Value Of Literature In Hamlet

570 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Literary criticism of William Shakespeare's work

To continue with, literature can have more than one single purpose. After reading the varied pieces of literature, I have been able to read about how different people value and see the purpose of literature in another way than I do. In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Hamlet decides to put on a play for guests at the castle however, he plans to use the play to see how his stepfather, the King, will react because the play parallels the way the King killed Hamlet’s father. “We’ll hear a play tomorrow. [To First Player] Dost thou hear me, old friend? Can you play The Murder of Gonzago?” (II:ii:521-523). EVen though Hamlet puts on the play to to see the King’s reaction, a wealth of other people show up to watch the play as well. These people attend the play to be entertained. Since a play is written with the intentions …show more content…

As I was reading this novel, I had the opportunity to learn about the author’s views on literature through the main character, Montag, and supporting characters. “‘I thought about books. And for the first time I realized that a man was behind each one of the books. A man had to think them up. A man had to take a long time to put them down on paper’” (Bradbury 49). Bradbury bestows his thoughts on the importance of literature in sentences throughout the novel that I picked up on. He talks about how each author sat down and created all of the books, took the time to constructed an entire novel. He also mentions that literature helps connect people and teaches people things they would never have the opportunity to learn or experience for themselves. In addition, Bradbury reveals that books represent life and the imperfections that come along with it "So now do you see why books are hated and feared? They show the pores in the face of life. The comfortable people want only wax moon faces, poreless, hairless, expressionless." (Bradbury

Show More
Related

  • Fahrenheit 451 Literary Analysis

    942 Words  | 2 Pages

    Montag is realizing wrong his world really is. He wants to change it too. He says “ Im going to do something, I dont know what yet but im going t do something big.” He doesnt know what to do yet because at this point he hasnt figured out the “missing peice”. Montag says “ I dont know. we have everything we need to be happy, but we arent happy. Something is missing.” then he starts to understand that books are the key to knowladge and knowledge is what they need. he says “There must be something in books that we cant imagine, to make a woman stay in a burning house; there must be something there, you dont stay for nothing.” And this is the turning point of the book because now montag is ready to take

    Read More

  • Montag's Role In Fahrenheit 451

    1109 Words  | 3 Pages

    Montag's boldness grows after he encounters a woman who is willing to die because of her believe in books. As the author says, the woman refuses to leave the house and ignites the fire that burns her together with her books. After witnessing this, Montag starts to doubt his ability to continue to work as a fireman. Instead, he becomes more fixated on trying to share his views about books with other people. For instance, Montag shares a revelation with his wife that there is a man behind each book. He says, "And I thought about books. And for the first time I realized that a man was behind each one of the books" (49). This revelation proves that Montag has transformed enough to express his thought of how important books are to people. He is no longer afraid of what his wife will think of him because of sharing his thoughts. In fact, he is convinced that sharing his thoughts with his wife will help to reduce the social divide between them. Montag doesn't only perceive books as the solution to his personal life but also as a possible answer to the problems facing the society such as the warfare in the book. To present his argument on the importance of books to his wife, he asks rhetorical questions such as "Is it true, the world works hard, and we play? Is that why we're hated so much?" (70). These questions intend to show how the people's hatred for books in this society is responsible for the warfare in

    Read More

  • Individual Vs. Society In Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451

    1144 Words  | 3 Pages

    “It’s not just the woman that died,’ said Montag.” “Last night I thought about all the kerosene I’ve used in the past ten years. And I thought about books. And for the first time I realized that a man was behind each one of the books. A man had to take a long time to put them down on paper. And I’d never thought that before” (49).

