In the time that Hamlet was set,Denmark had a system of having the new king approved by the council(this goes way back into the viking times). Shakespeare is aware of this-which is why claudius is confirmed as king rather as Hamlet who should have been the direct successor.
For most of the european monarchies during the 17th century the system of the "divine rights of kings" was in place. This meant that the king under this system was answerable only to god, and even if the king abused his powers he still could not legally be removed from power because it would be the actions of mere mortals, and not the will of god. This means that the removal of the old Hamlet by murder was made worse as it was against Gods will, which allows shakespeare to add to the drama of the revenge tragedy.
The qualities of a rightful king are to ensure peace prosperity and security of the kingdoms boarders, however Kings who lacked these qualities were portrayed to bring misfortune to the people. At the beginning of Hamlet Claudius is portrayed as a good king, due to his controlled and regal speech. Also the "flourish" at the beginning of his entrance suggests his presence in the scene. Shakespeare later shows his decline as King.
Order of succession- in an elective monarchy kings are elected or appointed by somebody. In a hereditary monarchy the position of monarch is inherited by relatives, creating a bloodline.
During the 1500s all people in England practiced the Roman Catholic faith. Practices of the Roman Catholic religion were questions and prompted by a German man called Martin Luther to introduce a new religion known as Protestantism. By the 16th century there was a divide in religion heavily influenced by the king Henry the 8th, due to his desire to divorce his then wife.
• During the 16th century there was a reformation between Catholics and Protestants. • The Protestants broke away from the Pope • There were many differences between the Roman catholic faith and Protestantism: - Catholics wanted the bible and church services to be read in Latin, however Protestants believed it should be in the language of the people. - Catholics believed that Popes and Priests should devote their lives to god and not be married. Protestants believed that Popes and Priests should be able to live an ordinary life, and people should be able to find their own way to god. - Catholics believed in Purgatory and Protestants do not • Purgatory is in between heaven and hell • Catholics believed that immediately after death there is a process of purification to rid of your sins • Protestants believed that god should be able to forgive you for your sins. • Religion is an integral part in Hamlet • Hamlet’s soliloquies reveal that his mother and uncle commit incest, which is a sin. • Sinning is a strong part of the Christian religion enforced by the 10 commandments. E.g “you should not commit adultery” • The king is second to the pope and should lead by example: Hamlet believes his uncle (the new king) has killed his father and is now in a relationship with his mother, not a pure example of kingship. • Heaven is seen as an almighty place, where only the pure can go. however hell is not to far away as some believe that Satanists were among them, mainly in the form of women as women were weaker. “Frailty thy name is women!”
the death penalty was supported an the form of execution would depend on your class and ranking, for the upper class it was to be beheaded, for the most hated prisoners they were hung drawn and quartere. other forms of execution were hanging pressing, boiling in water or oil amd starvation. these were unnatural but it was believed that death was suitable form of punishment for these particular crimes: high treson blasphemy sedition spying rebellion murder witchcraft alchemy
suicide was against catholic belief and was seen as an offense against god and a form of murder if suicide was tried in court, people were severely punished and their body was denied of christian burial. there were no prayers and a minister didn't attend
during shakespearean times they were very superstitious about death and believed such things as walking under a ladder and putting shoes on the table would result in death
the gravediggers scene: this scene shows the funeral of ophelia in which two gravediggers argue whether she committed suicide or not, and if she is worthy or a christian burial. hamlet and her brother appear
Supernatural is defined as 'pertaining to or being above or beyond what is natural and unexplainable by natural law or phenomena'.
During the Renaissance, Supernatural was a major influence in literary works, particularly Shakespeare. his works embody and highlight the current beliefs of the era. Belief in the supernatural was not confined to the lower class or ignorant, wealthy and educated Elizabethans also entertained this idea.
The Elizabethan era was superstitious. Many modern superstitions were derived from old Elizabethan sayings, for example; not walking under ladders, avoiding black cats and touching wood to guard against bad luck.
The supernatural in the form of witches, fairies and ghosts take control out of mortal hands and then stands back to observe the results. Shakespeare constantly weaves the supernatural elements within all his works in both the use of characters and by allusions. the use of the supernatural can be seen through many of his plays Shakespeare's plays; Macbeth, Hamlet and A Midsummer's Night Dream. The supernatural elements manipulate characters and catalyze events.
A tragedy is a genre that evokes feelings of sorrow and grief, because of the heroic struggle and downfall of the main character. This causes tension and dramatises the situation which results in a fatal demise affecting all the characters. In the case of Hamlet it could be argued his demise is also partially due to his incessant vengefulness.
Good work all-Fatima, Faith and Noor-could have developed your research in a little more detail. Would have been nice if everyone had contributed. But ces't la vie!
