"Hamlet"-As a tragedy.

Assignment

Name: kunvarani nidhi  k

Paper:  'The Renaissance Literature.'

Topic:'Hamlet'- As a revenge tragedy.'

Class: M. A (sem-1

Roll no: 18

Submitted to: Respected sir, Dr. Dilip Barad

&

Department of English

Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavsinhji University .

Bhavnagar.

v     What is revenge tragedy?

Aristotle defined tragedy as-

“The Imitation of an action that is serious and also, as having magnitude, complete in itself”, in the medium of poetic language, and in the manner of dramatic rather than narrative presentation, incorporating” incidents arousing pity and fear, wherewith to accomplish he catharsis of such emotions.”

 -“A Glossary of Literary Terms.”

(M.H.Abrams)

Senecan tragedy was written to be recited, rather than acted; but to English playwrights, who thought that these tragedies had been intended for the stage, they provided the model for a fully developed five-act play with a complex plot and a formal and elaborate style of dialogue. senecan drama, In the Elizabethan age, had two main lines of development. one of these consisted of academic tragedies, written in close imitation of the senecan models,including the use of a ‘chorus’, and usually constructed according to  the rules of the ‘three unities’, which had been elaborated by Italian critics of  the age; the earliest English example was Sackville and Norton’s ‘Gorbouc (1562)’.The Other and  much more important development was written for the popular Stage, and is called the ‘revenge tragedy’, or the ‘tragedy of blood.’

This type derived from seneca’ s favorite materials of revenge, murder, ghosts, mutilation, and carnage, but while Seneca had relegated such matters to long reports of offstage actions by messengers, the Elizabethan writers had then acted out on stage to satisfy the audience’s appetite for violence and horror. Thomas kyd’ s ‘The Spanish Tragedy(1586)’ established this popular form, based on a murder and the quest for vengeance and including a ghost, insanity, suicide a play-within-a-play, sensational Incidents,  and a gruesomely bloody ending.

Marlowe’s ‘The jew of malta’ and Shakespeare’s ‘Titus Andronicus’ belong in this convention; and from this lively but unlikely source came one of the greatest of tragedies, ’Hamlet’, as well as webster’ s fine horror plays, ’The Duchess of malfi’ and ‘The white Devil.

-“A Glossary of Literary Terms”

(M.H Abrams)

(PAGE.181)

v   ‘“Hamlet” – As a revenge tragedy.’

Revenge implies the individual taking the law into his own hands in order to satisfy an inner urge, although righting the wrongs one to individuals belong to the stage or the government.This matter became hot favorable in the history of drama in Europe. The main theme of the revenge tragedy was the punishment of an evil thing through someone who had suffered because of him. obviously the story from which Shakespeare drew his material for writing ‘’Hemlet’’ had a dominating revenge theme shakespeare must have known and perhaps even acted in, earlier plays of this type and could easily see how the “Hamlet” theme might be treated in the manner of these plays. This theme offered much scope for the display of passion, for rhetorical speeches , and for violent action .The theme of revenge stirred people to a much greater emotional excitement than ordinary themes could have done. Revenge as a theme needed exciting plots and such plots were in the tradition of the Revenge Tragedy.

v   ‘Structure of the play’:

Inspite of such critical observations of critics, we may say that “Hamlet” is not without structure. It is a work of art with definite structure. It has structure of pyramid and is very near to what Aristotle has defined.

‘Freytag’s pyramid’ in his book ‘Die Technic des Dramas(1863)’, the German journalist and writer, ’Gustav Freytag’, plays in the shape of a pyramid, and he attributed a particular function to each of the five acts.

v   Revenge - A Natural and Dangerous emotion:

Revenge tragedy is especially associated with the name of Seneca, an ancient Roman dramatist. All the ten tragedies written by him deal with incident taken from Greek mythology. Greek mythology, Seneca produced the tragic effect by horrifying incidents, bloody actions, and ranting speeches. One of his plays has the title ‘Hercules Furens’ and the title itself is sufficiently indicative of the thematic treatment.

v   The Thematic of Revenge and the plot:

In writing “Hamlet”, Shakespeare to some extent adopted the dramatic tradition of the revenge tragedy. Revenge theme played vital role in the play “Hamlet”. The reason  why the revenge theme came to have some importance in the writing of dramas was that this them offered much scope for the display of revenge stirred people to a much greater emotional excitement or thrilled than ordinary themes could have done. Revenge as a theme needed exciting plots, and such plots were in the tradition of the revenge tragedy.

v   The Role of the Ghost:

In “Hamlet” Ghost also played vital role and they talk with human-being.

A Stock element of the revenge situation came to be the ghost, a manifestation of a spirit feeling restless because of a desire for vengeance against the person who had caused suffering. The role of the ghost creates the avenger to action; That type dialogue we can see in the examples through given below:

“Hamlet: o  God!

  Ghost: Revenge his foul and most  unnatural murder.

Hamlet: Murder?

Ghost  :  Murder most foul, as in the best it is;

But, this most foul strange and unnatural.

Hamlet: Haste me to kno’t, that I, with wings as swift.

As meditation or thoughts  of love so may sweep to my revenge”.

Above examples through e can see the ghost’s deep desire to take revenge. This dialogue taken from original “Hamlet”, Act-1 , scene-3.Here, the prince of Denmark is urged in very strong words by the ghost of the dead king ton wreak vengeance. Upon

Claudius who has ascended to the throne by foul means but whose guilt is unknown to anybody. The central theme  of “Hamlet”

Thus became revenge of the play. And, ultimately the revenge is taken should be must for the characters although the situation in which it is taken is not the avenger’s making and although the revenge casts the avenger his own life.

v   ‘Custom of Revenge’ played very vital role in the play “Hamlet”:

To take revenge custom played very vital role in the play. The play ”Hamlet” follows the major role of contemporary revenge tragedy. Apart from the central theme, which is revenge, and apart from the role of the instigator played by a ghost, we have plenty of melodramatic action here. we have violant, bloody, and terrifying scenes which were the staple of the revenge tragedy of the time. There is, for instance, the murder of polonius committed by Hamlet before our eyes. There is the scene of revolt by the enraged Laertes who would have attacked the monarch if the latter had not been tactful enough to bring him under uncontrol. There are the scenes of Ophelia going mad, getting drowned, and being buried. There is the incident of Laertes leaping in to the grave meant for Ophelia, followed by Hamlet’s leaping in to it. Finally, there are the murders which bring the play to a close. The Queen is the first to die, having drunk poisoned wine. Then the king dies, having been stabbed Hamlet and having been forced to drink the poisoned wine. The next to die is Laertes who has been stabbed by Hamlet with a rapier wounded by the same rapier with which he afterwards wound Laertes. This several deaths on the stage have obviously a melodramatic character.

v   In which way Shakespeare knitted the theme of Revenge:

Shakespeare, however lifts his play to the level of genuine tragedy, a higher work of art as compared with the melodramatic plays of the revenge playrights. In the first place, Shakespeare chose a theme dealing with a duty higher than the others, namely a son’s revenge for the murder of his father. But, more important than that is the psychological  refinement of shakespeatre’ s play in which conscience, instead of any physical impediment. shakespeare creates different way for this play. The obstacle is conscience coupled with a temperamental incapacity. Shakespeare’s play moves in a higher plane of significance through the reflections of the hero and his relationship with the outside world. Really, through the whole play we can see the use of Rhetorical speech, poetic lines, pitch etc. through the play  became very great.

Through, the above all the characteristic we can say that really “Hamlet” as such a revenge tragedy and world’s one of the best tragedy.