Just like the sweet girl said, there once were Violets, but they have since withered because another has died.
So instead the Rosemary has sprung to life again now that Ophelia has parted from this place.
The maid has departed once again, but this time it is a gloomy song being sung.
Ophelia lived listening to the opinions around her. Not because she was weak, but because she knew she was loved and wanted to allow those people to help her. To guide her through uncertainty.
When Ophelia's love had grown mad, she did not hide away or place the guilt onto another.
The last few weeks of her life were spent trying to help heal Prince Hamlet.
She could have turned her back and shunned him, but like the spiritual girl she was she went against negative impulses to help heal the future of our nation.
That is why we are unfortunately here today. Ophelia was a good example of a Christian Maiden whose life was strongly altered by the evil forces of this temporary world.
May Ophelia rest and find the peace that was stolen from her.
May the Heavenly father be as welcoming to her as she was to this world, even when her mind was already gone.
Sunday, May 17, 2015
Sunday, May 10, 2015
To Kill or Not To Kill: Hamlet's Dilemna
After the "Mouse Trap" scene in Hamlet, Claudius's guilty conscious starts to show. He confesses out loud in his prayer that he seeks forgiveness for killing King Hamlet. Hamlet overhears it all, and draws his sword preparing to kill Claudius. But as the prayer goes on Hamlet starts thinking; would killing Claudius now actually be revenge if he ends up in Heaven for confessing his sins?
Hamlet's hesitation to kill Claudius is understandable. His father's ghost mentioned how he is forced into a purgatory type place until he can burn off his sins because he died before a final confession. Why should Claudius die and have a chance at entering Heaven when he is responsible for both King and Prince Hamlet's suffering? Waiting until there is a more vulnerable time to strike was very wise in my opinion. It may lower Hamlet's chances to get revenge, but what is revenge if the murderer dies with internal peace?
If Hamlet was to have killed Claudius in that moment, his problems would not have been solved. Even though Hamlet was the rightful heir to the throne after King Hamlet's death, and still the heir after Claudius's death, everyone at court thinks he is truly mad. So he would be the first suspect of the one who committed murder and treason against the king. His title might have saved him if he did not pretend to be mad, but because he did he would have made it more likely for him to die as well.
Now only is Hamlet believed to be mad, but the only other people to know the truth about Claudius's crime are Horatio and the two men who first saw the ghost. What are the chances they would be believed if they took Hamlet's side? That is even if they did. With another King day no one might want to get involved in investigating the trust; was Claudius actually guilty? For all we know as followers of the play, Hamlet could actually be mad and created the ghost and everything that has happened in the play so far in his head. None of what we know could even be true. Imagine if Shakespeare had decided to make us root for Hamlet the whole play, but in reality when writing it he kept it hidden that he made it so Hamlet went insane a long time before the story even started.
Hamlet's hesitation to kill Claudius is understandable. His father's ghost mentioned how he is forced into a purgatory type place until he can burn off his sins because he died before a final confession. Why should Claudius die and have a chance at entering Heaven when he is responsible for both King and Prince Hamlet's suffering? Waiting until there is a more vulnerable time to strike was very wise in my opinion. It may lower Hamlet's chances to get revenge, but what is revenge if the murderer dies with internal peace?
If Hamlet was to have killed Claudius in that moment, his problems would not have been solved. Even though Hamlet was the rightful heir to the throne after King Hamlet's death, and still the heir after Claudius's death, everyone at court thinks he is truly mad. So he would be the first suspect of the one who committed murder and treason against the king. His title might have saved him if he did not pretend to be mad, but because he did he would have made it more likely for him to die as well.
Now only is Hamlet believed to be mad, but the only other people to know the truth about Claudius's crime are Horatio and the two men who first saw the ghost. What are the chances they would be believed if they took Hamlet's side? That is even if they did. With another King day no one might want to get involved in investigating the trust; was Claudius actually guilty? For all we know as followers of the play, Hamlet could actually be mad and created the ghost and everything that has happened in the play so far in his head. None of what we know could even be true. Imagine if Shakespeare had decided to make us root for Hamlet the whole play, but in reality when writing it he kept it hidden that he made it so Hamlet went insane a long time before the story even started.
Tuesday, May 5, 2015
To Pass the Critiques or Not To Pass the Critiques: My Opinion of the "To Be or Not To Be" Solilioquy
The quote "To be, or not to be," is said by many people. Not everyone knows the true meaning of those words, and the depth they hold. When the play Hamlet is adapted into a film, the directors have the scene played out how they imagine it to be, just like any other part of the play. Since the To Be or Not To Be soliloquy is so famous, the scene is one of the more critiques ones.
