lit201 - lect 1 - week 7 - HAMLET

(get intro from pip)

God hath given you one face, and you make yourselves another - Hamlet says of overly made up Women. Condemning what he views as feminine deceitfulness but what he says applies equally to language that is used to decieve, act 3, sc 1, the playright has the king refer to thy most painted word. The painted word is a deed that seeks to cover up, as the harlets make up seeks to cover up her visage, that seeks to cover up the kings ugly deed. Hamlet says "this is most brave, that I, the son of a dear father murdered, prompted to my revenge by heaven and hell, must like a whore un-pack my heart with words" (sarcasm) what he means just as he speaks of his love of his dead father, so a prostitute speaks words of love to her client, so he is questioning if he is like her.

Hamlet's seemingly inability to do the act, the deed, is haunted by his own word. The word that he gives to the ghost. In the heat of the moment, stunned by the revelation of the ghost, he says "now to my word" giving the word that he will avenge his father's memory, it is precisely this word that he fails to act upon immediately. The imitation on the efficacy of language, what does it mean to give a word? The kings words are painted, hiding his motive. And so Hamlet's are seen to be like a prostitute, insincere, when she is whispering words of love. This meditation on the relationship between our thoughts and our words, our thoughts and our words and our deeds is ultimately metaphysical in its significance. Why do we fail in life to fulfil our promises?

What do our words mean?

We live in someway between the surface, apparent meaning of a word, and the reality of our deeds and this is true of all human life. We see the sort of paradox in the sacraments, in confession, the sacrament is repeated repeated repeated. Originally it was only done once, but over time it became repeated, and because of this it tells us that we will offend God again and yet we vow not to.

The difference between appearance and reality, the difference between our thoughts and our words, our words and our deeds, permeates this play and opens up the space where the tragedy takes place and unfolds. The space between hamlets vow is filled with bodies due to Hamlets inability to act.

The speech by kind Claudius - after polonius has been killed by Hamlet - Claudius urges Laertes to avenge his father's death - and he warns him that our nature can make lies of us - Laertes is urged to avenge polonius' death to kill hamlet just as hamlet must kill Claudius.

Shakespeare is telling us that a deed is something more than words, that it exceeds language. And yet while the affect of Claudius' statement is to suggest the opposition between mere words and actual action, it is rather the repeated seperation from words and intentions, such that words do something other than reflect the truth of our souls. Words and deeds should correspond, just as words and thoughts should correspond. Claudius perfectly summarises this dimension of the drama, ruthlessly noting the disparation between the disposition of his soul and his words. Racked with guilt, he has recoursed a prayer. ACT 3

He kneels down before a crucifix, he ponders the choice presented to him, to acknowledge his sin before God and man, to confess it and accept the consequences of it. He sees this as an option. But he draws away from it. And he says, with poignancy, "my words fly up, my thoughts remain below. Words without thoughts, never to heaven, go." Again it's the discrepancy between thoughts and words. And thus he knows that his prayer has no efficacy, his words are empty.

Ophelia, is pretending to pray when Hamlet discovers her. Thereby using the appearance of prayer, to deceive. It seems innocent, but raises profound questions. A similar discrepancy exists between Hamlets word to avenge his Father, and his thought. After Hamlet kills polonius, he concurs that his deed is indeed bloody, "a bloody deed". "Almost as bad good mother, as kill a king, and marry his brother" - "As kill a king?" Gertrude asks him - "Aye lady, it was my word." He has vowed to kill Claudius and has consistently failed to carry it out - it was my word - but is it still his word?

What are your reading Lord Hamlet? Asks polonius

Hamlet responds "words, words, words" Echoes Claudius "tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow"

Hamlets response is sarcastic, he plays with language, polonius asks him the title, and he responds "words words words" And then Polonius asks him what is the matter? And Hamlet responds "nothing is the matter"

Thus words can be untrustworthy. Like the untrustworthy oath of Hamlet's mother to her first husband. His inability to trust his mother expands to a distrust of women, to words and finally to life itself. Discussion of words often leads to, in the play, a discussion of truth and falsehood.

Ophelia suggests that his words made more rich his gifts - Hamlet tells her that she should not have believed him. "I do know, when the blood burns how prodigal the soul lends the tongue vows. These blazes daughter, giving more light than heat...you must not take for fire (it's not the fire of eternal love)" Polonius is telling his daughter - if hamlet tells you he loves you, he can't live without you, he desires you, he must have you know - if he does this, don't believe him. In other words, the passion makes the man say things that are untrue.

Hamlet's failure to keep his word to Ophelia parallels his failure to keep his word to his father. Just as a youthful passionate man will say things to consummate his passion. And just as that is true, so when Hamlet is in the heat of anger, his soul lends his tongue a vow.

Polonius says "Give thy thoughts no tongue nor act upon any thought that is ill considered" Don't say something that you don't truly mean, don't act on the heat of the moment.

Hamlet will tear his mother apart, but his soul will never agree to that. There is a discrepancy between words and thoughts, between truth and reality. His tongue and soul are hypocrites in their relation to one another, and this doubles back on his inability to carry out his vow for his father and his words of love for Ophelia.

"soft now, to my mother" we can't trust him. This makes us mistrust him. Because earlier, he said to the ghost, "now to my word". We see that he doesn't act in the past, and now it makes us distrust him - he will probably not act now.

Gertrude's deed makes marriage vows empty. Gertrude's actions make her a liar and reduce her faith to a rhapsody of words, just as they are for her husband, who's words fly up but thoughts lie below. So we see that the troubling discrepancy between thoughts and words and words and deeds has metaphysical implications. If we cannot trust others to keep their vows, and if we cannot trust ourselves, what is there undergerding the universe holding it together? We can trust the benevolence of God. This is a profound question that informs Hamlet's near despair.

Tragedy is the change of fortune of a noble figure. - Aristotle

Shakespearean tragedy also involves the change in fortune of a great figure - but Shakespearean tragedies are a tragedy of character rather than fate - so the tragedy in a tragedy in character seem to flow from the individual choices of the protagonist.