act I Shakespeare has shown us the causes for action. Where has he clearly foreshadowed that action? He has introduced all the principal characters and outlined their traits. He has made the emotional chord vibrate. He has created local color and dramatic atmosphere. Act II (Ascending Action.) How is the action advanced slightly in Scene I? What preparation is there in this scene for Scene 1 of Act III? I The characters of Hamlet and Ophelia are further developed in Scene 1. In Scene 2 we see a further development of Hamlet's character in his long soliloquy. A subaction in this scene is the employment of Guildenstern and Rosencrantz to spy upon Hamlet. Hamlet wishes to accomplish the death of the King, his uncle— his motive is to avenge his father's murder. He is opposed by his weaker self-his fatal tendency to think and dream instead of act. What new characters are introduced? Act III (Climax.) Scene I carries forward the main action, for here the King consents to see the play. He betrays his guilt in Scene 2. He will not repent, however, (III, 3) so the play is a Tragedy. The climax is in Act III, Scene 2 where Hamlet is convinced of the King's guilt. The turning point is in Scene 3, where Hamlet lets go the opportunity to kill the King. What trait of character is here shown? Hamlet's character is further shown in Scene 2 in his talk with Horatio and others. Scene 4 is a scene of action. What is accomplished? Act IV (Descending Action.) The descending action is apparent at the close of Act III, Scene 4, where Hamlet seems willing to go to England. Does he thus appear to forget all about his revenge? What new character is introduced? Why did Shakespeare get rid of Polonius? How do Scenes 1, 2, and 3 advance a subaction-the sending away of Hamlet to England? Scene 5 deals with a subaction, the madness of Ophelia and Laertes' rebellion. Both are results of what act and scene? How do Scenes 4, 6, and 7 each advance the main action? The guilty one, the King, plunges deeper into crime, for in Scene 7 he and Laertes plan the death of Hamlet. Act V (Conclusion.) What contrast is introduced in Scene 1? How is the main action here advanced? How is it still further advanced in Scene 2? In this scene the tragic element is supreme, for the Queen, King, Laertes, and Hamlet are killed. The guilty one, the King, is destroyed and harmony is restored in the person of Fortinbras. |