You will choose one of the following questions and respond to it. You will also comment on one of your classmate's posts. You may also say bad things about Mr. Owens while you do it, or you can save all of your complaints and insults for lunchtime when they may reach their full potency in the slew of teacher bashing. (Two posts total).
P.S.-Thank you guys for working diligently on this discussion forum.
Why does this scene begin with two clowns trading jokes? Do their jokes make any sense in the context of the play?
Does Hamlet realize that he might not come out of this fight alive? See V.ii.225-238.
What is the outcome of the fight scene at the end? What thematic conclusions can you draw based on this conclusion?
When Gertrude drinks from the cup, Claudius asks her not to drink and she refuses. Has she ever disobeyed Claudius before?
Who is alive at the end of the play, and how do the others meet their ends? Is there a sense of redemption or restored order to the kingdom and the characters by the end of the play?
Why is Fortinbras's presence important?
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Who is alive at the end of the play, and how do the others meet their ends? Is there a sense of redemption or restored order to the kingdom and the characters by the end of the play?
ReplyDeleteHoratio and Fortinbras are alive at the end of the play. Hamlet dies from the poisoned sword when Laertes cuts him with it when Hamlet is unguarded, they scuffle and through it they trade swords then Hamlet stabs Laertes with the sword. The queen dies when she drinks the Poisoned wine cup that was meant for Hamlet. Laertes feels guilty and tells Hamlet what has happened so then Hamlet proceeds to then to stab Claudius with the poisoned sword and force him to drink the poisoned wine that has killed the queen.
I believe there is a sense of redemption and restored order to the kingdom and the characters by the end of the play. The queen realizes she has been poisoned and sees Claudius is evil, she entail sees things as they truly are before she dies. Hamlet finally kills Claudius which is what he tried to achieve the entire play. Laertes asks Hamlet for forgiveness and vindicates what he has done by telling Hamlet the truth. Horatio then explains what has occurred to Fortinbras and Hamlet has his name cleared along with a soldier's burial. Fortinbras is then appointed to now be the king of Denmark.
What is the outcome of the fight scene at the end? What thematic conclusions can you draw based on this conclusion?
ReplyDeleteAfter the duel is planned, Claudius plans to poison the sword and add poison to the cup of wine. Laertes was the only other person who knew about Claudius's plans. It can be incured from the way that the duel was planned that Hamlet would not survive the duel. After Hamlet had hit Laertes a few times, Queen Gertrude drinks from the goblet of wine for Hamlet. Although the king tries to stop the Queen but to no avail. He doesn't try to force her because he doesn't want any body else to know about the plan. In the mean time, Laertes hits Hamlet with the poisonous sword and Hamlet hits him back. Seeing that Laertes will die, and also that Queen is in her last stages of life, Laertes tells Hamlet everything (from how Claudius planned the death of Hamlet and how Queen is dying). After Hamlet knows the whole background, he hits Claudius with the poisonous sword and forces wine down his throat. This eventually kills Claudius. Seeing that Hamlet is also going to die as the poison is spreading in his body Horatio decides to drink the wine. But Hamlet stops him saying that he will deliever Hamlet's story to others.
The main conclusion that we are led to after reading this whole play is that the limited a man desires the more happy he can live. Lust, power, throne and love are all limited and in no way means of attaining the perfect life or a comfortable life, infact it creates even more problems because once attained, we as humanbeings try to maintian our position and fight for what we have. We also learn although I would not agree with this but we learn not to trust everyone even if they are in a close relationship with you. The example of Horatio did somehow shatter this idea but since there are so many betrayls and revenges that the reader get this clue of not trusting anyone.
Response to Christie:
ReplyDeleteYes, you are right and I agree with you for what you said.
Horatio, Forintbras and some other people in the play survive in the end. The others i.e. Hamlet, Laertes, Claudius and Gertrude all dies. Hamlet is killed by the poisonous sword attack by Laertes. Hamlet then kills Laertes with the same sword and kills Claudius by hitting him and pouring the poisonous wine into his mouth. The Queen unknowingly drinks the wine too.
