莎士比亞與戲劇lecture 10 William Shakespeare and his plays：Hamlet課件

1、Lecture 10William Shakespeare HamletObjective Learn how to appreciate a drama by analysing Hamlet1. A brief introduction to drama:The term comes from aGreekword meaning “action” (which is derived from the verb meaning “to do” or “to act”） . The drama is enacted intheatre, performed byactorson astage

2、 before anaudience. Thestructure of dramatic texts, unlike other forms of literature, is directly influenced by the collaborative production and collective reception.Theearly moderntragedyHamlet(1601) by Shakespeareand theclassical AtheniantragedyOedipus the King(c. 429 BC) bySophocles（索?？死账梗?are am

3、ong the masterpieces of the art of drama.A modern example isLong Days Journey into Nightby Eugene ONeill(1956). traditional genericdivision：The two masks associated with drama represent the traditional genericdivision betweencomedyandtragedy. They are symbols of theancient GreekMuses,ThaliaandMelpom

4、ene. Thalia was the Muse of comedy (the laughing face), while Melpomene was the Muse of tragedy (the weeping face). Elements： Drama is often combined withmusicanddance: the drama inopera is generally sung throughout;musicals generally include both spokendialogueandsongs; and some forms of drama have

5、incidental music or musical accompaniment underscoring the dialogue.In certain periods of history (the ancientRomanand modernRomantic) some dramas have been written to bereadrather than performed. Forms of dramaOperaPantomime(啞劇或舞劇)Creative dramaAcomedyis any sort of performance intended to causelau

6、ghteror the emotions associated with laughter.Satyr playswere anancient Greekform oftragicomedy, featured choruses ofsatyrs, based onGreek mythology, and rife with mock drunkenness, brazen sexuality, pranks, sight gags, and general merriment Only a small fraction of the work of five dramatists, howe

7、ver, has survived to this day. Aeschylus（埃斯庫羅斯 father of tragedy ） : The Persians (the oldest surviving drama, performed in 472 BC ) Sophocles（索福克勒斯） : Oedipus the King Euripides（歐里庇得斯） : Medea美狄亞 Aristophanes（阿里斯多芬尼斯Father of Comedy ）: The Knights Menander（米南德） :Dyskolos （恨世者/古怪人） 2.6 The 19th cent

8、ury Genres：Romantic and realistic drama Representatives: Hugo（ 雨果）， Alexandre Dumas Fils（小仲馬）， Zola（左拉: Naturalism drama ）, Ibsen（易卜生），Bernard Shaw（蕭伯納）， Pushkin（普希金）； Galsworthy（高爾斯華綏）； Gorky（高爾基），Tolstoy（托爾斯泰），Gogol（果戈里），Chekhov（契訶夫），Ostrovsky（奧斯特洛夫斯基）, 2.7 Modern and postmodern drama The pivotal

9、and innovative contributions of the19th centuryNorwegian dramatistHenrik Ibsenand the20th centuryGermantheatre practitionerBertolt Brecht(布萊希特)dominate modern drama . Writing ways: in their different waysmodernism，realism，symbolism, expressionism，futurism，surrealism，existentialism，absurdism. Represe

10、ntatives: Eugene ONeill(尤金奧尼爾 ) ; Arthur Miller(亞瑟米勒),Tennessee Williams(田納西威廉姆斯) ,Eugne Ionesco(歐仁 尤奈斯庫 ), Samuel Beckett（塞繆爾貝克特）, 3. William Shakespeare and his playsuniversally acknowledged to be the summit of the English Renaissance one of the most remarkable playwrights and poets the world has

11、ever known representative works: 38 plays, 154 sonnets, and 2 narrative poems3. William Shakespeare and his playsAbout literary periods of playsFour tragedies Four comidiesChief achievements and characteristics of Shakespeares drama3.2 Four comedies威尼斯商人仲夏夜之夢皆大歡喜第十二夜 4. Hamlet 1) The story of Hamlet

