The title character in a narrative work is one who is named or referred to in the title of the work. In a performed work such as a play or film, the performer who plays the title character is said to have the title role of the piece. The title of the work might consist solely of the title character's name – such as Michael Collins or Othello – or be a longer phrase or sentence – such as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland or The Adventures of Tom Sawyer . The title character is commonly – but not necessarily – the protagonist of the story. Narrative works routinely do not have a title character and there is some ambiguity in what qualifies as one.
76-457: Prince Hamlet is the title character and protagonist of William Shakespeare 's tragedy Hamlet (1599–1601). He is the Prince of Denmark , nephew to the usurping Claudius , and son of King Hamlet , the previous King of Denmark . At the beginning of the play, he is conflicted whether, and how, to avenge the murder of his father, and struggles with his own sanity along the way. By the end of
152-403: A duel. Hamlet wins the first two rounds, and Gertrude drinks from the cup, suspecting that it is poisoned. Whilst in-between bouts, Laertes rushes Hamlet and strikes him on the arm, fatally poisoning him. Hamlet, not knowing this, continues to duel. Hamlet eventually disarms Laertes and switches blades with him. Hamlet then strikes Laertes in the wrist, fatally wounding him. Gertrude then submits to
228-417: A ghost that claims to be the spirit of his father. The 1948 film with Laurence Olivier in the title role is introduced by a voice-over : "This is the tragedy of a man who could not make up his mind." T. S. Eliot offers a similar view of Hamlet's character in his critical essay, "Hamlet and His Problems" ( The Sacred Wood: Essays on Poetry and Criticism ). He states, "We find Shakespeare's 'Hamlet' not in
304-425: A grave-maker". His reply appears to determine the age of Hamlet in a roundabout but very explicit manner. The Gravedigger says that he has been in his profession since the day that Old Hamlet defeated Old Fortinbras, which was "the very day that young Hamlet was born". Then, a little later, he adds that "I have been sexton here, man and boy, thirty years." According to this logic, Hamlet must be thirty years old. Yorick,
380-514: A nunnery" (a suggestion of either erotic criticism of hypersexuality, or of escape from the Danish succession crisis that will become bloody.) Hamlet devises a test to see whether Claudius is guilty: he hires a group of actors to perform a play about the murder of a king in front of the royal court, and has Horatio gauge Claudius' reaction. Claudius demands the play be stopped half through because it causes him to experience guilt. When Claudius leaves
456-711: A play-actor performing a scene, he notes that the actor was moved to tears in the passion of the story and compares this passion for an ancient Greek character, Hecuba , in light of his own situation: O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I! Is it not monstrous that this player here, But in a fiction, in a dream of passion, Could force his soul so to his own conceit That from her working all his visage wan'd; Tears in his eyes, distraction in's aspect, A broken voice, and his whole function suiting With forms to his conceit? And all for nothing! For Hecuba? What's Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba, That he should weep for her? Hamlet 2.2/577–587 The name Hamlet occurs in
532-432: A reflection of all of the interpretations possessed by other characters in the play—and perhaps also by the members of an audience watching him. Polonius , most obviously, has a habit of misreading his own expectations into Hamlet's actions ("Still harping on my daughter!"), though many other characters in the play participate in analogous behaviour. Gertrude has a similar tendency to interpret all of her son's activities as
608-460: A sexton and a grave digger must also be taken into account. A sexton oversees many different jobs around the church and surrounding areas. A grave digger simply digs graves. There are sextons who also dig graves and some that do not. It is completely possible that the Gravedigger has been a sexton for 30 years, but has not been digging graves for that entire time. This could be another example of
684-504: A stage production in Paris; he made it doubly effective on the screen by bringing the camera in and out of focus to synchronize with the pulsing. Before he would use it, however, he wrote to ask Barrault's permission and insisted on paying for the idea. Because no copyright is possible Olivier is particularly scrupulous about borrowing other people's production tricks or another actor's ideas. The cinematography by Desmond Dickinson makes use of
760-545: Is a nephew, like Prince Hamlet. However, it is also worth noting that each of the characters in the play-within-a-play maps to two major characters in Hamlet , an instance of the play's many doubles: Hamlet is also, in some form, a reflection of most other characters in the play (or perhaps vice versa): In act V, scene 1, the First Gravedigger is asked by Hamlet at about line 147 and following, how long he has "been
