Hester Glass about closet scene
‘Hamlet’s language is rich with revulsion’
“consideration of suicide”
Heather Hirshfield about H’s 4th soliloquy
Hamlet “misreads the scene”
Heather Hirschfield about prayer scene 3.3
Schlegel quote about Hamlet
“tragedy of thought”
William Hazlitt about Hamlet’s character
‘[Hamlet is] not a character marked by strength of will or even of passion, but by refinement of thought and sentiment’
How might a Freudian critic explain Hamlet’s indecisiveness
A Freudian reading would argue that Hamlet’s indecisiveness is a symptom of an unconscious sexual desire for his mother.
Ernest Jones on Hamlet’s indecisiveness
‘Hamlet’s uncle incorporates the deepest and most buried part of his own personality, so that he cannot kill him without killing himself.’
Jennifer Low on killing Claudius
‘To kill Claudius is to become involved in the political arena.’
Tamara Tubb on Gertrude’s death
‘The final Act, in which she is clearly aware that the wine is poisoned, sees her sacrifice herself to save Hamlet’.
Julie Christie (after playing Gertrude in Branagh’s film version)
‘She is not very well developed – none of the women in the play are. She’s a passive character who never makes herself clear’
Juliet Dusinberre on Ophelia’s independence
‘Ophelia has no chance to develop an independent conscience of her own, so stifled is she by the authority of the male world.’
Lee Edwards on Ophelia’s story
We can imagine Hamlet’s story without Ophelia, but Ophelia literally has no story without Hamlet”.
Annette Wyandotte on the true tragedy
‘One could argue that Ophelia’s death is the true tragedy of Hamlet.’
C.S Lewis on death
Death is the subject of Hamlet
L.C. Knights on Death
‘Death is presented as an abandonment of struggle’
Heather Hirschfield about prayer scene 3.3
Hamlet “misreads the scene”
“tragedy of thought”
Schlegel quote about Hamlet
‘[Hamlet is] not a character marked by strength of will or even of passion, but by refinement of thought and sentiment’
William Hazlitt about Hamlet’s character
‘Hamlet’s uncle incorporates the deepest and most buried part of his own personality, so that he cannot kill him without killing himself.’
Ernest Jones on Hamlet’s indecisiveness
‘To kill Claudius is to become involved in the political arena.’
Jennifer Low on killing Claudius
‘The final Act, in which she is clearly aware that the wine is poisoned, sees her sacrifice herself to save Hamlet’.
Tamara Tubb on Gertrude’s death
‘She is not very well developed – none of the women in the play are. She’s a passive character who never makes herself clear’
Julie Christie (after playing Gertrude in Branagh’s film version)
‘Ophelia has no chance to develop an independent conscience of her own, so stifled is she by the authority of the male world.’
Juliet Dusinberre on Ophelia’s independence
We can imagine Hamlet’s story without Ophelia, but Ophelia literally has no story without Hamlet”.
Lee Edwards on Ophelia’s story
