Be prepared.
Shakespeare's Hamlet actually asks more questions
than it answers.
We'll take a look at this play full of mystery
in just a moment.
First, a few words to describe Hamlet
You could call it a tragedy, which it is.
You could call it a play about revenge, which
it also is.
You could also call it a hodgepodge.
It's like Shakespeare took all his best tricks—ghosts,
spurned lovers, land disputes, pirates, poison,
a duel, a dead royal family—and tossed them
into a big stew pot.
Stir and serve!
Somehow, it works.
But bells and whistles aside, there's one
more word that describes this play, too.
It's the word mystery.
Because not only is Hamlet's plot a little
less than straightforward, its message is, too.
For example, our hero—Prince Hamlet. Is
he really mad?
Or is his madness an act?
What is madness anyway? And who is more mad—Claudius,
who commits the sin of killing Hamlet's father,
or Hamlet, who goes crazy with revenge?
Here's another question: Can we trust Hamlet?
Is he a reliable narrator?
Or is he, like all the other characters in
this play, "playing" at something? Is he being
honest with his audience?
Stick with me as I try to untangle this knot.
