Major Works Data Sheet
Title: Hamlet
Author: William Shakespeare
Date of Publication: 1603
Significant Characters and function in the work:
Hamlet- The Prince of Denmark, a melancholy, bitter, and cynical, full of hatred for his uncle’s scheming and disgust at his mother for marrying his uncle at such a hasty pace and sleeping with him.
Claudius- The King of Denmark, a calculating, ambitious, driven his lust of power; occasionally shows signs of guilt for murdering his brother.
Gertrude- The Queen of Denmark, a shalow, weak woman who seeks affection and status. Quickly married her late husband’s brother.
Ophelia- Depends on men to tell her how to behave, loves Hamlet but he rejects her, causing her to become mad. In her madness, she commits suicide accidently.
The Ghost- Hamlet’s deceased father. The reason to why Hamlet pretends/becomes mad.
He claims that Claudius murdered him, and wants Hamlet to avenge him.
Significant settings and why important:
The Castle of Elsinore- Where late Hamlet’s ghost has been seen and where Hamlet finds out that Claudius killed his father. Many deaths happen here due to Claudius’s lust for power.
Ship to England- Hamlet finds out that Claudius has sent him to England to be killed. Hamlet decides to really take revenge now.
The work begins with:
The play begins with the guards telling Horatio that they have seen the ghost of late King Hamlet.
The work ends with:
About to die, Hamlet tells Horatio to stay alive, not to commit suicide, so that he can tell his story.
Defining moments:
Hamlet’s first soliloquy- Here Hamlet expresses his anger toward his mother for remarrying in such a hurry, especially with his father’s brother.
Hamlet’s sighting of his father’s ghost and gaining knowledge of how he died.
Hamlet’s plan to reenact a play that show how his father was murder to see how Claudius would react.
Author’s style:
Shakespeare uses metaphors to describe how Denmark has become a...