Once again, we have covered a
lot of material this past month. The
biggest thing we have done is finish Hamlet. Since the last post, we have watched one more
version of Hamlet (not counting the
Fodor version, which I didn’t get to watch L). This version was set in a more modern
time. The most interesting aspect of
this version was probably the occasional scenes taken from a security camera in
various places around the castle. It
really made it seem like everyone was always being watched and everything was
under surveillance. It definitely raised
the question of who would be watching
all the characters. Another difference
was that at the end, Fortinbras didn’t come to Elsinore. These differences definitely provided an
interesting perspective on the play.
I also gained some new
perspectives on Hamlet when we read the article “Shakespeare in the Bush” and
listened to the segment about Shakespeare in Prison. It was interesting to see the story of Hamlet
through the eyes of people with different cultural traditions and beliefs, but
I didn’t really learn anything new from the article. Shakespeare in Prison was also interesting
because I hadn’t really thought about how the theme of “Denmark is a Prison”
would be affected if all the people putting on the play were actually all in
prison.
It seems that the majority of
what we have done with Hamlet has
been about perspectives. For the final,
we presented two different interpretations of an ambiguous scene. This was a very fun and interesting final,
which I enjoyed much more than if we would have had to take the terms test. I especially remember the group that did the
scene with Claudius praying. The thought
of Claudius saying his prayer for Hamlet to hear never even crossed my mind. Despite all of the different interpretations
we have explored, I don’t feel like I quite understand Hamlet completely. For example,
I’m not entirely sure on themes, motifs and the “overall meaning” stuff. I think I will have to learn more about these
before the AP exam.
So now that Hamlet is over, we have started Rosencrantz
and Guildenstern are Dead and I love it!
It is so entertaining and full of hidden meanings. Also, it is so much easier to understand than
Hamlet, yet has the same characters. I
am excited to continue reading this play and interpret it.
Hi Natalie,
ReplyDeleteI too enjoyed learning about the different perspectives on Hamlet in "Shakespeare in the Bush" and "Shakespeare in Prison". I thought they would both be overwhelming texts but I enjoyed them both! I found "Shakespeare in Prison" to be especially compelling as I listened to how genuine it was for all of the real prisoners; they clearly have emotions that I don't think typical actors would be able to bring out from themselves.
I am thoroughly appreciative of the alternative final Ms. Holmes offered us. Being in 6th hour, I finally had a chance to relax and also have fun with it after all my other finals were done. But, nevertheless, like you I still don't think I completely understand the text. It's so much clearer after all of the discussion and practice we've done.. but I'm still waiting for the final 'click' or epiphany moment when everything falls into place.
Rosencratz and Guildenstern are Dead is definitely enjoyable. Though the words are easier to understand I can't say the same about the meaning; there are so many circles and there is so much depth to the book and I often find myself overwhelmed. I love understanding new aspects of it and I'm so thankful we discussed it as a class... otherwise, I would have missed out on so much.