Hamlet essay

Hamlet  essay topics

Write a detailed four-page essay, that includes a thesis, body and conclusion, on  one  of the following topics:

 

A. Ophelia and Hamlet- Explore the impact that Ophelia and her actions have on Hamlet, and how they contribute to the conflict, events, and outcome of the play. Your essay should include answers to the following questions. According to our class Zoom discussions:

1. How old most likely is Ophelia, and what, in her time, is her most valuable quality? What impact does this have on her brother and father’s attitudes towards her relationship with Hamlet?

2. From Ophelia’s point of view, what is the cause of Hamlet’s increasingly troubling behavior?

3. What triggers Hamlet’s fury towards Ophelia in Act III Scene i – and what event ultimately triggers her madness?

4. Does Ophelia’s death, as Gertrude describes it in Act IV Scene vii, sound like a suicide? Why or why not?

 

B. Death and Hamlet – Explore Hamlet’s relationship with and attitude towards death as it evolves throughout the play. Your essay should include answers to the following questions. According to our class Zoom discussions:

1. How does Hamlet feel about death at the beginning of his soliloquy in Act I Scene ii - and how does he feel at end of it?

2. How does Hamlet feel about himself, in his Act II Scene ii soliloquy, and what epiphany does he have at the end of Act II?

3. What options does Hamlet weigh in his Act III Scene i soliloquy? How does the metaphor of death as a sleep trigger his epiphany at the end of his soliloquy – and what is that epiphany?

4. What insights towards death does Hamlet gain in Act IV Scene iii and Act V Scene i – that contribute to his epiphany just prior to the duel in Act V Scene ii?

 

For either topic, use chronological order and provide specific examples, scenes, and dialogue from the play to support your points. Cite quotes with act, scene and line numbers: (I. iii. 25-35). Do not include page numbers or refer to our textbook.

The play title should be italicizedand be included (along with the full name of the playwright) in your thesis paragraph.