Shakespeare and Hamlet
By Rebecca Barus
The life of William Shakespeare
Plot of Hamlet
Characters and relationships
Hamlet the prince: Prince of Denmark. He is the protagonist. HIs parents are Gertrude and Hamlet. Has very strong hatred towards his uncle Claudius.
Claudius: Becomes King of Denmark after King Hamlet is killed and also marries Gertrude. He is the villain of the play, he is very power hungry.
Gertrude: Mother of Hamlet, queen of Denmark. She is shallow and weak and strongly believes in keeping her royal title.
Polonius: Father of Laertes and Ophelia. The Lord Of Chamberlain of Claudius' Court.
Laertes: Son of Polonius. Spends most of the play in France but returns to battle Hamlet in a sword fight.
Horatio: Closest friend of Hamlet. Stays alive to tell the story of Hamlet once Hamlet is dead.
Shakespeare's work
2. It is a mystery as to who's Shakespeare's sonnets are written about. There are a theories that the sonnets are directed to mistresses of Shakespeare or a person who goes by the name of Mr. W. H (William Herbert). There is controversy around his work because some people believe that he didn't have the knowledge or capability to write the works that he did.
3. The Renaissance period was from 1400-1700. Three values of the Renaissance period were well roundedness, individualism, and humanism. The Renaissance influences Shakespeare because it urged him to use his originality and individualism.
4. The audience of Shakespeare ranged to all types of people from wealthy upper class to poor lower class people. Shakespeare's messages ranged from romances to tragedies to histories.
5. Women were usually represented for their physical features. In a lot of Shakespeare's works, women were dominated by men. Women were looked down upon if they were not married and didn't follow basic rules of society. Women mostly payed attention to status. In Hamlet, Gertrude marries Claudius, who is the man who murdered her first husband. Gertrude does this so obtain her royal status and stay in the throne.
6. Some reading tips for Shakespeare include reading a good plot summary of the play to understand the general idea of what is happening. No Fear Shakespeare is also a good tool to have because it offers definitions and further meanings of words for a better understanding of the play.
Work cited
http://talklikeshakespeare.weebly.com/why-do-we-still-teach-shakespeare.html
http://www.biography.com/people/william-shakespeare-9480323
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=hamlet+plot+summary
http://www.education.com/study-help/article/renaissance-13501550/
http://www.shakespeare-online.com/essays/shakespeareaudience.html
http://www.enotes.com/homework-help/why-shakespeare-still-popular-today-407264