Hamlet

Par William Shakespeare

Une édition de référence d’Hamlet de William Shakespeare, traduit par François-Victor Hugo, spécialement conçue pour la lecture sur les supports numériques.

« Hamlet. Être, ou ne pas être, c'est là la question. Y a-t-il plus de noblesse d'âme à subir la fronde et les flèches de la fortune outrageante, ou bien à s'armer contre une mer de douleurs et à l'arrêter par une révolte ? Mourir... dormir, rien de plus... et dire que par ce sommeil nous mettons fin aux maux du cœur et aux mille tortures naturelles qui sont le legs de la chair : c'est là un dénouement qu'on doit souhaiter avec ferveur. Mourir... dormir, dormir ! peut-être rêver ! Oui, là est l'embarras. Car quels rêves peut-il nous venir dans ce sommeil de la mort, quand nous sommes débarrassés de l'étreinte de cette vie ? » (Extrait de l’acte III, scène 1.)

• Langue: Français
• Éditeur: Candide & Cyrano
• Date de sortie: 1 janv. 2012
• ISBN: 9782806240187

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare is widely regarded as the greatest playwright the world has seen. He produced an astonishing amount of work; 37 plays, 154 sonnets, and 5 poems. He died on 23rd April 1616, aged 52, and was buried in the Holy Trinity Church, Stratford.

Aperçu du livre

Le plus grand soin a été apporté à la mise au point de ce livre numérique de la collection Candide & Cyrano, afin d’assurer une qualité éditoriale et un confort de lecture optimaux.

Malgré ce souci constant, il se peut que subsistent d’éventuelles coquilles ou erreurs. Les éditeurs seraient infiniment reconnaissants envers leurs lectrices et lecteurs attentifs s’ils avaient l’amabilité de signaler ces imperfections à l’adresse [e-mail].

Hamlet

William Shakespeare

Traduit par François-Victor Hugo.

Personnages

Claudius, roi de Danemark.

Hamlet, fils du précédent roi, neveu du roi actuel.

Polonius, chambellan.

Horatio, ami d’Hamlet.

Laertes, fils de Polonius.

Voltimand, courtisan.

Cornélius, courtisan.

Rosencrantz, courtisan.

Guildenstern, courtisan.

Osric, courtisan.

Un gentilhomme.

Un prêtre.

Marcellus, officier.

Bernardo, officier.

Francisco, soldat.

Reynaldo, serviteur de Polonius.

Comédiens.

Deux paysans, fossoyeurs.

Fortinbras, prince de Norvège.

Un capitaine.

Ambassadeurs anglais.

Gertrude, reine de Danemark et mère d'Hamlet.

Ophélia, fille de Polonius.

Le spectre du père d'Hamlet.

Seigneurs, dames, officiers, soldats, matelots, messagers, gens de suite.

(La scène est à Elseneur.)

Acte I

Scène 1

(Elseneur, une plate-forme devant le château.)

Francisco est en faction. Bernardo vient à lui.

Bernardo. Qui est là ?

Francisco. Non, répondez-moi, vous ! Halte ! Faites-vous reconnaître vous-même.

Bernardo. Vive le roi !

Francisco. Bernardo ?

Bernardo. Lui-même.

Francisco. Vous venez très exactement à votre heure.

Bernardo. Minuit vient de sonner ; va te mettre au lit, Francisco.

Francisco. Grand merci de venir ainsi me relever ! Le froid est aigre, et je suis transi jusqu'au cœur.

Bernardo. Avez-vous eu une faction tranquille ?

Francisco. Pas même une souris qui ait remué !

Bernardo. Allons, bonne nuit ! Si vous rencontrez Horatio et Marcellus, mes camarades de garde, dites-leur de se dépêcher.

(Entrent Horatio et Marcellus.)

Francisco. Je pense que je les entends. Halte ! Qui va là !

Horatio. Amis de ce pays.

Marcellus. Hommes liges du roi danois.