836-454: Is actually sending Hamlet to his death. Prior to embarking for England, Hamlet hides Polonius' body, ultimately revealing its location to the King. Meanwhile, the death of Ophelia's father has driven her insane with grief, and Claudius convinces Ophelia's brother Laertes that Hamlet is to blame. Claudius proposes a fencing match between the two. Laertes informs the king that he will further poison
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#1732802176806912-595: Is destroyed by Hamlet's treatment of her in the nunnery scene. According to J. Lawrence Guntner, the style of the film owes much to German Expressionism and to film noir : The cavernous sets featuring narrow winding stairwells correspond to the labyrinths of Hamlet's psyche. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes , the film holds a score of 96% based on 49 reviews, with an average rating of 8.6/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "A well-executed labor of love from star and director Laurence Olivier, Hamlet not only proved that Shakespeare could be successfully adapted to
988-609: Is doing for Shakespeare is certainly among the more valuable men of his time." Hamlet was the second of Olivier's Shakespeare films to be telecast on American television – the first was Richard III , which was given an afternoon rather than a prime-time showing by NBC on 11 March 1956, the same day that it premiered in cinemas in the U.S. ABC gave the Olivier Hamlet a prime time showing in December 1956, but like many theatrical films shown on television during that era, it
1064-514: Is driven to avenge her death, as well as his father's. Claudius and Laertes learn of Hamlet's return and prepare to have him killed. However, they plan to make it look like an accident. Claudius orders Laertes to challenge Hamlet to a duel, wherein Laertes will be given a poisoned blade that will kill with a bare touch. In case Laertes is unable to hit Hamlet, Claudius also prepares a poisoned drink. Hamlet meets Laertes' challenge and engages him in
1140-405: Is eventually captured by the fool known as Falstaff , who helps him get out of the woods after an encounter with a being known as a Prodigal. He is shot in the leg by Iago, but is saved by Juliet Capulet and Othello . Hamlet stops Othello from killing Iago, but is taken captive by Juliet and her resistance army. After going with them into a town and seeing the cruelty of Richard, Hamlet flees into
1216-441: Is in purgatory doing penance for his sins. Hamlet's opportunity to kill his uncle comes just after the uncle has supposedly made his peace with God . Hamlet says that he would much rather take a stab at the murderer while he is frolicking in the " incestuous sheets", or gambling and drinking, so he could be sure of his going straight to hell . Ernest Jones , following the work of Sigmund Freud , held that Hamlet suffered from
1292-790: Is the Shakespeare film that has received the most prestigious accolades, winning the Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Actor and the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival . However, it proved controversial among Shakespearean purists, who felt that Olivier had made too many alterations and excisions to the four-hour play by cutting one-and-a-half-hours' worth of content. Milton Shulman wrote in The Evening Standard : "To some it will be one of
1368-419: Is the central character. After he is exiled from Denmark, his ship is attacked and he washes up on England. He is encountered by Richard III of England , who tells him that he is the "Shadow King", a figure of prophecy. He tells Hamlet that he must find and kill the wizard William Shakespeare and retrieve his quill. He goes off, but is relentlessly pursued by assassins from Richard and his lieutenant, Iago . He
1444-459: Is the way in which he reflects other characters, including the play's primary antagonist , Claudius. In the play within a play, for instance, Gonzago, the king, is murdered in the garden by his nephew , Lucianus; although King Hamlet is murdered by his brother, in The Murder of Gonzago —which Hamlet tauntingly calls " The Mousetrap " when Claudius asks "What do you call the play?"—the regicide
1520-430: Is then further described using the adjective "titular". For example, the title character of Dracula can be referred to as the book's "titular vampire", the title character of Hamlet is the "titular prince of Denmark" , and the title character of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is the "titular wizard". Hamlet (1948 film) Hamlet is a 1948 British film adaptation of William Shakespeare 's play of
1596-553: The Golden Lion and the Academy Award for Best Picture until The Shape of Water in 2017 , which was followed by Nomadland three years later. It is also the first non-American film to win the Best Picture Academy Award. In the past, the 1948 film was considered the definitive cinematic rendition of Hamlet . Over the years, however, it has lost some of its status, especially in competition with
