Logs due for all of Act 1. Remember, scenes 4 and 5 can be combined into one log.
Read 2.1
Hamlet's language definitely changes after he sees the ghost. Examine how it changes in lines 1.5.97 - 211. What assumptions can we make about Hamlet's state of mind from the specific words he uses and the way he speaks to his companions at this point in the play? Why do you think Hamlet chooses to put on an "antic disposition"? Please leave your comments/answers below.
At first, Hamlet struggled with the quick marriage of his mother and Claudius only a month after his father is death. After he found out his father’s ghost was around, he knew there had to be some kind of “foul play.” Hamlet is a university student; his morals and way of thinking are defined by books and what was taught to him. We see this as he speaks about the flaws of men, setting a bad reputation for all, and the man’s flaws causing their “downfall.”(1.4.15-40) When Hamlet meets his father’s ghost, he learns that Claudius killed his father, and that he must get revenge. This encounter changed who he is completely. He said that he will wipe away books, the past, and all of the things he was taught. He will live “within the book and volume of his brain” (1.5.108). He is tries to shut down the part of him that knows right from wrong. Hamlet becomes heartless. Hamlet now starts to plan his next steps, because it's not like he can just bust into Claudius’ room and kill him. So in this scene he warns his friends that he will put on an "antic disposition" (1.5.192). And that’s all I have for that!
ReplyDeleteAnd what you have is a rather impressive assessment of Hamlet's state of mind. Being 1st will definitely earn you a 🌟💯
DeleteWhat no emojis? Ok then, a gold star and 100
DeleteThroughout Act I, Hamlet is struggling to overcome his father's death and his mother's sudden marriage. Hamlet's language starts off as that of a misunderstood teenager and quickly becomes that of a vengeful son. Hamlet is soon enraged due to his suspicions on his father's abrupt death, making him a dangerous enemy. Hamlet's thoughts might be that, as the rightful son of the King, he must seek justice for his father. Yet, Hamlet chooses to announce that he will put on an "antic disposition" (1.5.192) and calmly starts to plan how he is going to find his answer. Hamlet's act will keep Claudius under the illusion that Hamlet is a meek and futile man, which is what Hamlet needs to find his answer.
ReplyDeleteHamlet's attitude changed drastically once he talked to his father's ghost. You could see that it brought him back into his senses but now a changed man with a goal to venge his father's death. Hamlet definitely found some type of relief from known that his father was murdered which now caused him to think clearly again. He has now taken his revenge as his new “commandments”. When he talks to Horatio and Marcellus he sounds a bit mad as if he were taking the revenge as something fun or amussing, he's lost his sense and morals about death and everything else. I see why Mr. Jessup brought up if killing was right or wrong in class. Very sneaky..
ReplyDeleteHamlet's whole persona changes after he speaks to the ghost of his father. After doing so, Hamlet then knows his grievance have deeper meaning. Before speaking to his father's ghost, Hamlet states that he does not value his life. He is thinking erratically and making impulsive decisions such as following the ghost, knowing his life could potentially be in danger. After the encounter, Hamlet is able to think clearly and has a greater grasp on reality. His actions are no longer motivated merely by grief, but now that of vengeance. Hamlet chooses to put on an antic disposition because what he has discovered is not something he can simply reveal. His family and those who surround him are already worried due to his antic behavior, had Hamlet reveled what he discovered and word got out, this family, especially Claudius, would have justification to prevent Hamlet from making any further moves. If Hamlet reveals his discovery, it could foil his future plans.
ReplyDeleteWe notice the change in Hamlet's attitude after the ghost reveals to him, as the King - his father's spirit. Although the King only has a certain time to reveal himself and explain what he has to say to Hamlet, the King reveals many wrongful acts about Claudius. After this occurrence, Hamlet's state of mind seems to be stronger, more powerful than before, and determined. Now we can assume, after not understanding the value of life, he now knows what he has to do...or have an idea at least. I feel revenge coming from Hamlet, but also an attempt of revealing who Claudius really is -- justice shall be made. Hamlet puts up on antic disposition because now that he knows what Claudius is up to, he must play the same game. I feel that just like Claudius is trying to plan his way up to his anticipated superior position, Hamlet is right behind adequately planning a way to get justice for his father -- the King. After all the schooling Hamlet has devoted himself to, we must not underestimate his thinking skills, as we must assume he is quiet a smart man. Overall, he is son of the King. Hamlet must have more for us to look forward to..
