Friday, February 26, 2010

DRJ#1 Hamlet, Act I

Reaction: I think that the idea of someone close to us entering a relationship too soon is a common thing. I can think of a few times in my life where I had friends who were dating and one of them began dating a new person after a short amount of time. Although you are not involved in the relationship you still feel as though they are some how betraying your friend by dating someone else too soon.

Character: Horatio is a friend of Hamlet and is fiercely loyal. I think Horatio’s character is an example of the loyalty that Hamlet has towards his family. In the first Act, when Hamlet first encounters the ghost, it is Horatio that tells Hamlet that the ghost might temp him “toward the flood” or that it might “assume some other horrible form, which might deprive your sovereignty of reason.”

Theme: I believe the theme for the first act is deception. It is the deception of Hamlets uncle that sets his plan for revenge. A few of the scenes also center on the deception created by Claudius. The first scene being when Claudius is speaking to the crowed, the second when the ghost of the king makes the deception known the Hamlet and sets in motion his plans for revenge.

6 comments:

  1. I really enjoyed your interpretation. Maybe, though, Horatio doesn't exactly represent the loyalty Hamlet has for his entire family. I think, in the actions that follow, we can see that Hamlet is only loyal to his father. He deceives his mother and step-father, and refuses to accept his mother's marriage.

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  2. I really like your post. I think that Horatio is very loyal to Hamlet and watches out for him in situations that he may know Hamlet may be weak in. I agree that when a friend starts dating someone too soon it feels wrong and you automatically want to take the side of the person who is not dating.

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  3. Horatio is a great character. Throughout the play, he is either being told to go away or acting as a sounding board or voice of reason for Hamlet. While he thus does not contribute a huge amount to advance the plot, his presence really helps the audience to understand Hamlet's state of mind.

    Imagine a rewrite of Hamlet with Horatio and Hamlet being one character with a split personality.

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  4. Great post! I liked your interpretation of the plays theme at Horatio's character. He is a loyal friend that a lot of us can relate to.

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  5. I like your post! I think Horatio is a good loyal friend and your theme for deception. I think from here Hamlet is planning his vengence for his fathers death! Very interesting...

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  6. I agree, the deception is obvious, especially afterward when Hamlet becomes filled with rage and revenge. I like your analysis.

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