6 comments:
Flora-
theme:Kingship
In the time that Hamlet was set,Denmark had a system of having the new king approved by the council(this goes way back into the viking times). Shakespeare is aware of this-which is why claudius is confirmed as king rather as Hamlet who should have been the direct successor.
For most of the european monarchies during the 17th century the system of the "divine rights of kings" was in place. This meant that the king under this system was answerable only to god, and even if the king abused his powers he still could not legally be removed from power because it would be the actions of mere mortals, and not the will of god. This means that the removal of the old Hamlet by murder was made worse as it was against Gods will, which allows shakespeare to add to the drama of the revenge tragedy.
The qualities of a rightful king are to ensure peace prosperity and security of the kingdoms boarders, however Kings who lacked these qualities were portrayed to bring misfortune to the people. At the beginning of Hamlet Claudius is portrayed as a good king, due to his controlled and regal speech. Also the "flourish" at the beginning of his entrance suggests his presence in the scene. Shakespeare later shows his decline as King.
Order of succession- in an elective monarchy kings are elected or appointed by somebody.
In a hereditary monarchy the position of monarch is inherited by relatives, creating a bloodline.
Religion in Hamlet:
During the 1500s all people in England practiced the Roman Catholic faith. Practices of the Roman Catholic religion were questions and prompted by a German man called Martin Luther to introduce a new religion known as Protestantism. By the 16th century there was a divide in religion heavily influenced by the king Henry the 8th, due to his desire to divorce his then wife.
• During the 16th century there was a reformation between Catholics and Protestants.
• The Protestants broke away from the Pope
• There were many differences between the Roman catholic faith and Protestantism:
- Catholics wanted the bible and church services to be read in Latin, however Protestants believed it should be in the language of the people.
- Catholics believed that Popes and Priests should devote their lives to god and not be married. Protestants believed that Popes and Priests should be able to live an ordinary life, and people should be able to find their own way to god.
- Catholics believed in Purgatory and Protestants do not
• Purgatory is in between heaven and hell
• Catholics believed that immediately after death there is a process of purification to rid of your sins
• Protestants believed that god should be able to forgive you for your sins.
• Religion is an integral part in Hamlet
• Hamlet’s soliloquies reveal that his mother and uncle commit incest, which is a sin.
• Sinning is a strong part of the Christian religion enforced by the 10 commandments. E.g “you should not commit adultery”
• The king is second to the pope and should lead by example: Hamlet believes his uncle (the new king) has killed his father and is now in a relationship with his mother, not a pure example of kingship.
• Heaven is seen as an almighty place, where only the pure can go. however hell is not to far away as some believe that Satanists were among them, mainly in the form of women as women were weaker. “Frailty thy name is women!”
Halimo and Anastasia
theme: death
the death penalty was supported an the form of execution would depend on your class and ranking, for the upper class it was to be beheaded, for the most hated prisoners they were hung drawn and quartere. other forms of execution were hanging pressing, boiling in water or oil amd starvation.
these were unnatural but it was believed that death was suitable form of punishment for these particular crimes:
high treson
blasphemy
sedition
spying
rebellion
murder
witchcraft
alchemy
suicide was against catholic belief and was seen as an offense against god and a form of murder
if suicide was tried in court, people were severely punished and their body was denied of christian burial. there were no prayers and a minister didn't attend
during shakespearean times they were very superstitious about death and believed such things as walking under a ladder and putting shoes on the table would result in death
the gravediggers scene:
this scene shows the funeral of ophelia in which two gravediggers argue whether she committed suicide or not, and if she is worthy or a christian burial. hamlet and her brother appear
Amana, Preena and Fatima.O say:
Supernatural is defined as 'pertaining to or being above or beyond what is natural and unexplainable by natural law or phenomena'.
During the Renaissance, Supernatural was a major influence in literary works, particularly Shakespeare. his works embody and highlight the current beliefs of the era. Belief in the supernatural was not confined to the lower class or ignorant, wealthy and educated Elizabethans also entertained this idea.
The Elizabethan era was superstitious. Many modern superstitions were derived from old Elizabethan sayings, for example; not walking under ladders, avoiding black cats and touching wood to guard against bad luck.
The supernatural in the form of witches, fairies and ghosts take control out of mortal hands and then stands back to observe the results. Shakespeare constantly weaves the supernatural elements within all his works in both the use of characters and by allusions. the use of the supernatural can be seen through many of his plays Shakespeare's plays; Macbeth, Hamlet and A Midsummer's Night Dream. The supernatural elements manipulate characters and catalyze events.
Fatima, Faith & Noor:
A tragedy is a genre that evokes feelings of sorrow and grief, because of the heroic struggle and downfall of the main character. This causes tension and dramatises the situation which results in a fatal demise affecting all the characters. In the case of Hamlet it could be argued his demise is also partially due to his incessant vengefulness.
Good work all-Fatima, Faith and Noor-could have developed your research in a little more detail. Would have been nice if everyone had contributed. But ces't la vie!
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