12、 2) Hamlet (Act 3, Scene 1, Lines 55-86) (Selected Readings,3) The theme of Hamlet4) The character of Hamlet4.1 Background：-The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, often shortened to Hamlet ， is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare at an uncertain date between 1599 and 1602. -The story of Shak

13、espeares Hamlet was derived from the legend of Amleth, preserved by 13th-century chronicler Saxo Grammaticus in his Gesta Danorum, as subsequently retold by 16th-century scholar Franois de Belleforest.(Amlethis a figure in a medieval Scandinavian legend, the direct predecessor of the character of Pr

14、ince Hamlet, the hero ofWilliam Shakespeares tragedyHamlet, Prince of Denmark. It was recorded that prince Amleth is the son ofHorvendill,king of theJutes. Set in the Kingdom of Denmark, the play dramatises the revenge that Prince Hamlet is called to wreak upon his uncle, Claudius, by the ghost of H

15、amlets father, King Hamlet. Claudius had murdered his own brother and seized the throne, also marrying his deceased brothers widow. Denmark has a long-standing feud with neighboring Norway, which culminated when King Hamlet slew King Fortinbras of Norway in a battle years ago. Although Denmark defea

16、ted Norway, and the Norwegian throne fell to King Fortinbrass infirm brother, Denmark fears that an invasion led by the dead Norwegian kings son, PrinceFortinbras, is imminent.4.2 plots:Act1(5 scences):On a cold night, on the ramparts ofElsinore, the Danish royal castle, thesentriesBernardo and Marc

17、ellus and Hamlets friendHoratio, ghostCourt gathers: learning of the Ghost from Horatio, resolving to see it himself.Laertes preparing to depart for a visit to France That night on the rampart, the Ghost appears to Hamlet, Act II(2 scenes)Ophelia reporting Hamlets crazy behaviours to investigate the

18、 cause of Hamlets mood and behavior messengers sent to Norway returning with good newsPolonius telling Claudius and Gertrude his theory regarding Hamlets behavior, a troupe of actors coming Act III (4 scenes)Polonius and Claudius evaluating Hamlets reaction by arranging Hamlets meeting with Ophelia

19、(hamlets famous soliloquy to be or not to be. )the court assembling to watch the play Claudius abruptly rising and running from the room Hamlet being summoned by Gertrude to her room to give an explanation Hamlet accidentally killing Polonius Being sent to toEngland accompanied by Rosencrantz and Gu

20、ildenstern Analysis of Hamlets most famous soliloquy concerning “ To be or not to be, that is the question? (see p.7,textbook) 4.3 Shakespeares themesThrough his plays, he touched almost every aspect of human life： human pleasures and human tragedies. Shakespeare paints in his dramas a faithful pano

21、rama of the decline of old feudal nobility and the rise of the Tudor monarchy (14851603 ), which represented the interests of the English bourgeoisie. Moreover, he is the perfect expression of Renaissance humanism. He distilled into his drama the humanistic spirit of the Renaissance, and his drama b

22、ecomes an expression, a monument of the English Renaissance. Themes in Hamlet: This play retained the revenge subject and the subject of struggle for the throne within the court, but the main purpose was for the revelation of something more profound and realistic: contradiction between humanist idea

23、ls and the reality;contradiction between the rising bourgeoisie and the feudal power through a bloody revenge. Specific themesJustice and revenge: Is revenge a good or an evil act? Is Claudius truly guilty? And so to be punished?Is it Hamlets responsibility to punish him?about whether justice should

24、 be left to the state or taken into the ones own hands, and about whether it is possible to tell the good man from the criminal? Destiny and the purpose of life: Is there a point to life at all?Should we suffer in this harsh world for a purpose,or simply because we are afraid to find out what may li

25、e beyond us?If there is a higher, universal force guiding each of us in a certain direction, how do we know what it is so that we can accept its guidance? Madness and sanityIs Hamlet really mad? If so, what causes his madness?Is it his reluctance to take revenge? Is it his confused feelings about hi