    Read More

  • Fahrenheit 451 Character Development Essay

    818 Words  | 2 Pages

    A defining moment in Montag’s character development occurs when he steals a book from the home of a woman who would rather burn with her books than leave. Not only does Montag add a new book to his own collection, he feels genuine remorse for the woman who clung to her books until the moment she died (Bradbury 37). His curiosity naturally peaked and he began wondering what on earth books contained that made them worth dying for. After that moment, Montag tries in vain to read several books in a single day. While trying to understand what exactly the books hold, Montag turned to a professor name Faber. Faber gives Monag his insight and it wasn’t at all what he expected. Faber says, “Books were only one type of receptacle where we stored a lot of things we were afraid we might forget. There is nothing magical about them at all. The magic is only in what books say, how they stitched the patches of the universe into one garment for us” (Bradbury 83). Faber then goes on to explain the three things that are missing; quality, leisure, and the right to carry out decisions based on

    Read More

  • College Admissions Essay: The Value Of Picture Books

    475 Words  | 1 Pages

    I began to read not out of entertainment but out of curiosity, for in each new book I discovered an element of real life. It is possible that I will learn more about society through literature than I ever will through personal experience. Having lived a safe, relatively sheltered life for only seventeen years, I don’t have much to offer in regards to worldly wisdom. Reading has opened doors to situations I will never encounter myself, giving me a better understanding of others and their situations. Through books, I’ve escaped from slavery, been tried for murder, and lived through the Cambodian genocide. I’ve been an immigrant, permanently disabled, and faced World War II death camps. Without books, I would be a significantly more close-minded person. My perception of the world has been more significantly impacted by the experiences I've gained through literature than those I've gained

    Read More

  • Individuality In Fahrenheit 451

    546 Words  | 2 Pages

    When Montag meets Clarisse, his neighbor, he starts to notice that there is more to life than burning books. Montag states, “Last night I thought about all the kerosene I have used in the past ten years. And I thought about books. And for the first time I realized that a man was behind each one of those books” (Bradbury 49). It begins to bother Montag that all he has done for the past years is burn books. He starts to rethink his whole life, and how he has been living it. Montag goes on to say, “It took some men a lifetime maybe to put some of his thoughts down, looking around at the world and life and then I come along in two minutes and boom! It is all over” (Bradbury 49) Before, Montag never cares about what he has been doing to the books, but when he begins to ignore the distractions and really think about life he starts to notice that he has been destroying some other mans work. Montag begins to think more of the world

    Read More

  • How Does Thinking Prevent Happiness In Fahrenheit 451

    550 Words  | 2 Pages

    (Bradbury 79). This made me question everything that I know about books. Causing me to take a debating-my-entire-existence-as-a-book-lover moment. In the end, realizing that while Faber is right, he didn’t get the full picture; some books make create all new worlds that you never knew existed. Books aren’t only what we have

    Read More

  • Hamlet: The Epitome of Timeless Literature

    828 Words  | 2 Pages

    “If all the plays ever suddenly disappeared and only Hamlet miraculously survived, all the theaters in the world would be saved. They could all put on Hamlet and be successful”- Vsevolod Meyerhold (a Russian director). Why is it that Hamlet alone could save the theaters? It could be the basic, underlying story: that the King kills his brother in order to obtain the throne forcing his son to seek revenge. This key factor can be interpreted differently depending on who is reading the play which leads to its timelessness and universality.

    Read More

  • Character Analysis Of Guy Montag In Fahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury

    949 Words  | 2 Pages

    He realizes that he is limited to his knowledge and freedom by his government and he doesn’t want that for himself anymore. Bradbury symbolizes this when Montag says to Mildred, “ ‘There must be something in books, things we can’t imagine, to make a woman stand in a burning house; there must be something there. You don’t stay for nothing.’ ” (48). During this quote Montag begins to question his society, and why he burns books. He becomes eager to know why they have certain rules and hopes to find the answers in books. Montag’s curiosity also is established when he says, “ ‘I’ve heard rumors; the world is starving, but we’re well fed. Is it true the world works hard and we play? Is that why we’re hated so much? I’ve heard rumors about hate, too, once in a long while, over the years. Do you know why? I don’t that’s sure. Maybe the books can get us half out of the cave. The just might stop us from making the same damn insane mistakes! I don’t hear those idiot bastards in your parlor talking about it. God, Millie, don’t you see? An hour a day, two hours, with these books and maybe…’” (70). This displays that Montag is starting to open his eyes to the truth about the world around him. Montag is starting to question authority and the “true facts” that his government gives his society. Montag is becoming empowered and beginning to think for

    Read More

  • Montag as Hero in Fahrenheit 451

    925 Words  | 2 Pages

    ... story progresses, Montag completely turns his belief system around and becomes an advocate for the salvation of books. He is cast out of his own job and home, but at the last moment his decision saves him from certain destruction by a nuclear bomb. Montag becomes a hero, one of the last few remaining with the power of literature contained in their minds.

