2003-Select a novel or in which a tragic figure functions as an instrument of the suffering of others. Then write an essay in which you explain how the suffering brought upon by others by that tragic figure contributes to the tragic vision of the work as a whole.
There's danger in that one character who brings about the deaths of others. Danger, but on a larger scale there is meaning and truth to support his/her victimizing of these characters and their bitter endings. In Shakespeare's tragedy of Hamlet, the instigator of the suffering of others befalls on the head of the Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark . Throughout this complex play, the moral corruption and self doubt plaguing Hamlet lead to his subversion of providence, which then allows for the diminished relationships with those around him, ultimately leading to everyone's death.
From the beginning of Act One, the state of Denmark, as one realizes, is rotten and full of corruption. As a young man Hamlet is locked in a imaginary prison behind the dark walls of Elsinore, a small world that other's would consider their home.But in truth, Elsinore is closed off from the rest of the state leaving Hamlet,who is stuck a midst self-serving court figures to fight back against the judgement, suspicion, and disloyalty that desire to touch him. Matters are worsened further with the death of his father Old Hamlet, which is then followed by his mother, the queen's haste marriage to his Uncle Claudius. In a state of mourning and betrayal, Hamlet sinks deeper within himself and allows his depression to allow him to consider suicide. And then to stir the plot even more, the spirit of his father Old Hamlet beckons him and provides him with the astounding truth that his father had been murdered by the deceiving hands of the present king, King Claudius. Filled with the desire to avenge his father, Hamlet starts to close himself off from others, but he wars with himself and doubts the truth of the Ghost and questions his power in comparison to that of God's.
Although Hamlet fails to act against Claudius for a considerable amount of the play, he does act against those around him. His one time love Ophelia, he ends up snubbing, but one can reason that he pushes her away because of his distrusting nature. Those in Elsinore have eyes on everyone and Hamlet is distrusting of those around him, as he should be considering that Polonius, Rosencrantz, and Guildenstern are bent on determining the matter that disturbs him. As Hamlet becomes more and more aware of his inability to act, he finally learns that Claudius is guilty of murder from the acting out of The Death of Gonzago. But once again, his hesitation to kill Claudius results when he finds Claudius praying in "guilty submission" to God. Hamlet recognizes Claudius' corruption, but he can't kill a figure bent in prayer and he is uncertain of God's hand in Claudius's death. Later he accidentally kills Polonius, who was in an unlucky position. This death results in the madness of Ophelia, who ends up drowning herself from her sorrow over her father's death and then from Hamlet's unfaithfulness to her. From there the number of death's rise as Hamlet snatches God's power to purposefully eliminate Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, and Claudius. Unfortunately, Gertrude is caught by the poisoned goblet in her effort to save Hamlet, and Laertes receives a poisoned slice of the blade, even though he's fighting with a genuine desire to avenge his father's death .
Hamlet's struggle with self doubt and moral corruption lead to his stealing of God's power to wreck havoc on the royal live's of Denmark in this tragic play. Hamlet, stuck in a rotten state deals with the uncertainty of the loyalties of others and his own, creating a number of pressures that work little by little to break his character. And in order to protect himself, he pushes his loved ones away, and focuses his rage and betrayal on the need to avenge his father. Because of his issue to remain in God's sovereignty, Hamlet takes matters into his own hands and brings unwanted death's into the plot. Shakespeare's Hamlet argues that outside forces and the hesitations of one's thoughts can upset higher powers and result in the tragedies of others from one character's inability to play by the rules.
*Oh...I don't even know. I kind of want to puke from the horror of this essay. I've run out of time...over time.
There are a few picky mistakes I'd like to point out before I get into my actual critique of the essay: death's instead of deaths, wreck havoc instead of wreak, The Death of Gonzago instead of the Murder and you're missing many commas before announcing character names. Aside from those things, I would like to commend you on the amount of time you seem to have put into this essay. I can imagine you fervently trying to think of the right words to fit into a sentence because your perfectionist mind was telling you that it didn't sound good the first time through. I relate. But, I do think that this essay is a bit too wordy and it's hard to figure out the meaning you're trying to get the reader to see, you're writing like we're all in your mind, and that comes out a little confusingly. Also, I don't see enough proof that it was Hamlet's struggles with "self-doubt and moral corruption" that led to everyone else's tragedy. I know these are stressful to write, but I know your writing can sound more effortless than this :)
ReplyDeleteDear Ludia,
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sierra as far as that your essay is kind of complicated. For your intro, I recommend cutting out the first sentence altogether. It make for a less dramatic and beautiful read when the flowery language is cut, but I think it's necessary for this situation. Sometimes your writing style is a bit difficult to understand... I like aspects of it, for sure. But remember that this isn't a test of your creative writing skills, but rather your ability to form a good opinion and argue it well. Therefore, I recommend keeping the essay straightforward. Save the fancy stuff for the conclusion! Also, be careful using "quotations" because you wrote "guilty submission" in quote and I don't remember that being a line from the play. Try to save those for only evidence quotes. I think the idea that you're arguing is solid, so good job Ludia!
Dear Ludia,
ReplyDeleteI agree with Mary on the first sentence. Because you're such a good creative writer, I'm assuming that what you were trying to do was ease the whole thing along, but unfortunately it did not. THIS TIME. And there are a couple of minor mistakes that were 'running out of time' induced, like "...tragedy of Hamlet." I would suggest just taking 'of ' out there cause it's unecessary. But I feel for you with the writing on a tight time budget. Don't let it get you down, cause girl I WOULD CLEARLY BE ONE HECK OF A HYPOCRITE TO NOT ACKNOWLEDGE MY OWN MISTAKES MADE ON A TIGHT TIME BUDGET.
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ReplyDeleteSierra, Mary, and Lexi: You're all spot-on in your analysis of the language of this piece. This is a case where the words are driving the bus, not the ideas. That may be fun for the writer, but unfortunately it makes no sense to the reader--the accumulation of syntax errors, overly wordy sentences, and unintentionally comic images is so distracting that none of you, clearly, were able to follow this essay at all. Had you been able to, surely you would have noticed that it is essentially just an argumentative introduction followed by a plot summary of Hamlet.
ReplyDelete