Hamlet (revenge tragedy)

Tragedy o Most people dont survive, but a few have to in order to support the theme/message o Tragic protagonist/hero who suffers from tragic flaws Generally from the higher class, so the greater the fall o Common theme of Fate intervening in human lives Revenge tragedy features: o Blood and gore/violence and crime o Madness and ghosts Comic relief o Insert humor to give audience a break (serves same purpose as choruses in Greek tragedies); usually comic characters are in lower social class Comparison to Greek tragedies o Flaw is usually hubris; Shakespearian flaws are usually more complex o Greek chorus followed by dialogue and action; Shakespearian comic relief serves same purpose o Shakespeare had onstage violence because Elizabethan audiences wanted horror and violence o Shakespearian plays take more than 1 day; Greek tragedies are within 24 hours Internal conflict o Conflict within the character o Love, conscience, etc. External conflict o Conflict/situations external to the character that the character cannot control o Fights with others, etc. Shakespearian plays (5 acts) o Exposition (1) o Rising Action (2) o Climax (3) o Falling Action (3-4) o Denouement/tragic resolution (5) Great Chain of Being (review notebook notes) o Kings were considered chosen by God (Divine Right of Kings) o Something happening to king -> chaos (in form of natural disaster) Wheel of Fortune (refer to notebook) Catholic vs. Protestant (2 major religions in the country at the time) o Catholics: the ghost was the actual spirit of the deceased person If person dies and large sins: Hell If person dies and minor sins: Purgatory (to work towards Heaven) o Protestant: the ghost is NOT the spirit; the ghost is sent by the devil to lure people to Hell o Leads to conflicting views on the ghost

Tragedy 1. Comic relief (refer to above) 2. Soliloquy a. One person to himself b. Nobody else on stage c. Because of soliloquy, audience is omniscient, so => dramatic irony 3. Aside a. Others are on stage b. Person either talks to himself or is holding a small conversation 4. Blank verse a. With pentameter b. Without rhyme scheme 5. Rhyming verse a. With pentameter b. With rhyme scheme c. More important because it stands out more, can signify finality to a thought/decision 6. Prose a. Less important scenes are in prose b. Comic relief uses prose c. Not essential to the development/progress of the play 7. Puns a. Different words that sound the same or the same word with different meanings