ReplyDeleteThere is definitely a change in Hamlet when he encounters his father ghost because his train of thought shifts from desperation to deviance and madness. His inner accusation towards his uncle having to do something with his father's death is conformed and in turn creates the turning point of the play. Hamlet is sworn to keep his mouth shut, but how can any man keep a secret so juicy? Hamlet is aware of this difficult task, therefore he puts on an antic disposition in order to hide his secret. He knows if people see that he has gone mad, they wont believe him if he ever spills the beans.
ReplyDeleteHamlet as a whole has changed as a character as he had the chance to meet his father's ghost. This gives the readers a sense of a possibility why his father died and question why Hamlet was not around when he was not crowned king. Was there an legitimate reason why he was not around? Hamlet is able to build up an antic disposition to refrain him from being sane. He as an individual who now sees the main picture and does not get distracted by the detailed details. He doesnt see Claudius as threatening but as a potential victim from one of his vindictive plots. Hamlet makes sure that both Horatio and Marcellus is not aware of his plot. They both tried to help out Hamlet when they saw him identify his father's ghost. Hamlet changed, but it is for the best of him and in his favor.
ReplyDeleteAfter the recent discovery of Hamlet's father death/murder, he has been acting impulsively. The ghost clarified everything and that indeed his father was murder by Hamlets uncle. His motivation is revenge just as the ghost ask him to do. Its rather strange how the ghost is in purgatory and seems like his only way out is to make Hamlet do as he says. Hamlet promises not to tell anyone . He is plotting his revenge to quickly making the problem bigger because it can backfire on him.
ReplyDeleteAlso, when Horatio and Marcellus tell him not to go towards the ghost, Hamlet didn't think about it twice and off he went. He then came and said he doesn't value his life. That's another situation where he is being impulsive, again it might backfire on him later. He should think before acting.
DeleteNice assessment Frances, Hamlet does seem impulsive here.
DeleteIn point of view, Hamlet seemed a bit distraught and confused; wondering why his mother only grieved for so long before marrying his uncle and why his uncle became king instead of him. After meeting the ghost , Hamlet ( in my point of view ) acts a bit crazy and I do mean act because I don't think he was in any way insane, I think he just behaved that way (deliberately) to manipulate his companions and possibly hey closer to the king and start to make himself more "relevant " in the king's life.
ReplyDeleteSorry I meant get closer to the king. 😈👍👌📖🎭
DeleteHe matured from being a depressed boy to a vengeful man. He now thinks differently. All he now thinks about is revenge. He now has to hold his tongue (again) to make sure no one knows his plans. The way he hides it was by acting crazy and even ask the others to play along even though they do not know what is going on. He chooses to leave a antic deposition so that everyone could think he is the same boy but in reality he is playing them like puppets.
ReplyDeleteTrue, but remember he has an awful lot on his plate at the moment.
DeleteAt this point, Hamlet knows that his uncle killed his father, like he apparently suspected when the ghost told him. My only problem with this is that even though Hamlet knew that something was wrong, the reason why the dead king's spirit was wandering, he never mentioned his belief that his father had been murdered. Although it may be true, it seems to me that Hamlet jumped freely at the possibility to avenge his father, and take revenge upon his uncle just he could let go of all his repressed sorrow, anger, and pain. Given this opportunity, Hamlet let go of "all trivial fond records" and "books, all form, all pressures" which signifies his new found solitude and objective, and decision to disregard morality and ethics. Now, Hamlet has become the man that he was aching to be to defy Claudis due his father's wish of revenge.