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#17328021768061672-515: The Oedipus complex . He said in his essay "The Oedipus-Complex as an Explanation of Hamlet's Mystery: A Study in Motive": Harold Bloom did a "Shakespearean Criticism" of Freud's work in response. It has also been suggested that Hamlet, who is described by Ophelia as "th' expectancy and rose of the fair state, / The glass of fashion and the mould of form" ( Hamlet 3.1/166–167 ), is ultimately
1748-451: The Wizard of Oz is the title character, but is a minor supporting character. In the musical Bye Bye Birdie , Conrad Birdie is the title character, while Albert Peterson is the protagonist. In the video game The Legend of Zelda , the title character Princess Zelda is the damsel in distress and Link is her knight in shining armor . The title character need not be the subject of
1824-553: The ballet of the same name , the Doctor in the TV series Doctor Who , Dr. Gregory House of the TV series House , Harry Potter in the series of novels and films , and Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet in the play Romeo and Juliet . There is no formal, prescriptive definition of a title character or title role , but there are general standards accepted by tradition. The title character need not be literally named in
1900-599: The deep focus photography previously popularised in films directed by William Wyler and Orson Welles . The music was composed by William Walton and, alongside his score for Olivier's 1944 film Henry V , has become his most celebrated film work. The film was popular at the British box office. Producer's receipts were £187,900 in the UK and £1,164,400 overseas. It made a reported profit of £779,700. The film's opening with Olivier's voiceover of his own interpretation of
1976-469: The 1938 novel Rebecca , or Jason Bourne in the 2012 film The Bourne Legacy . Status as the title character has been attributed to named objects, such as the bus in the film and musical Priscilla, Queen of the Desert , or the imaginary 6-foot rabbit Harvey in the play and film of the same name . The general noun phrase "title character" can be replaced with a descriptive noun or phrase which
2052-695: The 1970 telecast of the Hallmark Hall of Fame production starring Richard Chamberlain , and a 1992 BBC radio production starring Kenneth Branagh .) Felix Barker , Olivier's first biographer, described how the actor-director created the sound effects for the three appearances of the Ghost: To produce the eerie noise which preceded the appearance of the Ghost Olivier...went to enormous trouble. He made as many as fourteen separate sound tracks. On one he had recorded fifty women shrieking; on another
2128-495: The Ghost, becomes convinced that Hamlet is mad. Hamlet is deported to England by Claudius, who has given orders for him to be killed once he reaches there. Fortunately, Hamlet's ship is attacked by pirates, and he is returned to Denmark. In his absence, however, Ophelia goes mad over Hamlet's rejection and the idea that her own sweetheart has killed her father, and she drowns, supposedly committing suicide. Laertes , Ophelia's brother,
2204-481: The Great Hall of the castle, the court is celebrating the marriage of Gertrude and King Claudius ; old King Hamlet has died apparently of an accidental snakebite, and his wife, Gertrude, has, within a month of the tragedy, married the late King's brother. Prince Hamlet sits alone, refusing to join in the celebration, despite the protests of the new King. When the court has left the Great Hall, Hamlet fumes over
2280-401: The King, claiming that it is derived from Hamlet's love for Ophelia , Polonius's daughter. Claudius, however, is not fully convinced, and has Polonius set up a meeting between Hamlet and Ophelia. Hamlet's "madness" is constant even in this exchange, and Claudius is convinced. Hamlet then hires a group of wandering stage performers, requesting that they enact the play The Murder of Gonzago for
2356-606: The Old Icelandic name Amlóði comes from the Icelandic noun amlóði , meaning "fool", suggestive of the way that Hamlet acts in the play. Later these names were incorporated into Irish as Amlodhe. As phonetic laws took their course, the name's spelling changed eventually leaving it as Amlaidhe. This Irish name was given to a hero in a common folk story. The root of this name is 'furious, raging, wild'. It has also been suggested that Hamlet's hesitations may also be rooted in
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2432-411: The above characters reappear at the end of the film, where they are three of the 'four captains' who 'bear Hamlet's body, like a soldier, to the stage'. They are accompanied by a fourth, unidentified, soldier and by Horatio.] Eileen Herlie, who plays Hamlet's mother, was 29 years old when the movie was filmed in 1947. Olivier, who plays her son, was 40. Olivier played the voice of the Ghost by recording
