w. shakespeare hamlet 1601

W. SHAKESPEARE
HAMLET 1601
The plot
First Act
Hamlet's father, the King of Denmark, has been dead only two months, but his mother, Queen
Gertrude, has married her brother-in-law, Claudius, who has now become king.
A Ghost, that looks like the late king of Denmark, has appeared to the sentries at the castle of
Elsinore, which is armed in case of attack from Fortimbras, prince of Norway.
The young Prince of Norway, whose father the king (also named Fortinbras) was killed by Hamlet’s
father (also named Hamlet). Now Fortinbras wishes to attack Denmark to avenge his father’s honor.
Hamlet and his friend Horatio arrange to meet at night to see whether the ghost will appear, which
he does. He tells Hamlet he has been murdered by Claudius who poured poison in his ear while he
was sleeping in his orchard. He asks Hamlet to avenge him, but to leave his mother's punishment to
heaven.
Second Act
Hamlet pretends that he is mad so that he can carry out his plans more easily. Polonius, the King's
counsellor, thinks Hamlet's madness is caused by his love for his daughter Ophelia.
Two old friends of Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, arrive.He greets them warmly but also
lets them know that he suspects they were summoned by Claudius to spy on him, which they admit.
Hamlet arranges for a troupe of actors, who have come to provide entertainment for the court, to
perform The Murther of Gonzago,
a play whose story is similar to the one revealed by the ghost.
Third Act
The third act begins with the king and queen consulting their advisers and spies about Hamlet's
condition. They set out Ophelia as bait to test Hamlet, but when he enters, he does not see her at
first. At this time Hamlet speaks his famous third soliloquy, "To be or not to be . . .," in which he
explores his thoughts about suicide.
Hamlet concludes that only cowardice keeps him from killing himself. When he notices Ophelia, he
is at first courteous to her, but he becomes rude and insulting as he begins to suspect that she is
being used as a trap set by King Claudius and her father. As he speaks more and more wildly, she
becomes convinced that he has lost his mind.
The play is presented: the King rises and rushes away. While going to his mother's bedroom Hamlet
sees the King at prayer, but doesn't kill him, so that he will not be saved because in a state of grace.
During an argument with his mother, Hamlet kills Polonius who is hiding behind a curtain listening
to their conversation.
The King decides to send Hamlet to England to get rid of him.
Fourth Act
Hamlet is sent to England to be killed.
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern who escort him, are carrying secret orders to the English king to
execute Hamlet on his arrival (They are apparently unaware of what is in the letter, though
Shakespeare never explicitly says so.)
Ophelia goes mad and drowns herself. Her brother Laertes wants revenge and the King, after
receiving the news that Hamlet is returning to Elsinore (*), plots his death in a duel with Laertes: he
organizes a sporting duel but Laertes’s weapon will be dipped in poison.
.
[(*) after discovering the plot against him, Hamlet finds and rewrites the letter, instructing the
executioner to kill Rosencrantz and Guildenstern instead]
Fifth Act
The duel follows. Hamlet is urged to drink a poisoned drink but does not.
The queen drinks the wine, Laertes wounds Hamlet with the poisoned tip of his sword, then the
swords are exchanged and Hamlet wounds Laertes.
The queen dies, Laertes falls and denounces the King who is stabbed by Hamlet. Both the King and
Laertes die. Hamlet asks Horatio to tell his story, recommending that Fortinbras be elected King
and then he dies.
Fortinbras arrives to restore order: he takes possession of the kingdom after having given military
honours to Hamlet.
ACT II SCENE II
HAMLET
Ay, so, God be wi' ye; Sì, dunque, andate, andate, addio.
Exeunt ROSENCRANTZ and GUILDENSTERN (Escono Rosencrantz e Guildenstern)
Now I am alone. Ora son solo.
O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I!
Oh, che canaglia e vile servo son io!
Is it not monstrous that this player here,
Non è mostruoso che un attore,
But in a fiction, in a dream of passion,
soltanto per finzione, in una passione immaginaria,
Could force his soul so to his own conceit
possa piegare l'anima a un concetto,
That from her working all his visage wann'd,
così che, per effetto di quel sogno, il volto gli si copra di pallore;
Tears in his eyes, distraction in's aspect,
occhi in lacrime, aspetto stralunato,
A broken voice, and his whole function suiting
voce rotta, e tutto il suo contegno rispondente
With forms to his conceit? and all for nothing!
nei modi al suo concetto? E tutto ciò per nulla!
For Hecuba! Per Ecuba!
What's Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba,
Che cosa è Ecuba per lui, o lui per Ecuba?
