English 12

Module 6: Hamlet

Section 1: Setting a Reader's Mental Stage

Lesson A: A Ghost Story: the Opening Scene

Ghosts: a range of belief
http://ise.uvic.ca/Library/SLT/ideas/ghosts.html

Facts and Legends
Biographical details about Shakespeare.
http://ise.uvic.ca/Library/SLT/life/lifefacts.html

Lesson B: Politics and Guard Duties

Hamlet Prose Adaptation
For a side by side presentation of the original text and a plain language adaptation.
http://www.lynchmultimedia.com/Hamlet/Adaptation1-1.html

Hamlet Summary
For a scene by scene summary of the plot.
http://www.littanam.ulg.ac.be/hamletenglish.html#summary

Hamlet, Prince of Denmark
For Charles and May Lamb's classic "Tales from Shakespeare" adaptation of the storyline.
http://shakespeare.palomar.edu/lambtales/LTHAMLET.HTM

Bardolatry
The 2000 adaptation starring Ethan Hawke.
http://www.bardolatry.com/hawkeham.htm

Hamlet (1990/I)
The 1990 version starring Mel Gibson.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0099726/

Hamlet Title Search
A full list of Hamlet on film.
http://www.imdb.com/find?tt=on;nm=on;mx=20;q=hamlet

Lesson C: The New King in Command: Claudius

Shakespeare's Youth
http://ise.uvic.ca/Library/SLT/life/youthsubj.html

Lesson D: Hamlet and the Ghost

The Humanist Philosophy
http://www.learner.org/exhibits/renaissance/printing_sub.html

Section 2: Upsetting the Prince's Mental Stage—Act 2

Lesson B: The Art of Uncovering the Truth

To the Memory of My Beloved the Author, Mr. William Shakespeare
By Ben Jonson.
http://rpo.library.utoronto.ca/poem/1117.html

Lesson C: Hamlet as Lover

Shakespeare in Love
This film speculates about how Shakespeare's personal life may have inspired his romantic stories.
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19981225/REVIEWS/812250306/1023

Lesson D: Wisdom of Age: Polonius as Advisor

Did Shakespeare write the 37 plays and dozens of sonnets that bear his name? There has been much debate about how it is that a seemingly poorly educated man of the middle classes could have the sophistication and wit and resources to produce the greatest works of English Literature. As a result, there has been much debate about who, in fact, Shakespeare really is. Is the name William Shakespeare just a nom de plume? Join the debate and explore the following links.

The Shakespeare Mystery
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shakespeare/

A Beginner's Guide to the Shakespeare Authorship Problem
http://www.shakespeare-oxford.com/

The Shakespeare Fellowship
http://www.shakespearefellowship.org/