He finishes the sentence as a tautology ("Villains are knaves.")Hamlet says he thinks the ghost is telling the truth,says he will feign madness ("put an antic disposition on" -- he doesn'texplain why), and(perhaps re-enacting a scene in the old play) swears themto secrecy on his sword and in several different locationswhile the ghost hollers "Swear" from below the stage.
Hamlet calls the ghost "boy", "truepenny", and "old mole",and says to his friends, "You hear this fellow in the cellarage."It seems to me that Shakespeare is parodying the older play,and even making fun of the idea of ghosts, and that he's saying,"Don't take this plot seriously, but listen to the ideas."Horatio comments how strange this all is, and Hamlet (who likes puns) says thatthey should welcome the ghost as a stranger in need.
Notice that Horatio, whois skeptical of ghosts, is the one who suggests trusting Godwhen the ghost appears, and who will later talk about "flights ofangels" carrying Hamlet's soul to heaven.
So far as I know, it's the first time this theme -- now so common -- appeared in world literature.Hamlet, our hero, is the son of the previous king of Denmark,also named Hamlet ("Old Hamlet", "Hamlet Senior" as we'd say),who has died less than two months ago.
[tags: William Shakespeare Hamlet Revenge Essays]
Hamlet remembers his father as an all-around good guy, andas a tender husband who would even make a special effort toshield his wife's face from the cold Danish wind.
[tags: Essays on Shakespeare Hamlet]
Marchette Chute in “The Story Told in Hamlet” describes just how close the hero is to suicide while reciting his most famous soliloquy: Hamlet enters, desperate enough by this time to be thinking of suicide....
[tags: Soliloquies Shakespeare Hamlet]
"Hamlet" is the first work of literature to looksquarely at the stupidity, falsity and sham of everyday life,without laughing and without easy answers.