That he should weep for her? What would he do,
perch'egli possa piangere così? E che farebbe allora, questo attore,
Had he the motive and the cue for passion
se avesse il motivo e l'incentivo di straziarsi l'anima
That I have? He would drown the stage with tears
che ho io? Inonderebbe la scena di lacrime,
And cleave the general ear with horrid speech,
e spaccherebbe le orecchie del pubblico con roboanti orribili parole,
Make mad the guilty and appal the free,
farebbe impazzire di chi si sentisse in colpa e impallidire gl'innocenti,
Confound the ignorant, and amaze indeed
confonderebbe gli ignoranti e farebbe sbigottire davvero
The very faculties of eyes and ears. Yet I,
vista e udito del pubblico. Pur io,
A dull and muddy-mettled rascal, peak,
balordo impastato di fango, mi consumo così,
Like John-a-dreams, unpregnant of my cause,
come un che viva nel mondo della luna, nella sterilità della mia causa,
And can say nothing; no, not for a king,
senza dir nulla a difesa di un re
Upon whose property and most dear life
cui furono tolti la vita e gli averi
A damn'd defeat was made. Am I a coward?
dalla mano di un bieco assassino. Son dunque un tale codardo?
Who calls me villain? breaks my pate across?
E non c'è un cane che mi chiami vile? mi spacca la testa?
Plucks off my beard, and blows it in my face?
che mi strappi la barba, e me la butti in faccia?
Tweaks me by the nose? gives me the lie i' the throat,
che mi tiri per il naso? e mi ricacci in gola la menzogna
As deep as to the lungs? who does me this?
giù giù fino ai polmoni... no? Nessuno chi mi faccia questo?
Ha! 'Swounds (contracted for God's wounds), I should take it: for it cannot be
Ah, per le piaghe di Cristo, ch'io mi prenderei tutto da tutti, Perché così è:
But I am pigeon-liver'd and lack gall
che ho il fegato d'una colomba, senza il fiele
To make oppression bitter, or ere this
che rende amaro il torto: se no,
I should have fatted all the region kites
di quanto avrei dovuto già ingozzar gli avvoltoi della regione
With this slave's offal: bloody, bawdy villain!
con la carogna di questo mascalzone, sanguinario ed immondo delinquente,
Remorseless, treacherous, lecherous, kindless villain!
crudele, traditore, lussurioso, ignobile, villano!
O, vengeance! O mia vendetta!
Why, what an ass am I! This is most brave,
Ebbene, che asino son io! Bella prodezza,
That I, the son of a dear father murder'd,
che io, figlio d'un caro padre assassinato,
Prompted to my revenge by heaven and hell,
spinto a vendicarmi dal cielo e dall'inferno,
Must, like a whore, unpack my heart with words,
debba, come una puttana, scaricarmi l'anima con le parole
And fall a-cursing, like a very drab,
e darmi a bestemmiare, come una vera baldracca,
A scullion! Uno sguattero
Fie upon't! foh! About, my brain! I have heard
Vergogna! poh! Al lavoro, mio cervello! Io ho udito
That guilty creatures sitting at a play
che persone colpevoli, assistendo a un dramma,
Have by the very cunning of the scene
sono state, per lo stesso artificio della scena,
Been struck so to the soul that presently
colpite così fino all'anima che subito
They have proclaim'd their malefactions;
han proclamato le loro malefatte;
For murder, though it have no tongue, will speak
perché l'assassinio, benché non abbia lingua, parla
With most miraculous organ. I'll have these players
con organo assai miracoloso. Io farò recitare a questi attori
Play something like the murder of my father
qualcosa di simile all'assassinio di mio padre
Before mine uncle: I'll observe his looks;
innanzi a mio zio; osserverò il suo aspetto;
I'll tent him to the quick: if he but blench,
lo saggerò sul vivo; se ha solo un fremito,
I know my course. The spirit that I have seen
io so quel che debbo fare. Lo spirito ch'io ho veduto
May be the devil: and the devil hath power
potrebbe essere un diavolo, e il diavolo ha potere
To assume a pleasing shape; yea, and perhaps
d'assumere una piacevole forma, sì, e forse
Out of my weakness and my melancholy,
per la mia debolezza e per la mia malinconia,
As he is very potent with such spirits,
com'egli è potentissimo su tali spiriti,
Abuses me to damn me: I'll have grounds
m'inganna per dannarmi. Avrò motivi
More relative than this: the play 's the thing
più rilevanti di questo. Il dramma è la cosa
Wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king.
in cui io catturerò la coscienza del re.
Exit
3 As you read the soliloquy, do the following activities.
1. Underline the questions Hamlet asks himself. Then rephrase them in your own words.
Lines 4-10: Hamlet wonders at the actor's skill at expressing sorrow;
lines 12-13: He wonders how the actor could convey such a sorrow for someone he does not even
know;
lines 13-15: He wonders what the actor would do if he had his same reasons for mourning;
line 25: He asks himself whether he is a coward;
line 26: He wonders who regards him as a villain when he feels he has no courage to act;
lines 26-29: He wonders where his sense of guilt and suffering comes from, who teases him.
2. Describe what strikes Hamlet about the player.
His skill at making appearance real.
3. What is his opinion of Claudius? He regards him as a villain (lines 35-36) full of lust and
showing no remorse for his crime.
4. Has he carried out his revenge yet? No, he has not. What are his plans? He decides to stage
the murder of his father by his uncle, and to observe the latter's reactions to the play, before
unmasking him and avenging his father (lines 50-54).
5. What is his attitude to the ghost? He is still suspicious, he fears the ghost might be the devil
(line 55).
