Hamlet's Wit We remember Shakespeare's characters largely because of their enormously complex personalities. Hamlet, with his inner conflicts, indecision, wit, and passive-aggressive behavior, is one of Shakespeare's most memorable characters. Yet so much attention has been given to Hamlet's inner conflict-whether or not he should kill his uncle-that a large piece of his personality is easy to overlook. Hamlet's wit strikes out at the audience in several different scenes throughout the play and not only gives the reader greater insight into Hamlet's deepest feelings, but greater insight into the play itself. In Hamlet's first few lines of the play he expresses his deepest feelings through his wit. Hamlet's sarcastic conversation with Claudius and Gertrude lets the reader know that he is extremely unpleased with the relationship between his uncle and mother. Specifically, when Claudius refers to Hamlet as his "son," Hamlet uses the word "sun" in such a way that Claudius can also interpret the word "sun" as the word "son," which would imply that Hamlet was glad to be the newly adopted son of Claudius. Hamlet is obviously being sarcastic, because Hamlet resents Claudius for marrying his mother and referring to him as his "son"(1.2.62-67). Hamlet has barely spoken his first few lines of the play and Shakespeare is already showing the witty side of Hamlet's personality. This speaks for how important Hamlet's wit is to the understanding of Hamlet's character. Shakespeare uses Hamlet's sarcastic remarks to portray Hamlet as cunning and to foreshadow how Hamlet will most likely deal with any problems that may arise later in the play. Hamlet, while conversing with other characters, reveal... ... middle of paper ... ...scover that Hamlet is not so much riddled with indecisiveness as he is playing out his well-contrived strategy for capturing his revenge. Works Cited Coleridge, Samuel Taylor. Lectures and Notes on Shakspere and Other English Poets. London : George Bell and Sons, 1904. p. 342-368. http://ds.dial.pipex.com/thomas_larque/ham1-col.htm Gordon, Edward J. Introduction to Tragedy. Rochelle Park, NJ: Hayden Book Co., Inc., 1973. ---. "Psychoanalytic Criticism and Hamlet." Wofford. 241-251. Jorgensen, Paul A. "Hamlet." William Shakespeare: the Tragedies. Boston: Twayne Publ., 1985. N. pag. http://www.freehomepages.com/hamlet/other/jorg-hamlet.html Levin, Harry. General Introduction. The Riverside Shakespeare. Ed. G. Blakemore Evans. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1974. Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Ed. T. J. B. Spencer. New York: Penguin, 1996.
There are many things in people's lives that define them; a major influence is religion. Against the backdrop of World War II, The Chosen, by Chaim Potok, shows the relationship of two religious Jewish boys, that grow up in very different Jewish sects. At a baseball game that represents a metaphorical war between the Hasidic and Orthodox Jewish culture an unlikely friendship is born. Reuven Malter, raised as a modern Orthodox Jew, accepts secular influences. The other protagonist, Danny Saunders, a son of a Hasidic rabbi, Reb Saunders, is raised as a traditional Hasidic Jew, bound by his father’s strict upbringing. Danny, by birthright, is chosen as his sect’s future rabbi to carry on his father’s dynasty, which causes internal struggle and
...s perception but rather explains the reason behind the tzaddik’s fanaticism. On the other hand, Reb Saunders is intolerant of many ideas, especially ones that contradict his own religious beliefs. For instance, at Reuven’s mention of Zionism, he erupts into a furious rage; David Malter’s speech at Madison Square Garden results in a nearly two-year long ban on Reuven’s and Danny’s friendship.
Hamlet (The New Folger Library Shakespeare). Simon & Schuster; New Folger Edition, 2003.
...as a reader I must understand that his opinions are supported by his true, raw emotions. These negative feelings shared by all of his ancestors were too strong to just pass by as meaningless emotions. Baldwin created an outlook simply from his honest views on racial issues of his time, and ours. Baldwin?s essay puts the white American to shame simply by stating what he perceived as truth. Baldwin isn?t searching for sympathy by discussing his emotions, nor is he looking for an apology. I feel that he is pointing out the errors in Americans? thinking and probably saying, ?Look at what you people have to live with, if and when you come back to the reality of ?our? world.?
In the beginning of the book, they meet at a baseball game, their teams playing against each other. Danny hits a baseball into Reuven’s face making him going into the hospital. While Danny visited him in the eye ward, their friendship developed. Reuven finds out that his father was helping Danny with reading behind Reb Saunders’ back; because of his culture it is against the “rules” to read anything other than the Talmud or any other religious books. In the later chapters we find out that Mr. Malter agrees with Zionist, while Reb Saunders is an anti-Zionist, which caused a hardship in the boys’ friendship because Reb told Danny that he can’t talk to, be seen with, or even listen to Reuven because
One of the protagonists in The Chosen is Reuven Malter. Reuven is an orthodox Jewish boy. He is a very smart and diligent student. His father, David Malter raises Reuven alone in Brooklyn, New York as his mother has already passed away. Reuven has glasses, brown hair and eyes, and dresses in the typical orthodox manner. A plain boy, he has a bright mind and a very caring soul.