    Read More

  • An Analytical Essay on the Significance of the Players in Hamlet

    648 Words  | 2 Pages

    The significance of the players exceeds the sole purpose of entertainment, as each possesses the power to unveil the "occulted guilt" (3.2.75) and conscience of the King.  Hamlet assumes the responsibility to advise these players with precise and adequate direction so that a "whirlwind of passion" (6) may not effectively separate Claudius from personally identifying with the play.  Hamlet's enthusiastic approach toward direction may be so that he encourages the players to "suit the action to the word, the word to the/ action, with this special observance, that you o'erstep not/ the modesty of nature" (16-18).  However, this exercise of caution may justify Hamlet's too often delayed attempt toward the action of avenging his father's murder.  His direction confines him to the overflow of words as he experiences imprisonment within the truth of his own identity.

    Read More

  • Hamlet: The Value Of Life

    953 Words  | 2 Pages

    As a society we always try and place a specific value on things such as life. This is mostly because of human nature and its tendency to value materials and/or currency. But to assign value to a life is to say that it can be bought or payed for which in my opinion is an idea we need to stray away from. As a society we should embrace the idea that the value of all life, not just humans, is immeasurable. Because as far as we know, no other life exists in our universe.

    Read More

  • Free Hamlet Essays: Interpretation of Hamlet

    738 Words  | 2 Pages

    William Shakespeare's Hamlet is, at heart, a play about suicide. Though it is surrounded by a fairly standard revenge plot, the play's core is an intense psychodrama about a prince gone mad from the pressures of his station and his unrequited love for Ophelia. He longs for the ultimate release of killing himself - but why? In this respect, Hamlet is equivocal - he gives several different motives depending on the situation. But we learn to trust his soliloquies - his thoughts - more than his actions. In Hamlet's own speeches lie the indications for the methods we should use for its interpretation.

    Read More

  • How Can Literature Contribute to an Understanding of Past History?

    378 Words  | 1 Pages

    Literature has many purposes, and opens doors to unique worlds. Through Literature, we discover ourselves and world time and again.

    Read More

  • Literature Adds To Reality

    1659 Words  | 4 Pages

    “Literature adds to reality, it does not simply describe it. It enriches the necessary competencies that daily life requires and provides; and in this respect, it irrigates the deserts that our lives have already become,” said C.S. Lewis, noted author. This quote, to me, is the most appropriate description of the importance of literature in our lives. Literature reminds us of stories, epics, sacred scriptures and classical works of the ancient and modern times, in which the book To Kill a Mockingbird clearly does. Literature is defined as the body of written works of a language, period or culture, produced by scholars and researchers, specialized in a given field. Why is literature important? Well, let’s see as stated in the quotation by C.S. Lewis, literature not only describes reality but also adds to it. Yes, literature is not merely a depiction of reality; it is rather a value-addition. Literary works are portrayals of the thinking patterns and social norms prevalent in society. They are an illustration of the different facets of common man's life. Literary works serve as a food for thought and a tonic for imagination and creativity. Exposing an individual to good literary works, is equivalent to providing him/her with the finest of educational opportunities. On the other hand, the lack of exposure to literary works is equal to depriving an individual from an opportunity to grow as an individual. To Kill a Mockingbird provides its readers with the ‘finest of educational opportunities’ and that is why it is an important literary work. Harper Lee’s book is a powerful literary work because of the following literary devices employed: Setting, Allegory, and point of view. However before one can dissect the devices used, one must h...

    Read More

More about Value Of Literature In Hamlet

Open Document