4. Focus on Hamlet's character.
Find the words and phrases he uses to refer to himself.
A rogue and peasant slave (line 3); A dull and muddy'-mettled rascal, peak (line21), Like John-adreams, unpregnant of my cause (line 22); I can say nothing (line 23), coward (line 25), villain (line
26); pigeon-liver'd and lack gall (line 23); an ass (line 38); a whore (line 42); a very drab, a scullion
(line 44).
What picture of the man do they convey? They show Hamlet agonising over his inactivity with a
very low opinion of himself (he uses only derogative terms). If the heroes of the great classical
tragedies are all confronted by choices, it is because they are all obliged to resolve them in one
manner or another: once the decision is taken, everything else follows, accompanied by acts of
majestic nobility or, at the other extreme, of abject decay and ruin. For Hamlet nothing is simple,
everything raises questions. His dilemma is not about what decisions he should take but rather
whether he will be able to make any decisions at all.
5. Define what the function of Hamlet's soliloquy is. Tick as appropriate.
 To express his thoughts about a specific problem.
 To speak to himself of his feelings.
 To make up his plans.
To gain the audience's confidence in an act of communion.
6. Discuss.
Do you find Hamlet's idea of the performance at court reasonable? Class discussion.
What is the function of the play-within-the play in the tragedy?
What theme/s is it connected with?
It should prove Claudius's guilt. It turns the actors into audience, dealing with the background to the
tragedy. It is connected with the themes of revenge, reality vs appearance, the crisis of the human
conscience, but also with the loss of faith in the effectiveness of man's action.
ACT III SCENE I
AMLETO:
Essere, o non essere: qui sta il problema:
se sia più nobile soffrire nell’intimo del proprio spirito
i colpi e le tribolazioni (scagliate da) una bizzarra fortuna,
o armarsi contro un mare di problemi,
e combattendo contro di essi, porre fine a tutto?
Morire, dormire, non altro, e con il sonno dire che si è messo fine
alle fitte del cuore e a ogni infermità naturale
di cui è erede la carne: questa è una conclusione
da desiderarsi devotamente. Morire, dormire.
Dormire, sognare forse. Ecco il punto / ostacolo / qui sta il difficile:
perché in quel sonno di morte quali sogni intervengano
quando noi siamo sciolti da questo viluppo / vita mortale,
è pensiero che deve indurci a riflettere. Ecco il dubbio / lo scrupolo
che dà alla sventura una vita così lunga;
perché chi vorrebbe sopportare la sferza e gli irrisioni del tempo,
i torti dell'oppressore, il disprezzo dei superbi,
le pene per l'amore non corrisposto, le lungaggini della legge,
l’insolenza dei potenti, e gli oltraggi
che il merito paziente riceve dagli indegni,
quando egli stesso potrebbe far sua la pace
semplicemente con un pugnale?
Chi vorrebbe caricarsi di pesi, gemere e sudare sotto (il peso di) una vita opprimente,
se non fosse che la paura di qualcosa dopo la morte,
l'inesplorato paese dal cui confine
nessun viaggiatore ritorna, confonde 1a volontà,
facendoci sopportare il peso dei mali presenti
piuttosto che volare verso altri (mali) di cui non sappiamo?
E’ la coscienza che ci rende vili tutti.
E così il colore naturale della decisione / risoluzione
È reso malato dalla pallida tinta del pensiero,
E imprese di grande importanza e valore
Per questo scrupolo deviano il loro corso,
e perdono il nome di azione.
1. To be, or not to be: that is the question:
The problem is whether or not to go on living.
2. Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
3. The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
4. Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
5. And by opposing end them?
Is it nobler to suffer the injuries of fortune or to end them violently?
To die, to sleep 6. No more; and by a sleep to say we end
7. The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks
8. That flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation
9. Devoutly to be wish'd.
Death, as the end of a sorrowful existence, is something to be wished for.
To die, to sleep;
10. To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub;
Death is like sleep and when we sleep we dream. This is a problem.
11. For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
12. When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
13. Must give us pause: there's the respect
14. That makes calamity of so long life;
The fact that dreams may come to us after death makes us hesitate and choose a long life rather than
suicide.
15. For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,
16. The oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely,
17. The pangs of despised love, the law's delay,
18. The insolence of office and the spurns
19. That patient merit of the unworthy takes,
20. When he himself might his quietus make
21. With a bare bodkin?
Who would choose to go on suffering all the hardships of life when he could end them with a
dagger?
Who would fardels bear,
22. To grunt and sweat under a weary life,
23. But that the dread of something after death,
24. The undiscover'd country from whose bourn
25. No traveller returns, puzzles the will
26. And makes us rather bear those ills we have
27. Than fly to others that we know not of?
Who would choose to go on living if he were not afraid that death, which is unknown, might bring
greater suffering than life?
28. Thus conscience does make cowards of us all;
This thought makes us all afraid to act.
29. And thus the native hue of resolution
30. Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought,
31. And enterprises of great pith and moment
32. With this regard their currents turn awry,
33. And lose the name of action.
Thought weakens resolution and prevents action.