26、s mother? Appearance and realityHamlet demands honesty, but is he himself always honest?Relationship between acting a part and their real lifeRights and duties of kingshipWhat are the obligations of a king to his people?Who in Hamlet has the most right to be the king?Is a peaceful king better than a

27、 warlike one?4.4 Shakespeares character portrayal In his 38 dramas, Shakespeare created a large group of lifelike characters who live and struggle, suffer and rejoicerepresenting all the complexities and implications of real life. He wrote about his own people and for his own people. Character analy

28、sis: HamletIs Hamlet a frail and weak-minded youth or a thought sick bookworm?How do you think of Hamlets hesitation to kill his uncle ? He is a humanist： he is against the old religious doctrines. Like other humanists, he cherishes a profound reverence for man, and a firm belief in mans power and d

29、estiny. He is a close observer of men and manners. He easily sees through people. His quick perception drives him to penetrate below the surface of things and question what others take for granted. So he is forever unmasking the world. He is extremely philosophical and contemplative: About his uncle

30、s guilt; about the afterlife, about the wisdom of suicide, about what happens to bodies after they die etc. “What a piece of work is a man! How noble in reason! How infinite in faculty! In form and moving how express and admirable! In action how like an angel! In apprehension how like a god!” He lov

31、es good and hates evil. He adores his father, loves Ophelia and greets his school-fellows with hearty welcome, while he is disgusted with his uncles drunkenness and shocked by his mothers shallowness. He cares for nothing but human value and shows a contempt for rank and wealth.Being well aware of t

32、he evil of the time the infidelity of his mother, the servility of the courtiers, the crime of his uncle listing all kinds of social injustice and evils in the society Time is out of joint. Denmark is a prison. Tis an unweeded garden/ That grows to seed; things rank and gross in nature/ Possess it m

33、erely. However, he is rash and impulsive: rushing after the Ghost, killing Polonius, dealing with Claudius agents on the ship, leaping into the grave executing his revenge, .Hamlet is melancholy and hesitant : disappointed with his mothers marrying his uncle so quickly; worrying about his fate and h

34、is option of revenge. His melancholy can not be brightened up even with love. Melancholy is the key-note of Hamlets character, and there can be no Hamlet without melancholy. But his melancholy is not the negative, hair-splitting and fruitless kind. It is rather the result of his penetrating habit of

35、 mind. His image reflects the versatility of the men of the Renaissance4.5 Shakespeares play constructionShakespeare is a master-hand for every form of dramacomedy, tragedy, and historical plays. Moreover, his tragedies may have comic elements, and his comedies include sardonic commentaries on human

36、 frailty. The plots of Shakespeares plays are well-arranged according to the requirement of the theme and content. The action is developed freely, without being hindered by the rules of the classical unities (action, place and time). The Master Art of HamletMadness: real and sham; intentional killin

37、g and unintentional; play within the play; reversion or surprise turn of events; hesitation: his love and hatred for the mother, killing and delay;4.6 Shakespeares ingenuity in drama composing In his creation of dramas, he succeeded in combining the two sides of his talentShakespeare the poet and Sh

38、akespeare the dramatistinto one and produced the most remarkable poetic dramas in England or perhaps in the whole world. The lines in his plays are not mere decorations but all have their own values. They serve as a vehicle of utterance to all the possible sentiments of his characters. 4.7 Shakespea

39、res LanguageShakespeares command of vocabulary was the largest among the Elizabethan dramatists. He used more than 16,000 different words and enriched the English language with his own coinage. Under his hand, words glow with life, which vitalize the printed pages with beauty, melody, humor, pathos,

40、 tenderness, force, or whatever effect he chose to produce. He used the English language with the greatest freedom and ease, so that all the speeches fit all the characters that use them.Shakespeares language and grammar Archaic words : thou, thee, thy (thine): you (pl); hath, hast thou: have you; wilt: will; doeth: does; art: are; Dost thou: do yo