DT Ophelia

            Ophelia was given proper burial rites and was honored after her death, but did she earn all of this? All of these honors given to her at burial were recommended by the king, but the priest and gravediggers seem to disagree with his choice. She technically committed suicide, which was shunned by people of this time, so did she actually deserve this honored burial?

            I think that she deserved all the honor she received. She was not in her proper state of mind when she drowned so she might not even have known she was drowning. Somebody should have been with her when this incident happened anyway. Everybody in the castle knew that she wasn’t right in the head, and yet nobody was there to save her from drowning. What I am trying to get at is that it wasn’t really her fault when she drowned in the stream. She was, what seemed to be, completely insane, and therefore can be given the proper burial she deserved.

            If we go back to the reason she came to this mental state, the primary reason would be the conflict between Claudius and Hamlet. It was because of this conflict that her father Polonius was killed, sending her into madness. Her father was the only family that lived with her for long periods of time, (the other being Laertes l which was heading back to France), so this loss would cause some mental instability. If there was anyone to blame for her death, it would be Claudius and Hamlet.

            From what we read in the book, and saw in the movie, Ophelia’s funeral was quick and was mostly silent until Hamlet showed himself. I feel that she deserved more than what was actually given to her. I know that she wasn’t even supposed to have what she got in the first place, but I felt as if it was still too little. She died young after much tragedy had befallen her, and it would’ve been nice to just give a speech in her name instead of Hamlet and Laertes fighting in her grave.

            If I were to give a speech at her funeral it would be about her life before the tragedy started, to emphasize the entirety of her life, and show people all of the positives. Just because her death was something negative (suicide) doesn’t mean that she lived a good life deserving of honors. The people in the play did a bad job of honoring her life, and I can understand why, but she just deserved more for someone of her character.

DT Hamlet's Dilemma

           My response to Hamlet’s dilemma is that he should just do it already. This play is labeled a tragedy and it’s no surprise that most of the characters would die at the end, but if Hamlet just killed the king, would that crisis have been avoided? Hamlet thinks too much, and that is a problem throughout the entirety of the play, especially in this scene.

            I can see the justification of Hamlet waiting to kill Claudius, but I do not think it was the proper choice of action. Hamlet’s need for revenge will ultimately be his own downfall. In the end, it would be safer for him to kill Claudius now then later because there is still a chance that nobody would know it was him. He is also in a secluded place where nobody would see and is the perfect environment to commit the crime. The only problem with the plan is Hamlet has been acting crazy, which will lead everyone right to him. His plan would have been better off just quietly taking the king out then what he is currently doing.

            This is also the last chance Hamlet will have in awhile because of the fact that he is being moved to England. Hamlet’s plan involved too much thought and that is delaying his plans every time he attempts the murder. Just because Claudius is praying Hamlet hesitates, which previously mentioned, was a mistake. Hamlet has missed his frame of opportunity and is now going to have to scramble to fix his plans. Not good planning on Hamlet’s part. This play is making it seem that the job will never be done.

            Also, in this scene, we see Claudius actually confess to his crime. This should give Hamlet the extra power to take his life but Hamlet chooses not to. It is almost frustrating to the reader. We all know what is going to happen, and yet, we cannot prevent it. I also wonder if Hamlet is actually going crazy. He seems to enjoy messing with people and did not seem phased in the slightest when Polonius was killed. Hamlet killed a man by, what could be considered, a mistake, but he has trouble killing a man whom has wronged him to no end?

Hamlet’s inner sense of justice and mental state seems really messed up and I have a feeling it will only get worse.

DT To be or not to be?

            As of recent, our class read the “to be or not to be” speech, and followed it up by watching the scene in different versions of the movie like we did with the ghost scene. Our task was to analyze these scenes to see how the director puts them together and show what I think about the scenes.

            Beginning with the Oliver version of the scene, I found it a little more emotional than the other versions. The scene takes place on a cloudy night, on a cliff overlooking the ocean, and this really shows how easy it would be for Hamlet to just end his life. All he would need to do is jump, and this adds to the meaning of the soliloquy. The ocean is also rumbling down below him, symbolizing Hamlet’s struggle and inner thoughts. The only background sounds that can be heard are the ocean and the wind as Hamlet delivers his lines. This adds a dramatic effect to the scene as well as making the tone of the scene a little darker. Another thing that I would like to point out is how close Hamlet came to stabbing himself. Combined with the already dark tone the scene creates, this version is very well made and holds true to the original play.

             The second version, or the Zeffirelli version, is my favorite of the four. The scene takes place in the catacombs of the castle, which adds to Hamlet’s speech. The entire room is shrouded in darkness, except for the one lit-up coffin in the center of the room, which is presumably, Hamlet’s father. The light symbolizes how death might be the best choice for Hamlet and will give him the least struggle. This leaves a difficult and meaningful choice that is deeper than what is shown in the other versions. There is also no sound or music track while Hamlet is delivering his lines, most likely to emphasize the meaning of his speech and make it resonate within the viewer, more that what the other versions seemed to do.

            The Branaugh version of the scene is the most creative in my opinion. Hamlet is in his room while giving the speech, but he is speaking to himself through his image in a mirror. Make makes it ever more interesting is the fact that the king is spying on him through the same mirror, which deepens the entire play. The scene is very emotional due to the fact that Hamlet is speaking directly to himself, making his thought process seem much deeper. The camera slowly zooms into the mirror where the color is only gray and bland, except for Hamlet’s image. This could symbolize Hamlet’s struggle against the world. There is also a slow music track in the background noises to give the scene a dark atmosphere.

             The last version we watched was the Almereyda version, and this was the version I liked the least. I found it to be a little bland in comparison to the other three versions. Hamlet in this version seems to be walking as in a trance, through a Blockbuster video store. It just feels a little over the top for me. It might be because the modern day interpretation of the film is out of place with the scene. There were also a few hidden details in the scene just like with the ghost scene, but these were more hidden and might slip past a few viewers. Compared to the others, this version was lacking and lost my interest.