2508-436: The action, not in any quotations that we might select, so much as in an unmistakable tone...". Others see Hamlet as a person charged with a duty that he both knows and feels is right, yet is unwilling to carry out. In this view, his efforts to satisfy himself on Claudius' guilt and his failure to act when he can are evidence of this unwillingness, and Hamlet berates himself for his inability to carry out his task. After observing
2584-482: The big screen, it paved the way for further cinematic interpretations." The film version of Hamlet was the only film in which the leading actor had directed himself to an Oscar-winning performance, until 1998 , when Roberto Benigni directed himself to an Oscar win in Life Is Beautiful . Olivier is also the only actor to win an Oscar for a Shakespearean role. Hamlet was the only film to have won both
2660-539: The book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland , Robinson Crusoe in the book of the same name or Jean-Luc Picard in the TV series Star Trek: Picard ; but can be a non-fictional dramatization, such as Annie Oakley in the musical Annie Get Your Gun , Erin Brockovich in the film of the same name , or Thomas More in the play A Man for All Seasons . Although it is common for the title character to be
2736-538: The character's very round-about way of speaking. However, this reading has the disadvantage that in the Folio the length of time Yorick has been in the ground is said to be twenty-three years, meaning that he had been dead seven years by the time Hamlet was born. Another theory offered is that the play was originally written with the view that Hamlet was 16 or 17, but since Shakespeare wrote his plays to be performed, and not read, these lines were likely changed so Burbage (who
2812-466: The complete Hamlet included everything that Olivier had omitted. It is worth noting, however, that the parts of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern (and Osric) are reduced in the Richardson and Zeffirelli versions, and that Branagh's version is almost 90 minutes longer than Olivier's. Noted film critic Pauline Kael asserted that even if you feel that certain scenes should be done differently, when has
2888-500: The dead jester whose skull Hamlet holds during this scene, is said to have been in the earth "three-and-twenty years", which would make Hamlet no more than seven years old when he last rode on Yorick's back. This view of Hamlet's age is supported by the fact that Richard Burbage , the actor who originally played the role, was thirty-two at the time of the play's premiere. However, a case has been made that at an early stage in Hamlet —with its apparent history of multiple revisions—Hamlet
2964-413: The dialogue as an amplified whisper and playing it back at a reduced speed, giving it a deep, haunting otherworldly quality. However, for many years it was falsely assumed, even in film reference books, that John Gielgud had recorded the voice of the Ghost. (Gielgud played the role of the Ghost in three later productions – the 1964 stage, Electronovision and LP Album versions of Richard Burton's Hamlet ,
3040-412: The fight is broken up by Claudius and Gertrude. Later that day, Hamlet tells Horatio how he escaped death on his journey, disclosing that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern have been sent to their deaths instead. A courtier, Osric, interrupts to invite Hamlet to fence with Laertes. Despite Horatio's warnings, Hamlet accepts and the match begins. After several rounds, Gertrude toasts Hamlet, accidentally drinking
3116-523: The films Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster or Smokey and the Bandit . In the novel and TV series Shogun , the feudal lord Toranaga is the title character, but the protagonist is John Blackthorne . In the 2003 revival of August Wilson 's Ma Rainey's Black Bottom , Whoopi Goldberg had the title role of Ma Rainey, but the lead was Charles S. Dutton as Levee. In The Wonderful Wizard of Oz ,
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3192-589: The form Amleth in a 13th-century book of Danish History written by Saxo Grammaticus , popularised by François de Belleforest as L'histoire tragique d'Hamlet, and appearing in the English translation as "Hamblet". The story of Amleth is assumed to originate in Old Norse or Icelandic poetry from several centuries earlier. Saxo has it as Amlethus, the Latin form of the old Jutish Amlethæ. In terms of etymology
3268-429: The greatest films ever made, to others a deep disappointment. Laurence Olivier leaves no doubt that he is one of our greatest living actors... his liberties with the text, however, are sure to disturb many." On the battlements of Elsinore , in a flash-forward, the dead body of Hamlet is borne in state upon the shoulders of noble lords with Horatio in attendance mourning the dead Hamlet. The flash-forward dissolves and in
3344-517: The groans of as many men; a third consisted of a dozen violinists scraping their bows across the strings on a single screeching note. These various tracks had then to be blended in different volumes and intensity until they produced a noise which seemed to him to resemble – on what authority is uncertain – 'the lid of hell being opened'. Supernatural horror was further increased by the pulsing heart-beat which heralded its every entrance. This sound, Olivier remembered, had been used by Jean-Louis Barrault in