There is a sense of redemption at the end of the play. The queen realizes that she has done a grave mistake by trusting Claudius. At some point I also think that Claudius realizes that he should not have killed King Hamlet just for the crown and throne because after he has lost Gerturde, there is nothing left as everyone will be turning against him. And throughtout the play at different levels Claudius does seek redemption e.g. when he is praying but he still plots against Hamlet so that he (Claudius) die an honorable death.
Hamlet, after seeing his mother die would feel redemption in a way because he was the cause of the deaths of Opehlia and Gertrude.
So yes, there is a sense of redemtion.
When Gertrude drinks from the cup, Claudius asks her not to drink and she refuses. Has she ever disobeyed Claudius before?
ReplyDeleteNo, Gertrude as never disobeyed Claudius before. But why did she know? Did she know that the cup was poison? Did she want to save Hamlet’s life? Or was she just drinking to drink? Well I think she was just having a good time and was happy that her son was winning. She had no idea that the cup was poison because if she knew then she might have just poured out the wine.
i agree with christie. now that they are through all this drama maybe the few peaple left behind can just get along.
ReplyDeleteIn response to Leslie...
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, she has never disobeyed Claudius before. I am not sure why she chose this time to disobey, but this time she should've listened. I do not believe that she knew that the cup was poisoned, I think she was just in the moment and made a toast for her son. She was proud that he was winning and had no idea that it was going to lead to her own death. The reason I believe she had no idea and wasn't drinking it for Hamlet is because, just as Leslie said she could've just poured it out, and after she realized it was poisoned she tells Hamlet about what happened. It was just an unfortunate mistake.
does hamlet realize he may not get out of the fight alive?
ReplyDeletei beleive at first he was pretty confident about this fight. He definentely didn't know about the poison sword because after being stabbed with it he asked what he had done and Laertes confesses about the poison sword
When Gertrude drinks from the cup, Claudius asks her not to drink and she refuses. Has she ever disobeyed Claudius before?
ReplyDeleteGerturde has never disobeyed Claudius before, but I think with everything going on in the play at this point. I think she is trying to make sense of it all and not know what to do. It might not have been a concious rebelion, but some part of her wanted her own chance to walk on the edge like the rest of the men in the play, and this was her way of doing just that.
in response to rachel...
ReplyDeleteI agree that at first he was confident about the fight, and that he did not know about the posion sword, but I do after Laertes gets very intense about the fight that he starts to worry.
Why is Fortinbras's presence important?
ReplyDeleteFortinabras is a parallel character to Hamlet so it provides a pivotal point where one can compare and contrast hamlet’s actions to his. Fortinbas revenge tactics are completely different; he is so action forward and a vigorous leader with clear goals and ambitions while Hamlet seems more eager to return to his studies at Wittenberg than regain honor for his father. Hamlet perceives the actions of Fortinbras as better than his own so his actions encourage Hamlet to act without hesitating (Witness this army of such mass and charge, Led by a delicate and tender prince). Hamlet sees his decisive actions and comes to believe that the situation with Claudius must be terminated immediately. I believe that without the Fortinbras Hamlet would have mulled over his decision and taken no action at all. Fortinbras influenced Hamlet in his decision that Claudius must be taken care of immediately no matter what the cost.
This is Maria by the way
in response to Maria...
ReplyDeleteI agree Fortinbras dose what Hamlet can't. Hamlet is all talk and no action. unlike Fortinbras who did take action for what he wanted.
Why is Fortinbras's presence important?
ReplyDeleteThe presence of Fortinbras is very ironic. Fortinbras, whose name literally means "strong arm", has been seeking revenge because Hamlet's father had defeated his father and taken over some of Norway's land. Therefore, Fortinbras is seeking revenge for his father just as Hamlet is seeking revenge for his own father's death. However, Fortinbras was a man of action and did not delay in getting revenge. Hamlet had continually thought about revenge, but had taken no action. In the end, the "strong arm" of action defeats the more thoughtful but less effective person of thought. Existentialism maybe…
In respose to Kimberly..
