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| Wednesday, 18 January 2004 |
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The making of Hamlet by Gwen Herat
If one were to understand why Shakespeare is the greatest dramatist and poet, one must be aware that there is no substitute for seeing Shakespeare plays performed nor an English writer who was as prolific as he was. It is also essential to know the facts, figures and reasons for his numerous plays, who or what inspired him because Shakespeare was known to have either borrowed or adapted from others' works or incidents from during his time or preceding him. Many critics and scholars have analysed situations and placed his plays in such circumstances. Shakespeare was not concerned about the history, characters, incidents or circumstances under which he wrote. He opted Hamlet to be the Prince of Denmark instead of Wales when he himself was an Englishman. Hamlet is a play that involves kingship, loyalty and revenge and takes place in Danish court at Elsinor. Many of the young males in the play like Hamlet, Horatio, Laertes, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern were courtiers in the court. It is to be noted that during Shakespeare's time the rulers of Europe had a court and a number of courtiers who served and attended upon their rulers. They had to be noble young men to attend court.
They had to be titled and from wealthy families to serve these rulers. Those who were noble men but were not in a position to gain favour for lack of wealth were considered for the services rendered to their country or the ruler. During Queen Elizabeth's time, many rich people were titled because they had financially supported to help fight wars abroad such as the Spanish Armada or the continuing rifts in Ireland. Since the life at court was expensive, the well-born courtiers had to be rich. He was expected to be attired in fine clothes and as well as excel in sports. He was expected to be able at least to trot on a ballroom floor and dance with the fair ladies of the court. When the court was on tour, the best courtiers are selected to accompany Queen Elizabeth as it was believed that she was a royal who wanted to be in touch with her subjects. Every summer she toured the country. These are some of the incidents that inspired Shakespeare. Academy The academy of a courtiers was very essential and they were often sent to foreign universities. For example, Hamlet who was studying in Germany returned on the death of his father. Laertes studied in Paris while as many others did. French and Spanish were the languages spoken in courts all over Europe, next to English. Many young men visited Italy to study the Italian Renaissance that flourished. They were briefed with the architecture of Florence and Titian painting of Venice. Most of them on their return to England, commissioned paintings of themselves. Style Others built houses in the grand Italian style. Young men also had to learn fencing beside other sports and as we know, Laertes challenges Hamlet in the last Act of this tragedy. Above all a young courtiers was deemed to treat a lady politely and courteously. He was expected to make pleasant conversations and rite poems if he fell in love with her. He was also expected to praise and honour her beauty. Hamlet for one, wrote 'Words of.... sweet breath' to Ophelia and before long, spurned her love... 'Get thee to a nunnery, go farewell. Or, if thou wilt needs marry, marry a fool; for wise men know well enough what monsters you make of them. To a nunnery, go; and quickly too. Farewell'. ACT III Scene 1. In Hamlet more than in any other play of Shakespeare, the characters are like living people. This great tragedy draws the audience so passionately that they follow their actions very closely. They get so involved and try to figure whether Hamlet was really or was he feigning madness. Did the queen really love her son and were Hamlet and Ophelia really in love with each other Hamlet is also a mystery where Shakespeare allow the readers keep guessing down the centuries. It was written as a revenge and though known as Hamlet, the original title of the play was The Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. Thomas Kyde who wrote plays before, wrote a revenge tragedy called The Spanish Tragedy which remained popular throughout Shakespeare's lifetime. Kyde also wrote another play called UR-Hamlet but the play's text did not survive and the few scholars who did the script, felt Shakespeare had adapted his Hamlet from this version. The story was also found in a Danish history book written by Saxo Grammaticus in the 12 and 13 centuries. This history was not translated to English until 1608, some years after Shakespeare wrote Hamlet. However it was published in French and possibility that the Bard would have read it is obvious. Shakespeare was well conversant in French. The characters too substantiate the characters. It was the story of Amleth whose mother was Gerutha. Hamlet and Gertrude were similar to them. Since Shakespeare never invented stories and took them from other old tales,he may have borrowed its plot from one of them. The play was a great success and the Elizabethans loved it. New born sons during her regime were named Hamlet and some of the girls, Ophelia. Evidence There is ample evidence that Shakespeare wrote Hamlet in 1601 because he often mentioned current events in his plays and scholars were able to place the time-frame based on it. He was not the perfect patriot of his time and never cared to hide it. Shakespeare set his plays mostly out of England but he never travelled outside England. He made no attempt to recreate a real Danish court although he did use the names of two characters; Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. The court and courtiers were very English and Shakespeare's Theatre Company played at court on number of times. Thereby Shakespeare came to know many courtiers and struck up a great friendship and patron, the Earl of Southampton who was a well-known Elizabethan courtiers. Incidentally, Southampthon was imprisoned in the Tower of London for supporting the Earl of Essex's rebellion in Ireland. Shortly afterwards he was released. Hamlet is one of the most quoted plays with a story within its plot where the distraught Hamlet tries to take revenge for his father's death when he appears as a ghost at Elsinor. He chides his mother with the words 'Frailty, thy name is woman and longs for death; 'O that this too solid flesh would melt Thaw and resolve itself into dew; How weary, stale, flat and unprofitable Seem to me all the uses of this world' ACT I Scene II More than in any other play, Shakespeare used Hamlet as the platform to surface the infidelities of women; he childs his mother, Queen Gertrude for submitting herself to the wiles of her husband's killer hardly three months of his death.; 'Frailty, the name is woman..... Monster Hamlet taunts the innocent Ophelia when he tells her not to be a 'Breeder of sinners' or 'marry a man and make a monster out of him' Hamlet goes to the extent of chasing her into a nunnery. With a complex and confused character built into Hamlet, Shakespeare is at his best with melancholy when he mourns his destiny; 'I have of late, but wherefore I know not, lost all my mirth. foregone all customs of exercises; and indeed it goes so heavily with my disposition that this goodly frame, the earth seems to me a sterile promontory; this most excellent canopy the air, look you, this brave o'erhanging firmament, this this majestical roof fetted with golden fire, why, it appear no other thing to me but a foul and pestilent congregation of vapours. Was a piece of work is man. How noble in reason; how infinite in faculty; in form, in moving how express and admirable; in action how like an angelin apprehension how like a god; the beauty of the world; the paragon of animals. And yet, to me, what is the quintessence of dust.' ACT II Scene II. Hamlet has been translated into several languages including in Sinhala and adapted into ballets, films, CDs, drama, etc. Every production (except ballet) has been successful because of its powerful dialogue. **** Back **** |
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