3420-425: The hasty marriage, muttering to himself the words "and yet, within a month!" Soon, Horatio and the sentries enter telling Hamlet of the ghostly apparition of his father. Hamlet proceeds to investigate, and upon arriving on the battlements, sees the Ghost. Noting that the Ghost beckons him forward, Hamlet follows it up onto a tower, wherein it reveals its identity as the Ghost of Hamlet's father. He tells Hamlet that he
3496-498: The king. However, Hamlet makes a few alterations to the play, so as to make it mirror the circumstances of the late King's murder. Claudius, unable to endure the play, calls out for light, and retires to his room. Hamlet is now convinced of Claudius' treachery. He finds Claudius alone, and has ample opportunity to kill the villain. However, at this time, Claudius is praying, and Hamlet does not seek to send him to heaven, so, he waits, and bides his time. He instead confronts Gertrude about
3572-519: The lead of Olivier's film version by giving the final lines of the play to Horatio instead of Fortinbras. Olivier heightened the Oedipal overtones of the play by having Hamlet kiss his mother lovingly on the lips several times during the film. Film scholar Jack Jorgens has commented that "Hamlet's scenes with the Queen in her low-cut gowns are virtually love scenes." In contrast, Jean Simmons ' Ophelia
3648-469: The matter of his father's death and Claudius' treachery. During this confrontation, he hears a voice from the arras , and, believing that it was Claudius eavesdropping, plunges his dagger into the curtains. On discovering that he has in fact, killed the eavesdropping Polonius instead, Hamlet is only mildly upset, and he continues to confront his mother. He then sees the ghostly apparition of his father, and proceeds to converse with it. Gertrude, who cannot see
3724-441: The more important supporting characters in the play, the film lacks some of the play's best comedic moments. The duo's inclusion in later adaptations, such as the 1969 Nicol Williamson – Tony Richardson Hamlet and the 1990 Mel Gibson / Franco Zeffirelli version, both of which are shorter than Olivier's, counters Olivier's rationale that the play needed such drastic cuts to work on screen. Kenneth Branagh 's 1996 film version of
3800-671: The on stage "audience" deeply upset, Hamlet knows that the ghost was telling the truth. He follows Claudius into his chambers in order to kill him, but stops when he sees his uncle praying; he does not want to kill Claudius while he is in a state of grace because Hamlet wants Claudius to suffer in purgatory and Claudius has just attempted to cleanse his sin through confession. A second attempt on Claudius' life ends in Polonius' accidental death. Claudius, now fearing for his life, sends Hamlet to England, accompanied (and closely watched) by Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Alone, Claudius discloses that he
3876-537: The original spelling of the First Folio (F1) text, one of the two authoritative texts for the play, the Gravedigger's answer to how long he has "been a grave-maker" reads "Why heere in Denmarke: I haue bin sixeteene heere, man and Boy thirty yeares." "Sixteene" is usually rendered as " sexton " (a modernization of the second quarto's "sexten"), even in modern texts that take F1 as their "copy text". But modernizing
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#17328021768063952-441: The play, was criticised as reductive: "This is the tragedy of a man who could not make up his mind." Olivier excised the "political" elements of the play (entirely cutting Fortinbras , Rosencrantz and Guildenstern ) in favour of an intensely psychological performance, partly to save time. Olivier stated that "one great whacking cut had to be made", and the cut he chose to make was the omission of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. This
4028-408: The poison and dies, warning Hamlet not to drink from the cup. Laertes, dying, confesses the whole plot to Hamlet, who flies at Claudius in a fit of rage, killing him, then dies. Horatio, horrified by all this, orders that Hamlet be given a decent funeral, and the young prince's body is taken away while the Danish court kneels and the cannons of Elsinore fire off a peal of ordnance in respect. [All of
4104-414: The probable heir to the throne. Horatio attempts to kill himself with the same poisoned wine, but is stopped by Hamlet, so he will be the only one left alive to give a full account of the story. He then wills the throne of Denmark to Fortinbras before dying. Perhaps the most straightforward view sees Hamlet as seeking truth in order to be certain that he is justified in carrying out the revenge called for by