Francisco. Bonne nuit !

Marcellus. Ah ! adieu, honnête soldat ! Qui vous a relevé ?

Francisco. Bernardo a pris ma place. Bonne nuit !

(Francisco sort.)

Marcellus. Holà ! Bernardo !

Bernardo. Réponds donc. Est-ce Horatio qui est là ?

Horatio. C'est toujours bien un morceau de lui.

Bernardo. Bienvenu, Horatio ! Bienvenu, bon Marcellus !

Marcellus. Eh bien ! cet être a-t-il reparu cette nuit ?

Bernardo. Je n'ai rien vu.

Marcellus. Horatio dit que c'est uniquement notre imagination, et il ne veut pas se laisser prendre par la croyance à cette terrible apparition que deux fois nous avons vue. Voilà pourquoi je l'ai pressé de faire avec nous, cette nuit, une minutieuse veillée, afin que, si la vision revient encore, il puisse confirmer nos regards et lui parler.

Horatio. Bah ! bah ! elle ne paraîtra pas.

Bernardo. Asseyez-vous un moment, que nous rebattions encore une fois vos oreilles, si bien fortifiées contre notre histoire, du récit de ce que nous avons vu deux nuits.

Horatio. Soit ! asseyons-nous, et écoutons ce que Bernardo va nous dire.

Bernardo. C'était justement la nuit dernière, alors que cette étoile, là-bas, qui va du pôle vers l'ouest, avait terminé son cours pour illuminer cette partie du ciel où elle flamboie maintenant. Marcellus et moi, la cloche sonnait alors une heure...

Marcellus. Paix, interromps-toi !... Regarde ! Le voici qui revient.

(Le spectre entre.)

Bernardo. Avec la même forme, semblable au roi qui est mort.

Marcellus. Tu es un savant : parle-lui, Horatio.

Bernardo. Ne ressemble-t-il pas au roi ? Regarde-le bien, Horatio.

Horatio. Tout à fait ! Je suis labouré par la peur et par l'étonnement.

Bernardo. Il voudrait qu’on lui parlât.

Marcellus. Questionne-le, Horatio.

Horatio. Qui es-tu, toi qui usurpes cette heure de la nuit et cette forme noble et guerrière sous laquelle la majesté ensevelie du Danemark marchait naguère ? Je te somme au nom du ciel, parle.

Marcellus. Il est offensé.

Bernardo. Vois ! il s'en va fièrement.

Horatio. Arrête ; parle ! je te somme de parler ; parle !

(Le spectre sort.)

Marcellus. Il est parti, et ne veut pas répondre.

Bernardo. Eh bien ! Horatio, vous tremblez et vous êtes tout pâle ! Ceci n'est-il rien de plus que de l'imagination ? Qu'en pensez-vous ?

Horatio. Devant mon Dieu, je n'aurais pu le croire, sans le témoignage sensible et évident de mes propres yeux.

Marcellus. Ne ressemble-t-il pas au roi ?

Horatio. Comme tu te ressembles à toi-même. C'était bien là l'armure qu'il portait, quand il combattit l'audacieux Norvégien ; ainsi il fronçait le sourcil alors que, dans une entrevue furieuse, il écrasa sur la glace les Polonais en traîneaux. C'est étrange !

Marcellus. Deux fois déjà, et justement à cette heure de mort, il a passé avec cette démarche martiale près de notre poste.

Horatio. Quel sens particulier donner à ceci ? Je n'en sais rien ; mais, à en juger en gros et de prime abord, c'est le présage de quelque étrange catastrophe dans l'État.

Marcellus. Eh bien ! asseyons-nous ; et que celui qui le sait me dise pourquoi ces gardes si strictes et si rigoureuses fatiguent ainsi toutes les nuits les sujets de ce royaume ! Pourquoi tous ces canons de bronze fondus chaque jour, et toutes ces munitions de guerre achetées à l'étranger ? Pourquoi ces presses faites sur les charpentiers de navire, dont la rude tâche ne distingue plus le dimanche du reste de la semaine ? Quel peut être le but de cette activité toute haletante, qui fait de la nuit la compagne de travail du jour ? Qui pourra m'expliquer cela ?

