2004: Critic Roland Barthes has said, “Literature is the question minus the answer.” Choose
a novel, or play, and, considering Barthes’ observation, write an essay in which you analyze
a central question the work raises and the extent to which it offers answers. Explain how the
author’s treatment of this question affects your understanding of the work as a whole. Avoid
mere plot summary.
Hamlet is arguably one of William Shakespeare's most iconic plays. Despite being in his 30s, the title character Hamlet has as much angst in his life as most teenagers, more so than some. Now this angst is not unwarranted; tasked with avenging his father's murder, Hamlet must decide on a course of action, one that would change his life and the lives of those around him. Hamlet's struggle to choose his path is inherently tied to a lack of identity and leaves the audience questioning, when will Hamlet decide who he is?
Throughout the play it is shown that Hamlet is expected to be a replica of his deceased father, Old Hamlet. He doesn't even have his own name! In Hamlet's introductory scene, he asks his uncle (and king) Claudius if he may return to Wittenberg and his schooling rather than stay in Denmark. Immediately his request is shot down; his uncle believes it best for him to stay home and in Elsinor, he's needed there. Hamlet attempted to forge his own path in life but was turned back by a denied request. His refusal to fight for returning to Wittenberg brings in to question how much he wanted it and how easily he can be pushed around. Here, it is shown that despite Hamlet trying to be his own person he is forced back into his predetermined role as a prince.
Along with the pressure to follow directly in his father's footsteps, Hamlet is tasked with avenging his father's murder. Commanded by the supposed ghost of his father, Hamlet is ordered to kill his Uncle. This is a task that Hamlet really struggles with: morally he doesn't think the murder would be right but who but he feels the weight of his father's command. So the question is, will Hamlet be his father's son and kill his uncle or will he stick to his values and leave everything to providence. As this struggle is established early on in the play it lasts almost the entire play with Hamlet making a few futile attempts at taking Claudius' life. Hamlet's inability to choose a path caused his struggle to to last through almost the entire play.
The struggle to establish an identity is not a new conflict in literature, even in the time when Hamlet was written. It's a universal theme that is identifiable even within the audience themselves. As the audience can relate to Hamlet's inner struggle a new perspective is gleaned throughout the play. Readers can see the weight of his struggles more, can see the development of his character from not having an identity to when he decides who he is. When his struggle is understood, Hamlet looses some of his perceived arrogance and becomes more human. His story is more understandable and his struggle becomes real; suddenly a story of kings and betrayal is much more universal.
It is clear that a major part of Hamlet's identity crisis stems from having to choose between being his own person and being his father. Not until Hamlet's epiphany at the sight of Yorick's skull does he decide who he is. With the realization of who was really his father, the jester who raised him vs. his never-there biological father, Hamlet's decision on avenging his father is made. By realizing that Yorick was really his father for all intents and purposes, Hamlet no longer feels the need to avenge Old Hamlet's death. His decision made, things fall into place quickly. Hamlet and Laertes fight and both men, along with Claudius and Hamlet's mother, Gertrude, die.
"Literature is the question minus the answer". Hamlet poses a great question that is universally applicable, but despite an answer seemingly provided, remains unanswered. Hamlet's turning point is the decision of who his father really is was only the first step in deciding who he was. Events followed so quickly (including Hamlet's death) that he never really got to develop who he was and explore what this new realization meant for him. It can never be known for certain who Hamlet would have become had he lived longer; all that can be said is that he was on his way to deciding who he was.
Caitlin, Although I thought your intro was enticing it's usually best (as we've learned from Holmes in the past couple of weeks) to be straightforward and to the point. Make sure you address each part of the question in your thesis! Also make sure to really flesh out your warrants with explanation. Overall though, I thought you had a really strong essay. It was certainly a lot better than mine ( I went for the same idea as you.) I especially was interested by your 4th and 5th paragraphs. You did a really great job here applying how the central question added to the work as a whole, and to what extent. I really struggled with articulating how it applied to the whole work, and think I missed the "what extent" part of the question. Keep up the good work!!
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ReplyDeleteHi Caitlin,
ReplyDeleteRosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead is my favorite play too. My class didn’t really think that Stoppard was mocking Hamlet and we really didn’t spend much time discussing that either, so I hadn’t given much through to the idea. It’s kind of funny that your class thought Stoppard was telling you that there was no greater meaning while my class was fighting over every possible meaning we could come up with. We did have a little conversion on the last day though we decided that Stoppard was telling us there is not always an answer to a question or in other words deeper meaning. I don’t think this means there is no meaning to the play and it is Theater of the Absurd. I also hated writing the introductions to the open prompts even though I knew I gravely needed the practice hopefully it will pay off. You do a good job of covering most of the material we covered in class, but what did you think about the lecture we read and I think you should try to make connections between what we’re doing in class and other things (how often I myself am not sure).
Susheela,
DeleteI think you deleted the wrong comment. This is the same one that you have for Caitlin's Response to Course Material blog post. Ha-ha, just thought I'd let you know.
Caitlin,
ReplyDeleteI agree with Alex in that your introduction paragraph is a little too fluffy for my liking. Also, I feel like maybe you didn’t quite understand the open prompt question after reading your thesis. When Barthes says, “Literature is the question minus the answer,” I believe he’s alluding to a worldly question that a work raises, yet refuses to answer. You say Shakespeare is asking the audience “when will Hamlet decide who he is,” no? Maybe instead you could say that Shakespeare is posing the question of how does one establish their identity, or through what trials must one go in order to discover who they truly are? I don’t know if this will help, but the way I thought about this prompt was to find a work of literature in which the theme is actually questioning society or morals, yet never gives a definitive answer as to what the correct path is.
Quickly, I did want to say that your body paragraphs seem to stray away from your thesis a lot. Reading them, it sounds like you’re just doing a rundown of three important ideas in Hamlet, but the problem is that they are never really connected back to your theme. Definitely take another look at this post.