Hi folks. Some weird stuff in this scene... Skulls?? Jokes?? Disturbing puns?? Fist-fights inside a grave?? Alexander the Great stopping up a beer barrel?? More allusions to Hercules?? Whaaa?
The Royal Shakespeare Company does a great job bringing the scene to life-- especially that saucy grave digger. I recommend reading the scene first and annotating, then watching the video. After that: post a discussion question/comment with a quote. Only one required this time, so make 'em good. :)
Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLO5IdAl-q8
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVHu5BTylbM
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Hamlet, Act 3, scene 4 Discussion: Things get intense!
Hi again everyone. It is seriously so fun to see you all analyze this stuff.
Be sure you're solid on scenes 2 and 3 before getting to scene 4; we see important action transpire via the players' play in scene 2 (some key moments-- Hamlet's speech to Horatio; the interactions between Hamlet and Ophelia; Claudius' reaction to the play; Hamlet's altercation with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Another funny bit about this scene-- many people think that Hamlet's instructions to the players about not over-acting were Shakespeare's deliberate and indirect way of insulting of Will Kempe, the gregarious comedian who broke from Shakespeare's acting troupe in a huff. Tee hee.) You might discover other key points-- what moments from this scene do YOU find telling? Also, scene 3 gives us super interesting insight on Mr. Claudius, AND on Hamlet's revenge strategizing. I'm excited for you guys to discuss all that tomorrow. :)
Now! Onto scene 4: I will be very honest. Because this scene takes place in Gertrude's bedroom, and because it's just Hamlet and Gertrude, and because Hamlet is railing against her for her "bedroom choices," and because he's super worked up, some productions have taken this an extra step and have implied throught the acting that Hamlet is actually "into" his mother and turn it into an Oedipal thing. I have talked with several other English teachers about that, and-- other than the above mentioned circumstances-- there's really nothing in the text to warrant that. The RSC scene, although uncomfortable to watch, keeps it realistic and makes no such unwarranted Oedipal leaps. Pay especially close attention to the text when the ghost arrives. Gertrude's reaction to the ghost is hard to figure out; are there any specifications in text to help clarify it, or is this one more ambiguous moment from Shakespeare? These are all things to consider, but let your own ideas and analysis direct the conversation.
The scene is attached below, if you all like being able to see it played out:
Part One of the scene: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOjpvNPr3JU
Part Two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ay502y7aspo
Once again, you get to discuss this scene however you see fit. Keep your analysis grounded in the text (use quotes) and use proper grammar and spelling. Have at it!
Be sure you're solid on scenes 2 and 3 before getting to scene 4; we see important action transpire via the players' play in scene 2 (some key moments-- Hamlet's speech to Horatio; the interactions between Hamlet and Ophelia; Claudius' reaction to the play; Hamlet's altercation with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Another funny bit about this scene-- many people think that Hamlet's instructions to the players about not over-acting were Shakespeare's deliberate and indirect way of insulting of Will Kempe, the gregarious comedian who broke from Shakespeare's acting troupe in a huff. Tee hee.) You might discover other key points-- what moments from this scene do YOU find telling? Also, scene 3 gives us super interesting insight on Mr. Claudius, AND on Hamlet's revenge strategizing. I'm excited for you guys to discuss all that tomorrow. :)
Now! Onto scene 4: I will be very honest. Because this scene takes place in Gertrude's bedroom, and because it's just Hamlet and Gertrude, and because Hamlet is railing against her for her "bedroom choices," and because he's super worked up, some productions have taken this an extra step and have implied throught the acting that Hamlet is actually "into" his mother and turn it into an Oedipal thing. I have talked with several other English teachers about that, and-- other than the above mentioned circumstances-- there's really nothing in the text to warrant that. The RSC scene, although uncomfortable to watch, keeps it realistic and makes no such unwarranted Oedipal leaps. Pay especially close attention to the text when the ghost arrives. Gertrude's reaction to the ghost is hard to figure out; are there any specifications in text to help clarify it, or is this one more ambiguous moment from Shakespeare? These are all things to consider, but let your own ideas and analysis direct the conversation.
The scene is attached below, if you all like being able to see it played out:
Part One of the scene: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOjpvNPr3JU
Part Two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ay502y7aspo
Once again, you get to discuss this scene however you see fit. Keep your analysis grounded in the text (use quotes) and use proper grammar and spelling. Have at it!
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Hamlet: Act 3, scene 1 Discussion
Hi folks! If you want to see the scene play out in live action, feel free to watch the videos provided in the links below. NOTE: For whatever reason, the Royal Shakespeare Company decided to move the scene where Polonius is questioning Hamlet about what he's reading ("Words, words, words.") into the end of this scene. I have no idea why they did that; in my opinion, it destroys the tension. However, everything else about this production is pretty great, so we'll keep it up anyway:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nM_Oqd6Ers (Part 1)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1geIIDdrV7c (Part 2: "To be" through "Get thee to a nunnery")
DISCUSSION INSTRUCTIONS:
Post a comment in response to this post, discussing the scene. I give you all total ownership in discovering meaning here. Pick a quote, come up with a discussion question, and have at at. Know that everything Shakespeare did in this scene is intentional, so think about what he's trying to reveal through it. Try to post two comments before class tomorrow. If discussion is occurring in a frenzy, and you want to just respond to other comments with both your posts, do so. But if discussion is wobbling along, use one of your comments to stoke the discussion with a question. We need practice with embedding quotes and staying tightly connected to the text, so reference the text in both of your comments. In other words, you should have a quote in there.
Also: use correct grammar and punctuation please.
You all are SMART and it is okay if you make mistakes, and there's no such thing as a dumb question, especially when you're dealing with tough language like this. So discuss boldly and recklessly! :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nM_Oqd6Ers (Part 1)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1geIIDdrV7c (Part 2: "To be" through "Get thee to a nunnery")
DISCUSSION INSTRUCTIONS:
Post a comment in response to this post, discussing the scene. I give you all total ownership in discovering meaning here. Pick a quote, come up with a discussion question, and have at at. Know that everything Shakespeare did in this scene is intentional, so think about what he's trying to reveal through it. Try to post two comments before class tomorrow. If discussion is occurring in a frenzy, and you want to just respond to other comments with both your posts, do so. But if discussion is wobbling along, use one of your comments to stoke the discussion with a question. We need practice with embedding quotes and staying tightly connected to the text, so reference the text in both of your comments. In other words, you should have a quote in there.
Also: use correct grammar and punctuation please.
You all are SMART and it is okay if you make mistakes, and there's no such thing as a dumb question, especially when you're dealing with tough language like this. So discuss boldly and recklessly! :)
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