Horatio. Je puis le faire, du moins, d'après la rumeur qui court. Notre feu roi, dont l'image vient de vous apparaître, fut, comme vous savez, provoqué à un combat par Fortinbras de Norvège, que piquait un orgueil jaloux. Dans ce combat, notre vaillant Hamlet (car cette partie du monde connu l'estimait pour tel) tua ce Fortinbras. En vertu d'un contrat bien scellé, dûment ratifié par la justice et par les hérauts, Fortinbras perdit avec la vie toutes les terres qu'il possédait et qui revinrent au vainqueur. Contre ce gage, une portion équivalente avait été risquée par notre roi, à charge d'être réunie au patrimoine de Fortinbras, si celui-ci eût triomphé. Ainsi les biens de Fortinbras, d'après le traité et la teneur formelle de certains articles, ont dû échoir à Hamlet. Maintenant, mon cher, le jeune Fortinbras, écervelé, tout plein d'une ardeur fougueuse, a ramassé çà et là, sur les frontières de Norvège, une bande d'aventuriers sans feu ni lieu, enrôlés, moyennant les vivres et la paye, pour quelque entreprise hardie ; or il n'a d'autre but (et cela est prouvé à notre gouvernement) que de reprendre sur nous, par un coup de main et par des moyens violents, les terres susdites, ainsi perdues par son père. Et voilà, je pense, la cause principale de nos préparatifs, la raison des gardes qu'on nous fait monter, et le grand motif du train de poste et du remue-ménage que vous voyez dans le pays.

Bernardo. Je pense que ce ne peut être autre chose ; tu as raison. Cela pourrait bien expliquer pourquoi cette figure prodigieuse passe tout armée à travers nos postes, si semblable au roi qui était et qui est encore l'occasion de ces guerres.

Horatio. Il suffit d'un atome pour troubler l'œil de l'esprit. À l'époque la plus glorieuse et la plus florissante de Rome, un peu avant que tombât le tout-puissant Jules César, les tombeaux laissèrent échapper leurs hôtes, et les morts en linceul allèrent, poussant des cris rauques, dans les rues de Rome. On vit aussi des astres avec des queues de flamme, des rosées de sang, des signes désastreux dans le soleil, et l'astre humide sous l'influence duquel est l'empire de Neptune s'évanouit dans une éclipse, à croire que c'était le jour du jugement. Ces mêmes signes précurseurs d'événements terribles, messagers toujours en avant des destinées, prologue des catastrophes imminentes, le ciel et la terre les ont fait apparaître dans nos climats à nos compatriotes. (Le spectre reparaît.) Mais, chut ! Regardez ! là ! Il revient encore ! Je vais lui barrer le passage, dût-il me foudroyer. Arrête, illusion ! Si tu as un son, une voix dont tu fasses usage, parle-moi ! S'il y a à faire quelque bonne action qui puisse contribuer à ton soulagement et à mon salut, parle-moi ! Si tu es dans le secret de quelque malheur national, qu'un avertissement pourrait peut-être prévenir, oh ! parle. Ou si tu as enfoui pendant ta vie dans le sein de la terre un trésor extorqué, ce pourquoi, dit-on, vous autres esprits vous errez souvent après la mort, dis-le-moi. (Le coq chante.) Arrête et parle... Retiens-le, Marcellus.

Marcellus. Le frapperai-je de ma pertuisane ?

Horatio. Oui, s'il ne veut pas s'arrêter.

Bernardo. Il est ici !

Horatio. Il est ici ! 

(Le spectre sort.)

Marcellus. Il est parti ! Nous avons tort de faire à un être si majestueux ces menaces de violence ; car il est, comme l'air, invulnérable ; et nos vains coups ne seraient qu'une méchante moquerie.