Lawrence Olivier's adaptation of the scene is one of my favorites. Hamlet is laying across the top of the castle overlooking the ocean as the waves crash against the rocky coastline. As he speaks about life and death, and contemplates the pros and cons of each one, he is literally on the edge. I like how Hamlet being so close to the edge the audience might not be sure if he will fall or not parallels what he is saying about choosing between living and killing himself. Then as he goes into the part of his soliloquy where he talks about why people choose life, he jumps off the edge and onto a flat part of the castle where he is more safe than before. Also, when Hamlet talks about a Bare Bodkin, I like how he pulls one out. He mentions death came come so easy, even from a Bare Bodkin. So showing how easy it was to come across the dagger, or way of death, was a nice detail I appreciated. The way the character physically shows what's going on in his mind really caught my attention.
In Zeffirelli's version, Hamlet is walking throughout the catacombs beneath the castle. He is walking where the living would go to see the dead, like how his speech his about living but death also being so close and an option. Mel Gibson plays Hamlet as if he is truly mad in this scene, which seems to fit how Hamlet might feel in that moment. I liked small details in the scene, such as the light fading as Hamlet walked down the stairs to the catacombs. Like how Hamlet was directing his mind into a darker place at the same time. One detail I disliked about this adaptation was that once again the scene was too dark in multiple moments, making it hard to focus on what was being shown.
Branagh's adaptation caught my attention again as well. Having Hamlet clutching the dagger and twirling it within his fingers while speaking into the double sided mirror was great. The scene kept me interested as the tone of Hamlet's voice varied from a calm, not aware that he was thinking out loud voice, to a tone that seemed threatening.
Almereyda! On my last blog post I may have been a bit too hard on Almeryda's adaptation, but this scene impressed me. It placed Hamlet in a Blockbuster store where he was aimlessly walking around the aisles. As his speech started to turn towards the point of where Hamlet mentions action and how not everyone takes it, Hamlet walks down another "Action" film aisle. There he looks back and forth, almost unsure of what to do. Like what he mentions in his soliloquy. There were also moments where Hamlet was not moving his mouth, but instead there were voice overs so it was actually like being in Hamlet's head. Which is how the play would have been written if styled like a book.
Seeing another scene from the different adaptations of Hamlet gave me even more insights to how others view Hamlet. The "To Be or Not To Be" scene had me far more impressed with each film compared to just seeing the also famous Ghost scene.
Lawrence Olivier's adaptation of the scene is one of my favorites. Hamlet is laying across the top of the castle overlooking the ocean as the waves crash against the rocky coastline. As he speaks about life and death, and contemplates the pros and cons of each one, he is literally on the edge. I like how Hamlet being so close to the edge the audience might not be sure if he will fall or not parallels what he is saying about choosing between living and killing himself. Then as he goes into the part of his soliloquy where he talks about why people choose life, he jumps off the edge and onto a flat part of the castle where he is more safe than before. Also, when Hamlet talks about a Bare Bodkin, I like how he pulls one out. He mentions death came come so easy, even from a Bare Bodkin. So showing how easy it was to come across the dagger, or way of death, was a nice detail I appreciated. The way the character physically shows what's going on in his mind really caught my attention.
In Zeffirelli's version, Hamlet is walking throughout the catacombs beneath the castle. He is walking where the living would go to see the dead, like how his speech his about living but death also being so close and an option. Mel Gibson plays Hamlet as if he is truly mad in this scene, which seems to fit how Hamlet might feel in that moment. I liked small details in the scene, such as the light fading as Hamlet walked down the stairs to the catacombs. Like how Hamlet was directing his mind into a darker place at the same time. One detail I disliked about this adaptation was that once again the scene was too dark in multiple moments, making it hard to focus on what was being shown.
Branagh's adaptation caught my attention again as well. Having Hamlet clutching the dagger and twirling it within his fingers while speaking into the double sided mirror was great. The scene kept me interested as the tone of Hamlet's voice varied from a calm, not aware that he was thinking out loud voice, to a tone that seemed threatening.
Almereyda! On my last blog post I may have been a bit too hard on Almeryda's adaptation, but this scene impressed me. It placed Hamlet in a Blockbuster store where he was aimlessly walking around the aisles. As his speech started to turn towards the point of where Hamlet mentions action and how not everyone takes it, Hamlet walks down another "Action" film aisle. There he looks back and forth, almost unsure of what to do. Like what he mentions in his soliloquy. There were also moments where Hamlet was not moving his mouth, but instead there were voice overs so it was actually like being in Hamlet's head. Which is how the play would have been written if styled like a book.
Seeing another scene from the different adaptations of Hamlet gave me even more insights to how others view Hamlet. The "To Be or Not To Be" scene had me far more impressed with each film compared to just seeing the also famous Ghost scene.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)