So good - even the Klingons call it their own!

books:


	• Hamlet (The New Folger Library Shakespeare) William Shakespeare Washington Square Press, 2003 - 400 pages view larger image
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Either good or bad, but thinking makes it so

A classic, but not Shakespeare's best tradgedy. Fewer sparks of brilliance and depth of multiple characters than Macbeth, Julius Caesar or the Richards.

So good - even the Klingons call it their own!

A prince, his troubled family, murder, deceit and some of the richest verse ever written.
How can you go wrong?

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Good but not a big deal

Yes, I know I'll shock many people, but "Hamlet" isn't the great play that everyone says it is. People assume it is because important and learned people have said so. The character of Hamlet is infuriating, and many times I wished to strangle him. Why couldn't he kill Claudius, yet kill Polonius, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern with malice aforethought ? It's my opinion that he is class conscious, aware of his superiority and supremacy over the majority of the characters, and that's why he can act with such violence towards certain characters: the 2 already mentioned, Ophelia, Gertrude, Laertes, and the Players etc. He offends his lover and his mother, and even instructs the Players how to behave under their craft. It seems the only time Hamlet gets animated is when he feels there is some wrong done to him. For example, Hamlet callously interupts the mourning of Laertes for the latter's dead sister Ophelia at her funeral, because he doesn"t wish for the brother's grief to surpass his own.
However, it can also be read that Hamlet starts off the play armed with honourable intentions. But, he feels already tainted ("too, too sullied flesh") with the corruption pervading the Danish court, and his later behaviour could imply that he has indeed fallen into madness under a disease, the disease that courses throughout the court, and drives brothers to murder brothers, a queen to marry her brother-in-law 2 months after her husband's death. A disease that even destroys the love between Hamlet ad Ophelia. Love in the play is an illusion, and ambition and hypocrisy (shown in the characters Laertes, Claudius, Polonius, Osric) abound.
The poetry, however, is excellent. Readers will be delighted to recognise famous quotes: "To be or not to be", "Frailty, thy name is woman", "Something is rotton in the state of Denmark", "I must be cruel only to be kind" etc. Th play is excellent for its witty sayings and comedy, such as the banter between Hamlet and Polonius, which had me laughing outloud.
I recommend reading "Hamlet" as part of a requsite reading, but Shakespeare' masterpiece is actually "King Lear", which is even darker than "Hamlet", and has more finely drawn characters, is far more dramatic than "Hamlet", and, in my opinion, has much more beautiful and greater poetry, though less well recognised than that of "Hamlet".

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side by side english version

Hamlet (Folger Shakespeare Library) places English beside English for those that need a translation from English to English. If this is read or acted out loud the translation would be superfluous.
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This really is "The Tragical History of Hamlet Prince of Denmark" and not only the Prince but his family. Not only his family but his friends. The tragedy started in the previous generation. Will it end with Hamlet?

Many people are interested in dissecting underlying themes and read more into the characters actions than was probably intended. Many of phrases from Hamlet now challenge Bible for those popular quotes that no one remembers where they came from. The real fun is in just reading the story and as you find that it is not as foreign as you may have thought; you see many characters like these around you today.

A synopsis, Old Hamlet conquered Old Fortinbras seizing Fortinbras' land. Now that Old Hamlet is dead, Young Fortinbras wants his land back and is willing to take it by force. Meanwhile back in Dänemark Prince Hamlet who is excessively grieving the loss of his father, the king, gets an interesting insight from his father's ghost. Looks like Old Hamlet was a victim of a "murder most foul"; it appears his mother and uncle were in cahoots on the murder. On top of that they even get married before the funeral meats are cold.

The story is about Hamlet's vacillating as to what to do about his father's murder. However he does surprise many with his persistence and insight.

You will find many great movie presentations and imitations of the story; this is an intriguing read but was really meant to be watched.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead

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Fabulous!

If anybody out there is willing to give Shakespeare's Hamlet a try, please select not just any text but this one from the Folger Shakespeare Library! Not only do they give you in-depth information on Shakespeare's life, his language, his theater, and a summary of Hamlet but the text also integrates assistance for the average every day reader to understand the story's vocabulary. Anybody who needs help by understanding Hamlet need look no further than the left page, which displays any confusing words or phrases and translates them into modern day terms. This way, anybody of ANY AGE can read Shakespeare! The key to this text is to not let Shakespeare's style frustrate you and give his books a chance-and the Folger Shakespeare Library is here for a simple study on not just the text itself but the era in which Shakespeare produces such memorable works.

The Folger Shakespeare Library is an excellent resource one should utilize in researching Shakespeare for a school assignment or to simply enjoy one of his many excellent plays.

I wish I could rate this text as six stars since Hamlet is, by far, my favorite Shakespeare story!

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