Bernardo. Il allait parler quand le coq a chanté.

Horatio. Et alors, il a bondi comme un être coupable à une effrayante sommation. J'ai ouï dire que le coq, qui est le clairon du matin, avec son cri puissant et aigu, éveille le dieu du jour ; et qu'à ce signal, qu'ils soient dans la mer ou dans le feu, dans la terre ou dans l'air, les esprits égarés et errants regagnent en hâte leurs retraites ; et la preuve nous en est donnée par ce que nous venons de voir.

Marcellus. Il s'est évanoui au chant du coq. On dit qu'aux approches de la saison où l'on célèbre la naissance du Sauveur, l'oiseau de l'aube chante toute la nuit ; et alors, dit-on, aucun esprit n'ose s'aventurer dehors. Les nuits sont saines ; alors, pas d'étoile qui frappe, pas de fée qui jette des sorts, pas de sorcière qui ait le pouvoir de charmer ; tant cette époque est bénie et pleine de grâce !

Horatio. C'est aussi ce que j'ai ouï dire, et j'en crois quelque chose. Mais, voyez ! le matin, vêtu de son manteau roux, s'avance sur la rosée de cette haute colline, là-bas à l'Orient. Finissons notre faction, et, si vous m'en croyez, faisons part de ce que nous avons vu cette nuit au jeune Hamlet ; car, sur ma vie ! Cet esprit, muet pour nous, lui parlera. Consentez-vous à cette confidence, aussi impérieuse à notre dévouement que conforme à notre devoir ?

Marcellus. Faisons cela, je vous prie ! je sais où, ce matin, nous avons le plus de chance de le trouver.

Scène 2

(Salle d'état dans le château.)

Entrent le roi, la reine, Hamlet, Polonius, Laertes, Voltimand, Cornélius,

Avis sur Hamlet

[pgchuis · Évaluation : 4 sur 5 étoiles]

More of the action seemed to happen off-stage than on! Excellent notes, and again many familiar lines I have seen referenced another literature and in everyday speech. Most of the cast dead by the end...

[stormydawnc · Évaluation : 4 sur 5 étoiles]

My favorite of Shakespeare's plays(that I've read). Is there a more interesting character than Hamlet? The amazing this about this play is that I know the end from the very beginning, but I'm always compelled to read on.

[chrisblocker · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

I’ve seen quite a few Shakespeare productions and have read several other works. Surprisingly, in all my years, Hamlet has escaped me. Don’t ask me how—despite never missing a day of high school, and attaining a degree in English and a Master’s in writing, and being alive—I have never read or seen a production of Hamlet. I decided to remedy that.No surprises here. It’s typical Shakespeare. Betrayal, mistaken identities, honor, incest, duels, poison, death, death, and death. The story itself didn’t make much of an impact on me, but what did was the language. Of all of Shakespeare I am familiar with, this one stood out as having the most memorable lines. Sure, I knew the whole “To be or not to be” monologue was present, but there are so many others that were not only familiar, but memorable with reason. An obvious classic despite being very run-of-the-mill in terms of Shakespeare’s work.

[the1butterfly · Évaluation : 4 sur 5 étoiles]

I've had this hanging around since I think senior year of high school when I started to read it and never finished, but I was inspired to pick it up and re-do it because Crash Course on YouTube covered it and I wanted to know the play before watching the video. This is kind of a must-read because there are so many quotes (beyond just "To be or not to be"), and it's one of those things you need to read to be culturally literate (admittedly, I now feel bad waiting so long). It wasn't the most exciting story to me- Hamlet is upset from the start with his uncle marrying his mother, but he kind of bides his time and bides it some more and some more... I get that he wants to verify what his uncle has done, but he dithers and even when he is certain goes to England rather than take action. Meanwhile I remembered that Ophelia committed suicide, so I was curious about her role. Was she completely freaked out by her father's death or was she upset about Hamlet being kind of obnoxious (he blames his mother, but then he takes it out on Ophelia) and he's very back and forth with her. I can understand why he has to go emo and muse about life and death constantly, but he dragged everyone else in it with him. Horatio's about the only guy who can get away with knowing Hamlet and living. I don't feel like I get to appreciate justice being served with Claudius dying when every other character dies with him and Denmark is given over to some foreign prince. The ambiguity is part of what makes this play famous and studied (What's Queen Gertrude's role? Was she beguiled by Claudius or a partner in his crimes?), but it's also a bit unsettling. It is not a very restful play.