Each character has their own strengths, weaknesses, and motivations, leading them to act realistically and with purpose. For example, Reuven is easily affected by first-impressions. Because of this, he begrudges both Danny for hitting him in the eye at the start of the novel and his father for imposing silence over Danny. Another example comes in the form of Danny’s thirst for knowledge. Danny’s father worries about the secular world making Danny’s soul devoid of compassion through the allure of information. Yet, Danny cannot stay away from external learning, gobbling up Freud’s works over summer. Because of this, Danny’s father is motivated to teach Danny how to be compassionate in the only way he knows how—establishing a permanent silence between the two outside of Talmudic studies. Through these ways, Potok’s novel establishes characters with depth and personality, making them come to
...y son was ready to rebel. He sent you to listen to my son’s words. He sent you to be my closed eyes and my sealed ears. I looked at your soul, Reuven, not your mind…. I knew your mind… A thousand times I have thanked the Master of the Universe that he sent you to your father to my son.” (Potok 267) Reuven is almost like a common father figure to Danny when they were growing up, as Mr. Saunders isn’t willing to break his idea of growing his son up in silence just to listen to his goals and dreams, especially Danny’s secular ones. This impact on Danny has changed him throughout the novel. For example, This friendship has helped him to face his father and speak up. The help of Reuven has brought the courage and the determination to follow his true path and become a psychologist. These two friends are bounded together with a shared soul under two very different bodies.
Even though they did not get along at first, their difference brought them together and bonded them. They were able to help each other through a majority of the most difficult times in life. Their differences taught them more about themselves and what they wanted out of life. Danny’s struggle to get away from a religious future confused Reuven at first, but it gave him a new perspective on his choice to become a Rabbi. Reuven’s refusal to follow his father’s plan for the future helped inspire Danny to choose a different career path and continue on to graduate school at Columbia. This type of relationships also teaches tolerance patience with other people 's points of views, which make us more are of our own. The fact that they did not follow their father 's wishes for them in a career shows that they are stronger and more well rounded having experienced each others point of views in
Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2nd ed. Vol. C. Ed. Sarah Lawall. New York: Norton, 2005. Print.
Cohen, Walter, J.E. Howard, K. Eisaman Maus. The Norton Shakespeare. Vol. 2 Stephen Greenblatt, General Editor. New York, London. 2008. ISBN 978-0-393-92991-1
Considered to be one of the most famous playwrights written in the history of English literature, Hamlet is no doubt a complex play and far from being easy to decipher. The protagonist finds himself entangled within a slew of different predicaments ranging from love, incest, death, murder, and even touches upon the spiritual world when his father’s apparition presents himself with the task of avenging his death. How he goes about handling all of these difficulties has been a debate for decades and continues to baffle even the greatest minds today. However, in order for Hamlet to uncover the truth and fulfill the task he is given, he must put on an act of madness in which the other characters mistake him to have truly lost his mind. While he
For example on halloween i love to go and seek new friends and open my eyes to new opportunities it helps me get outside more and away from the thought of school work this law should not be created because having these out late nights keep kids from experiencing new things in life without halloween it keeps them from
Shakespeare, William, Marilyn Eisenstat, and Ken Roy. Hamlet. 2nd ed. Toronto: Harcourt Canada, 2003. Print.
He starts out hating Hasidim because it's the "pious" thing to do, even though his father (who I see as the Atticus Finch of this novel) keeps telling him that it's okay to disagree with ideas, but hating a person because of them is intolerable. Through his friendship with Danny, studies with Reb Saunders, brief crush on Danny's sister (who was never given a name), and time spent in the Hasidic community, he learns that Hasids are people too with their own ideas and beliefs that are as valuable as his. He learns why they think, act, speak, and dress the way that they do and comes to grips with the fact that he doesn't have a monopoly on virtue. A third way in which Reuven grows, though the book doesn't really talk about it a great deal, is in his appreciation of life, or cha'im in Hebrew. He almost loses his vision, his father nearly works himself to death, six million Jews are butchered in Europe, and Danny's brother's poor health threatens Danny's choice to not become a tzaddik. When his eye is out of order he can't read, and indeed does remark that it's very difficult to live without reading, especially with a voracious appetite for learning such as his. His father almost dies twice and he talks about how difficult it is to live all alone in silence (which is a metaphor alluding to Danny's everyday life) for the month while his father is in the hospital.