ReplyDeleteHowever, this new allowance for Hamlet to ignore the path of good and evil will destroy his character as he will choose revenge over anything- even he possible love he may feel for Ophelia- and his mentality at risk as he will still not be able to freely speak his plan to anyone and will be forced to keep his secret his burden.
At this point in the play we are finally able to know why the ghost is roaming around the castle. Hamlet is the one that he wanted to communicate with. As the ghost of his father explains to Hamlet how he was murdered by Claudius, Hamlet transforms into a completely different person right then and there. His mindset has become that of seeking only vengeance in his father's name, he chooses to put on an antic disposition because no one can know of his plans for revenge. If his plans were to be leaked to anyone an interference could occur and his plans would be ruined. Since Hamlet cannot tell right from wrong anymore I feel that he has already lost and destroyed himself as revenge for his father is the only thing on his mind. In my opinion the ghost of his father telling Hamlet to seek revenge was a bad idea because I think this change in Hamlet will cause great consequences in the future of the play.
ReplyDeleteWe see Hamlet change after he speaks to his father's ghost. At first he obviously was having trouble accepting his mother's marriage a month after his father's death. But after he speaks to his father's spirit and learns he was murdered, we see that he has a right to be suspicious of Claudius. He learns that he murdered his father and used his mother to gain power. He promises he'll revenge his father. We see him start to put this task in main focus when he tells Horatio and Marcellus that he me act like a madman but they must remain silent. He is already planning and preparing how he'll do it because he can't just walk up to him and kill him. He now knows his purpose.
ReplyDeleteWhen Hamlet is told by the ghost (his father, the late King) that he was murdered and that he needs to have revenge on his death Hamlet becomes more mature. Before he was whinny because he had no purpose to stay, with his father dead and disagreeing with his mother on her marriage but now he has a purpose and one that fits him perfectly to work through his anger and also the disgust he feels for his mother. Now he knows what he needs to do and has to be careful about how and when to do it, in a way he has the power of knowledge. His uncle doesn't know that Hamlet knows he killed his father and that's why Hamlet has to put on a fake face because if he doesn't Hamlet might run the risk of also being murdered by his uncle. I think it is very smart of Hamlet to put on this fake him so nobody suspects what he knows and he can plan with more time and take revenge on his father's death in a better way than if he were to just shout it out to the world and let others deal with what is to happen to the now King and there would also would be a huge question on whether Hamlet is lying for selfish purposes or telling the truth.
ReplyDeleteOnce Hamlet finds the root cause of his sorrow he obviously seems outraged and shocked, especially considering his own uncle killed him. Although his demeanor changes dramatically, he comes up with quite the clever idea to exact revenge on his uncle, hence his antic disposition. As Hamlet believes acting like a mad man will make people incredulous of his statements, even when telling the truth. Hamlets different approach to the classic revenge story adds a plot twist that is more interesting that the status quo of revenge tales. It will be interesting to see whether or not Hamlets antic disposition succeeds or in the end ens up in tragedy.
ReplyDeleteThanks for mentioning this again for everyone. It's paramount to remember that this is not just a tale of revenge, but of truth,consequence, human action and whether or not our actions even have meaning in any context,
DeleteHamlet is told by the ghost to seek revenge, telling him that Claudius has corrupted Denmark and corrupted Gertrude, having seduced her in the foul lust of their incestuous marriage.The ghost urges Hamlet not to act against his mother in any way, telling him to “Leave her to heaven, And to those thorns that in her bosom lodge, To prick and sting her.” Hamlet delayed in seeking revenge for his father because he wanted to be absolutely sure that Claudius did indeed kill his father. Hamlet was also seeking authenticity of the information the ghost gave him, and had to find out for himself if it was true. Thus Hamlet set up “The Mousetrap.” Hamlet was behaving similarly to the way teenagers act today. His father told him something that was true, but Hamlet couldn’t just act without proving the truth to himself, and then acting on his own terms, not those of his father. Hamlet's delay came from a conflict between action and awareness that made him see both sides of every issue. Hamlet realized that to avenge his father’s death, he must kill Claudius, but at the same time he knew that there would be consequences for this action.
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