Blog Post #15

Why Hamlet has said some forbidden words which are famous in today’s odd world. With the “to be or not be” soliloquy, Hamlet uses many negative connotations of his current situation. Most of these connotations arise from imagery that he proposes. Some examples of this imagery are such as “the slings and arrows of outrageous fortunes,” (3.1.58)  and “For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,” (3.1.70). These were two images that he painted within my ringing mind as he uttered forbidden words of death. Hamlet mainly appealed to the logos and pathos aspect. The logos aspect mainly stems from my friends logic that “no traveller returns , puzzles the will,” (3.1.80). Hamlet very sure is using mind when judging the intricacies of heaven. However, he appeals to the emotions through the aspect of pathos when he states outrightly “Whether’ tis nobler in the mind to suffer,” (3.1.56). He shows mankind that his situation is the most desperate of such. Why everyone hearing his statement will string a tear. My dear friend represents his paradox through the first line he says in the room “to be or not to be,” (3.1.55). This line shows that he himself contradicts within his mind. An idea of parallelism can be seen in his noble structure of english, in which he states “To die, to sleep, to die,” (3.1.64-65). The very words of “to” are stated without any impending doom. Why this also shows the concept of the infinitive within the english language. The tone and diction within my friends statements are simply casual for our times. Why Shakespeare presents us in the most commercial of manners. However, through the shadows of time, this diction can be seen as highly complex to many english scholars. The tone is simply treacherous as it shows Hamlet suffering from the very dark of times. An idea of synecdoche can be seen when Hamlet states “No traveler returns,” (3.1.80). By this, he means that no dead person has come back alive into this world; which is definitely cryptic when said as a statement. Hamlet makes his assumptions that life on earth takes a very predictable stance; meanwhile, the futures of the afterlife cannot be predicted. It cannot be simply said that this lad will make it to heaven, while other will make it to hell. Furthermore, my dear friend points out the truth that a humans restricted thinking brings in lawfulness which therefore can cause for justice to be not served in the case of death. My friend makes the awful decision of facing death, as he is intolerable to the lawfulness around him. The major opposition seen within my friends argument is the idea of contemplating death. He first accepts it with outright passion, however towards the end he rejects it for the purpose of revenge. Another opposition seen within the statement is idea of thought. Firstly, with the first half of the statement, Hamlet appeals mostly to the pathos aspect of the audience. However, towards the second half of the statement, Hamlet uses intuition in order to state his views to audience. The third opposition is seen within the Hamlet’s criticism of his consciousness. Upon entering the room, Hamlet listens to his conscious mind very obediently. However, towards the end of the speech, he simply ridicules his conscience by stating “thus conscience does make a cowards of us all,” (3.1.82). Hamlet simply concludes the his internal philosophy states that contemplating death is a risky ideal, which he thankfully thought over.

I have observed many actings of my friends statement, however there is one of such that captivated me the most. Laurence Olivier. Why god bless his soul. The statement was shown mainly through a close-up shot, in order provide intimacy with the audience. The shot provided clear emotions from Olivier, which in return allowed for audiences to observe the feelings more clearly. The editing was done in such a manner as in which the act transitioned continuously between the waves and Hamlet’s face. This allows for tense movement to build up within the fearful audience. The only sense of the diegetic sound was the spiraling waves of the water, with non-diegetic music occasionally flashing through the ears of the audience, this allowed for audiences to be unpredictable as to what the next act might be. Meanwhile, the setting was shown as cliff with an ocean underneath it. This creates a sense of a possible area for death to be contemplated. The costume is very light on Hamlet, in order to show a sense of loss within his life. It creates simply a sense of emptiness. However, Hamlet has a lot of makeup on himself in order to show that he is a lad in line for the royal throne. All in all, he is depicted as a royal character with a very dark life.

Meanwhile, the other two lads were not up to the mark. I rank Laurence Olivier’s depiction first; next, I believe Mel Gibsons depiction is next best; meanwhile, Branagh’s depiction was marked as third place in my sincere opinion. Gibson’s and Branagh’s depiction are simply very too dark or light based within the context. Only Laurence Olivier obtains the right equilibrium.