Maria Zubair 10L

How does Shakespeare create an atmosphere of tension & anxiety in Act 1, Scene 1?
Hamlet starts off with the words, Whos there?, beginning a tale of revenge, madness and
tragedy. Tension and apprehension begin the scene, and set up the typical ominous and penetrating atmosphere of a revenge-tragedy. This first line portrays the disturbance in the characters voice, the short question conveying abruptness to the audience, making them tense about whats to come in the play. Shakespeare also symbolises the questioning tones, and themes of appearance and reality that characterises the whole play in this first scene. However, most of all, he sets the mood of the play, and introduces the tension and anxiety so commonly present throughout. The opening few lines prepare the audience for the whirlwind of themes and emotions staged in this play, as they explore the side of the play filled with suspense, anxiety and mystery. The opening line, Whos there? is short and sharp, the characters voice uncertain and questioning. He is seen as tense and unsure of what he has just heard, and is cautious of his surroundings. The second character, Francisco, replies by saying, stand and unfold yourself. The audience are shown that something strangely wrong is happening as the soldiers have to reply using pass codes, e.g. Long live the King! which implies that the sentinels have to identify themselves to prove who they are. This gives the audience a chance to think about whether something is lurking that the guards have to be aware about. The time of the scene is shown through the line, tis now struck twelve. This would show the Elizabethan audience the time, as the plays were held during daylight and therefore it would be hard to portray the correct atmosphere without hints of time. Also, the midnight hour was seen as a witching hour which was when supernatural beings were most powerful and this sets off a sense of fear for the characters. The line, tis bitter cold, shows the unusually cold weather, which could depict the animosity of the scene, and how the guards are uncertain of what to expect, showing their cautiousness and wariness. The bitter cold weather also brings out the chilliness of the scene, as Shakespeare sets the mood for the ghosts appearance. When Francisco asks the strangers the question, Stand ho! Who is there?, his sentences are short and probing and he seems careful, showing the audience of how is he is unaware of whom has joined him and Barnardo. The words stand ho! portray to the audience the aggressive and guarding tone that has suddenly taken over Francisco, making him on edge. The ghost adds a considerable amount of fright for the soldiers. This happens when the ghost appears, as before the sentences of the men are quite long, When yond same star thats westward... the bell then beating one- and complex which shows that they are relaxed and more comfortable with the atmosphere. Their words are doubtful, Tush, tush twill not appear. This shows how the belief in ghosts is foolish. After the ghost appears, the length of the mens sentences suddenly shortens, Looks a not like the king? Mark it Horatio. The use of question and exclamation marks would portray to the audience the panic suddenly visible in the characters expression, which aids the ghosts appearance seem daunting and intimidating. The pace of the phrases would also be very quick, with some of the characters stumbling on their words because of the abrupt appearance of the ghost. This moment is very important as it is the first tense moment in the play. Horatio feels he should clarify for the others what the ghosts appearance could mean as he is a scholar; he tries to communicate with the ghost by saying, Stay! Speak, speak, I charge thee to speak! He uses repetition and hendiadys which imply his sense of worry, duplicating it, and his shouting can be translated as a way to cover his fear. Shakespeare might also have used repetition, to show how Horatio the fright of the ghost has caused him to forget his words and therefore repeat them. The atmosphere after the ghost has left slowly slides to being a lot calmer, although Horatio still trembles and looks pale. Shakespeare portrays the character of Horatio to be an intelligent,

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good-humoured and honourable man even in the foreboding atmosphere of the first scene. The audience quickly realise that Horatio is not at all superstitious and after seeing the evidence he responds reluctantly, still not fully believing the idea of supernatural and mystical beings being true, , Before my God, I might not believe without the sensible and true avouch of mine own eyes. Shakespeare also uses Horatio, a well-educated man who is true to his word, suddenly diverting away from his faith of ghosts, to show how impressive and imposing the ghost actually is. The disbelief from the audience is clear, as a sceptical man like Horatio believing in ghosts is more shocking than the guards believing. Shakespeare also shows that Horatios fear of the ghost overcomes his cynical character, and this is more impressive to the audience as the full affects of the anxiety of the ghost is shown. Horatio is the other main character, other than the ghost who helps to create an atmosphere of tension & anxiety in Act 1, Scene 1. A while after the ghost leaves the characters begin to query about the ghosts appearance, and what it could mean. One of the interpretations they explore is how it could be an omen to the country of Denmark, This bodes some strange eruption to our state. Lines 88-89, Did forfeit to the conqueror, show how the ghosts appearance might be related to the war Fortinbras has declared on the country, and how that war could end. The fact that they see a ghost could mean that it has unfinished business in this world, therefore the line, Portentous figure is a premonition of unrest and disturbance. As the old Fortinbras was killed in battle by Hamlets father, his son could be out to seek revenge and that they need to be in preparation for war, past haste and romage showing the frantic activity and turmoil, and the future of Denmark could be filled with darkness and dread. This would create tension for the audience as they are not fully aware of the situation with Fortinbras, and the talk of war makes them anxious to know what will happen later in the play. Another way in which Scene 1 shows tension and anxiety is the fact that the guards have taken extra shifts because Prince Fortinbras has collected an army of landless resolutes or mercenary soldiers who he pays by food, in order to invade Denmark. The fact that this plan might actually succeed plays on the characters minds, causing the audience to be tense about Denmarks future situation. The idea of incursion is disconcerting for the people of Denmark as Marcellus ponders about the war. How people are buying foreign mart and making brazen cannon everyday including Sunday, ...does not divide the Sunday from the week, which would be disruptive for him and the Elizabethan audience as Denmark is a Christian country, and Sunday is the day of rest. Horatios speech is another way in which dramatic suspense creates an atmosphere of tension & anxiety in Act 1, Scene 1. It refers to supernatural perils and haunted beings, creating a frightening atmosphere of the unknown. The slight mention of the sheated dead draws in the audience, capturing their attention abruptly with the words the omen. An Elizabethan audience would refer to their beliefs about the divine right of Kings and Queens, how they were specially chosen by God to rule, and how they had divine authority. So, if a King or Queen selected by God was restricted of their powers, or even worse, murdered, Gods will would be judged, constituting heresy. Therefore the murder of a King or Queen would be considered an unforgivable sin which would unbalance the laws of nature devised by God, and many believed this would doom the world. The ghosts appearance could also be seen as an intervention from the devil. Whatever the reason was for the ghosts emergence, it is seen as a bad sign by Horatio as he makes a connection with the unusual happenings before Julius Caesars death. Dramatic tension is stirred with questions as the audience try to listen to Horatio about predicted events, and even like the precurse of feared events as harbingers preceding still the fates Horatios use of disconcerting words and imagery like, sheeted dead, disasters in the sun and was sick almost to doomsday with eclipse warn the audience about some of the expected events the play will unfold, exaggerating the disorder. He also uses a lot of breaks in his sentences, to make sure that the foreboding atmosphere is set, allowing the audience to catch up with what he is saying and therefore be