4180-713: The protagonist, it is not unusual for the principal antagonist or a key secondary character to be named in the title instead. Examples of titular antagonists include Sauron in the book and film series The Lord of the Rings , Count Dracula in Bram Stoker 's Dracula , or Francisco Scaramanga and Julius No in the James Bond novels and films The Man with the Golden Gun and Dr. No ,. The protagonist and antagonist can arguably both be title characters, as in
4256-462: The punctuation—a normal practice in modernized texts—renders "Why heere in Denmarke: I haue bin sixeteene heere—man and Boy thirty yeares." In other words, this reading suggests that he has been a gravedigger for sixteen years, but that he has lived in Denmark for thirty. According to this logic, then, it is the Gravedigger who is thirty, whereas Hamlet is only sixteen. However, the difference between
4332-497: The religious beliefs of Shakespeare's time. The Protestant Reformation had generated debate about the existence of purgatory (where King Hamlet claims he currently resides). The concept of purgatory is a Catholic one, and was frowned on in Protestant England. Hamlet says that he will not kill his uncle because death would send him straight to heaven , while his father (having died without foreknowledge of his death)
4408-488: The rest of the play been done so well? Whatever the omissions, the mutilations, the mistakes, this is very likely the most exciting and most alive production of Hamlet you will ever see on the screen. It's never dull, and if characters such as Fortinbras and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern have been sacrificed, it's remarkable how little they are missed. James Agee in Time wrote in 1948: "A man who can do what Laurence Olivier
4484-450: The result of her "o'erhasty marriage" alone. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern tend to find the stalled ambitions of a courtier in their former schoolmate's behaviour, whereas Claudius seems to be concerned with Hamlet's motivation only so far as it reveals the degree to which his nephew is a potential threat. Ophelia, like her father, waits in vain for Hamlet to give her signs of affection, and Horatio would have little reason to think that Hamlet
4560-407: The same location at a separate time, Francisco, a sentry, is relieved of his watch by another sentry, Bernardo, who, with yet another sentry, Marcellus, has twice previously seen the Ghost of King Hamlet. Marcellus then arrives with the sceptical Horatio, Prince Hamlet's friend. Suddenly, all three see the Ghost, and Horatio demands that the Ghost speak. The Ghost vanishes then, without a word. Inside
4636-427: The same name , adapted and directed by and starring Laurence Olivier . Hamlet was Olivier's second film as director and the second of the three Shakespeare films that he directed (the 1936 As You Like It had starred Olivier, but had been directed by Paul Czinner ). Hamlet was the first British film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture . It is the first sound film of the play in English. Olivier's Hamlet
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#17328021768064712-702: The throne and hasty marriage to Hamlet's mother Gertrude . One night, his father's ghost appears to him and tells him that Claudius murdered him in order to usurp the throne, and commands his son to avenge his death. Claudius sends for two of Hamlet's friends from Wittenberg, to find out what is causing Hamlet so much pain. Claudius and his advisor Polonius persuade Ophelia—Polonius' daughter and Hamlet's love interest—to speak with Hamlet while they secretly listen. Hamlet enters, contemplating suicide (" To be, or not to be "). Ophelia greets him, and offers to return his remembrances (tokens of his love interest), upon which Hamlet questions her honesty and tells her to "get thee to
4788-623: The tip of his sword so that a mere scratch would mean certain death. Claudius plans to offer Hamlet poisoned wine if that fails. Gertrude reports that Ophelia has died. In the Elsinore churchyard, two " clowns ", typically represented as gravediggers , enter to prepare Ophelia's grave. Hamlet arrives with Horatio and banters with one of them, who unearths the skull of a jester whom Hamlet once knew, Yorick . Ophelia's funeral procession approaches, led by Laertes. Hamlet interrupts, professing his own love and grief for Ophelia. He and Laertes grapple, but
4864-564: The title in a strict grammatical sense: Uncle Tom is considered the title character of Uncle Tom's Cabin and Lee Marvin is often described as playing the title character in the film The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance , as his character (Liberty Valance) is named in the title, even though the grammatical subject of the title is the person who shot him. The concept of title character may be interpreted to include unseen characters , such as Godot in Waiting for Godot , Rebecca de Winter in
4940-672: The title, but may be referred to by some other identifying word or phrase, such as Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit , Simba in The Lion King , Aang in Avatar: The Last Airbender , Idi Amin in The Last King of Scotland or more vaguely, as in the play An Ideal Husband , which ostensibly refers to the character Sir Robert Chiltern. A title character is typically fictional, such as Alice in
