Both Jack and Algernon lead a double life, known as ‘Bunburying’, the practice of creating an elaborate deception so as to misbehave whilst maintaining expected social standards of duty and responsibility, essentially, pretending to be earnest. Ernest is Jack’s imaginary wayward brother and a means of escaping social functions and duties; Algernon too behaves in a similar fashion. The play, although a comedy, has a sober tone; to be earnest is to be
Looking at imagery as a literary term, is has a known denotation of being a representation of a sense, impression,feeling or idea which appeals to one or more of our senses. It is found in different forms; tactile, aural, olfactory, visual and gustatory imagery. The overall purpose of imagery is to recreate emotions, and thus if used well , evoke certain emotions out of an audience. This objective matches Shakespeares aspiration in Macbeth, to induce feeling in his audience, which is thus his encouragement to employ imagery in the dramatic text. Upon closer analysis of the text, one can find clear examples of Shakespeares use of the dramatic tool.
Vasquez 1 Hamlet Literary Essay In Hamlet ‘The Prince of Denmark,’ Shakespeare alludes to the Elizabethan audience in a way that captures the true essence of his writing when performed in theatre. Shakespeare wrote Hamlet in a context where the Elizabethan audience in which it was directed to, could understand and appreciate all the allusions, metaphors and imagery in which he embedded into his text. Although we were not the intended audience we can still come to appreciate the literary scholar that Shakespeare was. All throughout the play, it is noticeably evident that Shakespeare wrote certain scenes in a specific way to add to themes and to capture the audiences attention. During most of the play, we see Hamlet as a character with many different qualities and especially in his soliloquies, the audience can really get in depth with his cunning personality.
The Use of Women as a Tool to Untie Hamlet In the play, Hamlet, William Shakespeare crafts a tragedy centralized around the main character, Prince Hamlet and his negative perception of the women in his life. One main point of Shakespeare’s piece is to highlight how a female’s weakness ultimately shapes the decisions of their male counterparts. He does so by skillfully using the nature of a woman as a compelling force that leads to Hamlet’s destruction. Prince Hamlet struggles with accepting the harsh reality that his mother has remarried to her late husband’s brother. This conflict within Hamlet is further expounded by the possibility that his father was murdered by his uncle, King Cladius.
Hamlet is one of William Shakespeare’s most successful plays, and includes some of the most significant lines from soliloquies. Today, people continue to remember some of the character Hamlet’s most important lines, even if they are not familiar with the play. Even though soliloquies are mostly intended to reflect the inner feelings of a character, three in particular from the first half of the play’s exposition mainly contribute to the importance of the development of the plot in Hamlet. The first soliloquy that contributes to the plot in the play is the “O that this too too solid flesh would melt” soliloquy (I, II, 129). The protagonist, Hamlet, speaks this line after discussing his recent troublesome behavior with his mother Gertrude and uncle Claudius.
Hamlet starts to act as a madman to avenge the death of his father by his uncle. Ophelia on the other hand, goes mad after the death of her father. Shakespeare uses both these characters to affect the main plot in the play and their relationships with other characters. Many people debate whether Hamlet’s madness is real or fake. Shakespeare incorporated the theme of madness to serve a motive for Hamlet in order to deceive others.
Madness is a vital plot element in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Both young Hamlet and his love Ophelia appear mad throughout the play’s duration, but only Ophelia has a genuine affliction of insanity. Although stricken with grief by his father’s death and the clamorous events that follow, Hamlet does not become truly mad because he is still able to distinguish right form wrong and maneuver logically in his plan to avenge his murdered father. Shakespeare surreptitiously places revelations of Hamlet’s sanity throughout the play. Though his planned maneuver to murder his uncle Claudius, the contrast between his feigned madness and Ophelia’s true madness, and his ability change behavior around different characters that possess his trust, Hamlet’s true, rational condition emerges from beneath his veil of insanity.
The death of one’s father and a ghostly visitation thereafter are events that would challenge the sanity of anyone. The circumstances of King Hamlet’s death render it especially traumatic. The late King seemed to be an idol to his son; Hamlet looked up to him and aspired to have the same qualities. Hamlet doesn't like King Claudius and sees him as a swindling usurper who has stolen not only the dead King’s throne, but Hamlet’s as well(2.4). Hamlet shows Gertrude that she has lowered her standards by marrying Claudius, When he refers to old Hamlet as, “A combination and a form indeed / Where every god did seem to set his seal” (3.4.55-61).
There is much evidence in the play that Hamlet deliberately feigned fits of madness in order to confuse and disconcert the king and his attendants. His avowed intention to act "strange or odd" and to "put an antic disposition on" 1 (I. v. 170, 172) is not the only indication. The latter phrase, which is of doubtful interpretation, should be taken in its context and in connection with his other remarks that bear on the same question. To his old friend, Guildenstem, he intimates that "his uncle-father and aunt-mother are deceived," and that he is only "mad north-north-west." (II.
Hamlet’s first interaction with his father’s ghost reveals this fundamental association between love and revenge. When the ghost describes his murder as “most foul, strange, and unnatural” Hamlet conflates his feelings for his father with plans for vengeance. “Haste me to know't, that I, with wings as swift As meditation or the thoughts of love, May sweep to my revenge”(1.5.29-31). Hamlet compares the speed of his revenge to that in which someone falls in love, while expressing his belief that he can exhibit love for his father by retaliation on his behalf. Significantly, Hamlet’s revenge is to take from Claudius that which he loves, including the crown and Hamlet’s mother.