Hamlet by William Shakespeare

Hamlet by William Shakespeare

• Hamlet is a play written by William Shakespeare, first published between 1601 and 1603.
• The play is set in Denmark and follows the young prince Hamlet as he attends his father's funeral.

Main Characters

• Hamlet: The Prince of Denmark, nephew of King Claudius, and protagonist of the play.
• King Claudius: The King of Denmark, Hamlet's uncle, and the play's antagonist.
• Queen Gertrude: The Queen of Denmark, Hamlet's mother, and recently married to Claudius.
• Polonius: The Lord Chamberlain of Claudius's court, father of Laertes and Ophelia.
• Ophelia: Polonius's daughter, a beautiful young woman who was in love with Hamlet.
• Laertes: Polonius's son, Ophelia's brother, and a young man who spends much of the play in France.
• Horatio: Hamlet's close friend, who studied with the prince at the university in Wittenberg.

Major Thematic Topics

• Revenge: A central theme in the play, driven by Hamlet's desire to avenge his father's death.
• Madness: A theme explored through the characters of Hamlet and Ophelia, who both experience a descent into madness.
• Procrastination: Hamlet's inability to act decisively, often resulting in death and destruction.
• Women: The portrayal of women in the play, particularly through the characters of Gertrude and Ophelia.
• The Tragic Hero: Hamlet's character, who embodies the qualities of a tragic hero.

Notable Scenes and Quotes

• The "To be, or not to be" soliloquy, in which Hamlet considers suicide and the nature of life and death.
• Yorick's skull, a symbol of mortality and the transience of human life.

Movie Versions

• Hamlet (1948)
• Hamlet (1990)
• William Shakespeare's Hamlet (1996)
• Hamlet (2000)