5016-433: The tragedy, Hamlet has caused the deaths of Polonius , Laertes , Claudius, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern , two acquaintances of his from childhood. He is also indirectly involved in the deaths of his love Ophelia (drowning) and of his mother Gertrude (mistakenly poisoned by Claudius). The play opens with Hamlet deeply depressed over the recent death of his father, King Hamlet , and his uncle Claudius ' ascension to
5092-434: The unabridged 1996 adaptation , which many critics now consider superior, as well as the 1994 animated film The Lion King which was also based on Hamlet . The film has also been compared to Olivier's other Shakespearean adaptations, Henry V and Richard III . Some critics argue that Olivier overemphasised Hamlet's Oedipal fixation on his mother, and that due to the omission of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern , two of
5168-514: The wine Claudius poisoned. Between bouts, Laertes attacks and pierces Hamlet with his poisoned blade; in the ensuing scuffle, Hamlet is able to use Laertes' own poisoned sword against him. Gertrude falls and, in her dying breath, announces that she has been poisoned. In his dying moments, Laertes reveals Claudius' plot. Hamlet stabs Claudius with the poisoned sword, and then forces him to drink from his own poisoned cup to make sure he dies. In his final moments, Hamlet names Prince Fortinbras of Norway as
5244-537: The woods, where he is forced to face the ghost of his father. He defeats the ghost and is eventually picked up by two travellers: Lysander and Demetrius . The Northman (2022), Amleth is the Norseman, whose father is murdered by his uncle. This film follows the story of Hamlet, set in the Viking era. Title character Examples in various media include Figaro in the opera The Marriage of Figaro , Giselle in
5320-422: Was almost always the protagonist in Shakespeare's plays) could play the role. The day we see Hamlet die in the theatre, something of him dies for us. He is dethroned by the spectre of an actor, and we shall never be able to keep the usurper out of our dreams. Maurice Maeterlinck (1890). Below are listed some of the notable acting portrayals of Hamlet. In the comic book series Kill Shakespeare , Hamlet
5396-426: Was concerned with anything more pressing than the commandment of the ghost. And the First Gravedigger seems to think that Prince Hamlet, like that "whoreson mad fellow" Yorick, is simply insane without any need for explanation. Several critics, including Stephen Booth and William Empson have further investigated the analogous relationship between Hamlet , the play, and its audience. One aspect of Hamlet's character
5472-425: Was murdered, who did it, and how it was done. Claudius poured poison into the late King Hamlet's ear, thereby killing him. Hamlet does not at first accept this as the truth, and then prepares to feign madness, so as to test Claudius' conscience, without jumping to conclusions. This feigned insanity attracts the attention of Polonius who is completely convinced that Hamlet has gone mad. Polonius pushes this point with
5548-555: Was not he, rather than his uncle, who was elected to succeed to the throne upon the death of King Hamlet. The line about the length of the Gravedigger's career does not appear in the First Quarto of Hamlet ; in that text Yorick is said to have been in the ground only twelve years. Furthermore, in Belleforest , possibly one of Shakespeare's sources for the story, it is said that Amleth has "not attained to man's estate". And in
5624-480: Was not much criticised at first, but later critics did take more notice of it, especially after shorter productions of Hamlet that did not leave out these characters were presented on television. John Gielgud took much the same approach years later by leaving out Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, and Fortinbras from his 1951 radio production of the play, broadcast on the program Theatre Guild on the Air . Gielgud also followed
5700-470: Was presented as a sixteen-year-old. Several pieces of evidence support this view. Hamlet attends the University of Wittenberg , and members of the royalty and nobility (Elizabethan or medieval Danish) did not attend university at age 30. Additionally, a 30-year-old Prince Hamlet would clearly have been of ruling age. Given his great popularity (mentioned by Claudius), this would raise the question of why it
5776-548: Was split into two 90-minute halves and telecast over a period of two weeks rather than being shown on one evening. In North America, Olivier's Hamlet has been released on DVD as part of The Criterion Collection , which has released his film versions of Henry V and Richard III on DVD. The film has been released on Blu-ray Disc in the UK; however this disc is Region B locked and will not work in most American players. The Criterion Collection later rereleased Henry V and Richard III on Blu-ray with more special features beyond
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