ReplyDeleteAt this time period I do not see a reason as to why Gertrude would consciously rebel against her husband and king. During this time frame, women were to follow there “man’s” advice and not do anything against their word. I will not let myself believe that Gertrude chose to rebel. She not only chose to rebel but she also chose to rebel at the perfect time and place. This just seems too unreal and too “perfect”. I think this question can be interpreted in 2 possible ways. However, I think Gertrude, during the fight, realized what was going on and drank the poisoned cup to save Hamlet from drinking it therefore saving his life.
When Gertrude drinks from the cup, Claudius asks her not to drink and she refuses. Has she ever disobeyed Claudius before?
ReplyDeleteThey play never mentioned a time when Gertrude disobeyed Claudius. I also think she acted without thinking, not meaning to go against Claudius word. So much was happening at once. What if Gertrude did some how know the cup was poisoned and decided to commit suicide because of all the events taking place around her. I think Gertrude displayed the modern wife by disobeying Claudius, not being afraid to go against her husband word if it was intentional.
Does Hamlet realize that he might not come out of this fight alive? See V.ii.225-238.
ReplyDeleteHamlet was very confident at first when the fight has started, he as ready to fight and win, but when he got stabbed then everything came down, he knew he was going to die since he then knew the swore was poisoned. :(
edgar its jianely ok i did not know i was signed on my brothers account!!!! ....sorry ! :D
ReplyDeleteI agree with Christi that everyone got what they wanted and were trying to get even for. Except for them having to die in order to carry out their revenge. In they end, they wanted wanted and died for what the set out to do.
ReplyDeleteWhen Gertrude drinks from the cup, Claudius asks her not to drink and she refuses. Has she ever disobeyed Claudius before?
ReplyDeletegertrude has never disobeyed claudius and i don't think she knew that the cup on wine was poisoned, because she was very happy and if she did knew that the cup was poisoned she would have not drank form it she would probably just pour it out, she did not want to die or neither she wanted hamlet to die. claudius is stupid ....
In the end, they got what they wanted and died for what they set out to do.*
ReplyDelete(this is maria)
ReplyDeleteIn response to Kimberley:
I think you are right about Gertrude she was very naïve and shallow she just longed to be liked. But I don’t think she ever meant any harm. Only her poor judgment contributed to terrible events. She tries to ignore the truth therefore she lies to everybody including herself. She does it to protect others and keep them safe. She never truly understood Hamlet but she still loved him and remained faithful to him.
What is the outcome of the fight scene at the end? What thematic conclusions can you draw based on this conclusion?
ReplyDeleteThe outcome of the fight scene at the end of the play resulted in a lot of deaths. Hamlet's dual with Laertes was planned to result in the death of Hamlet. In the end the fight resulted in the death of Hamlet, Laertes, Gertrude, and Claudius. Gertrude died as a result of drinking the poison ment for Hamlet. Hamlet and Laertes died at the end of a poison sword. Once Hamlet found out what was going on he killed Claudius. All these deaths were the result of the fight and allowed Fortinbras to step up and take command of Denmark. There are two ways to see the fight which is resulting in the deaths and or resulting in new leadership. From this you may conclude that the theme of the play is that of revenge, mystery and the unsuspected. Knowing of the plot to kill Hamlet no one would have thought that the play would have resulted in the way it did.
i disagree with Chelsea,
ReplyDeleteI believe that Gertrude drank from the cup knowing it was poisoned. With all the events that took place it must have been hard on her. This is evident when Hamlet out lashes at her right before mistakenly killing polonius. Gertrude's reaction to Hamlets accusations infer that she was actually surprised. She seemed saddened by her sons actions. and i believe she is so bothered by this that she went and killed herself in front of her son as a apology. Gertrude wanted to take her life as a sacrifice for her "sins". Gertrude's personality makes me think she did this as a way to forgive herself for doing her son wrong.
When Gertrude drinks from the cup, Claudius asks her not to drink and she refuses. Has she ever disobeyed Claudius before.
ReplyDeleteThis is the first time Gertrude has disobeyed Claudous in the play. Gertrude feels remorse for her son and knowingly drinks the poisoned wine. It was custom for the the wife to obey and honor their husband of which was a result of religion.