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captured by the suspense. The line trains of fire and dews of blood, disasters in the sun and the moist star... are chilling, causing Horatio to almost frighten the audience of whats to come along. Although, the fact that Horatio has suddenly changed his mind on omens is contemplated by the audience as before he did not believe in ghosts and is now referring to omen and auguries. Another way in which this scene affects the audience, creating anxiety, angst and anguish is the fact that this play is a revenge tragedy written in the Elizabethan era. Shakespeare might have used this theme because it was written near the end of Elizabeths reign and people were starting to question about who would take over the throne from her as she had not other siblings or any children. The audience is introduced to this theme in this scene, pondering how this theme will be shown in the rest of the play, and how this scene might lead into the other main themes of which are seen to be madness, deception, and family and sexuality. Shakespeare uses his characters to fit into each of these categories; layering their personalities by the way they react to their surroundings, i.e. Horatios personality by the way he greets the guards and jokes with them, and then his sudden change of mind about the ghost. He uses blank verses, which are unrhymed iambic five-stress verses, to convey these themes, e.g. When yond same star thats westward from the pole Had made this course tillume that part of heaven where now it burns, Marcellus and myself.... The use of enjambment where necessary to show the expressions, reactions and emotions of characters is seen, Dared to the combat; in which our valiant Hamlet For so this side of our known world esteemed him -. Finally in this scene is the ghosts second appearance. This is where the characters are more expectant of the ghost, and are not as shocked as they were the first time. They still create an atmosphere of nervousness by trying to stop it this time instead of being too surprised to respond to it. When the ghost enters, Horatio is keen to ask the ghost for its reason to be here, Stay, illusion as he had previously been deliberating over his countrys fate. Horatio questions the ghost about this matter, If thou art privy to thy countrys fate, scared that the ghost might have a bad message and as the ghost does not respond, the audience are also made wary about what the future holds for Denmark. In the stage direction it says, it spreads his arms implying that maybe the ghost is trying to communicate with the characters in some way, or is maybe trying to make itself look big and scary. Also, lines 143-144 show how the characters are afraid of the ghost, we do it wrong being so majestical and by calling it majestic it shows that the ghost is seen as powerful by the characters, and they are uncertain of how to deal with it, shall I strike at it with my partisan? The ghost is also described as invulnerable showing that it cannot be harmed or hurt. The characters also resort back to shorter lines and fewer words, speak to me, is often repeated by Horatio, conveying his panic and creating tension and anxiety in Act 1 Scene 1. The way Scene 1 begins and is structured to start the play and bring out the tension and anxiety is often thought about. This scene sets off the atmosphere for the whole of the play, and as the exciting but disturbing events take place in this scene, the audience are gripped, greedily waiting to watch more of the play. The end of the scene shows Marcellus and Horatio deciding to tell Hamlet about the ghost, which leads the audience the wonder how Hamlet will react. And as they have not yet been introduced to him, they wonder how his character will be portrayed. The ending of Act 1 Scene 1 also makes the audience crave for the other themes in this play, and to experience what other moods are explored throughout. In the last part of Scene 1, Shakespeare ends with using enjambment for the characters phrases, lets dot I pray, and I this morning know Where we shall find him most conveniently. There is also no rhyming and an irregular pattern of syllables in each line, which could be interpreted as a way for Shakespeare to show how the future of Denmark is uncertain and unstable. This can also create tension and anxiety for the audience. Overall, I think Act 1 Scene 1 is a very clever ensemble by Shakespeare to begin the play as the tension and anxiety are present throughout the scene to ensure the audiences attention and

Maria Zubair 10L

interest. It creates a perfect setting for the madness and disturbance in the rest of the play, conveying hysteria and a foreboding atmosphere and environment. Shakespeare divulges into the undead to bring back to life the idea of a revenge tragedy, exploring every supernatural and disturbing way to keep the audience entertained. He also begins building up the character of Horatio, and through this character delves into the build of tension and anxiety in Act 1 Scene 1.