[xleptodactylous · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

Hamlet was the original diva, mmhhmm.

[trilliams · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

Oh, Hamlet, Hamlet, Hamlet, Hamlet, Hamlet. Get thee to a nunnery.

[ashdwyer · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

While this book is incredibly depressing, the story is one that holds your attention the entire time. Shakespeare seems to be good at doing that...

[mrslee_1 · Évaluation : 4 sur 5 étoiles]

I refuse to offer up a literary review on Shakespeare. I wouldn't presume. However, I will say that I enjoyed this dark story. Watching a man descend into madness, yet still retain enough sanity to accomplish his purpose is drama at its best. Half the fun for me is finding out where all the quotes one hears all the time come from.

[msnikki · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

Read it in Sixth Form and it spoiled me for Julius Ceaser.It is a wonderful complex read. And trying to discover all the layers is part of the fun.At its base, Hamlet is a prince called to avenge his late father the murdered King of Denmark. Yet it's not as simple as that. Hamlet's birthright has him in turmoil with himself, and then there is the issue of his mother and her new husband, the King's brother.A modern version would be tacky and full of soap opera bachannal...but Shakesphere's play is a serious psychological study of a young man who should be King.

[nikkles_1 · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

I have loved this play since I first read it in high school. I find it both very tragic (but in a heroic kind of way) and very funny. I remember laughing at the fishwife dialogue in the library and my class mate thinking I was terribly odd. It doesn't matter, I still think this book is beautiful to read and very funny.

[cebellol · Évaluation : 4 sur 5 étoiles]

Possibly one of the only tragedies Shakespeare wrote that I can really, truly say I enjoyed. I really can't say much about it without ruining it though, so I'll just say READ IT (avoid the movie until you've done so though. I really like Kenneth Branagh, but it's just a little overkill.)

[hollyinnnv · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

I do not have a degree in literature, so maybe I am unqualified to remark on this classic work. However, one of the hallmarks of a classic is that many people enjoy it and read it. So, I'm going to go ahead and forge on with this review anyway.I teach high school literature to a group of students weekly. We read Hamlet after finishing Richard III. The students were much more passionate about Hamlet. And when I use the term passion, I mean that in both a positive and negative sense. Some of the students felt Hamlet was a whiny, pathetic nincompoop. Other students were impressed with Hamlet's deceptive insanity and classified him as a hero, although of a more darker variety of heroes.Some of the more interesting discussion topics included the following:1. Does Hamlet rule events or do events rule Hamlet?2. What is the definition of a hero? Does Hamlet fit that definition?3. Is Hamlet truly insane? What is the definition of insanity? 4. Is inaction actually action?Even when the students disliked Hamlet, they still seemed to feel that his character had a depth of authenticity. Because of Hamlet's "realness," they were able to feel the play and feel Hamlet more than some of the other characters they have read about this year, like Aeneas, Antigone and Richard III. It felt like a clinical, dispassionate discussion with the other works of literature. But, the Hamlet discussion was real.During our classroom discussions we remarked on the fact that the play seemed full ambiguity. Could we trust ourselves to make any determinations. One student humorously remarked that maybe Shakespeare did this purposefully, laughing at all of the confusion and argument that this would create in future generations.And while Hamlet is not my favorite work of Shakespeare, I do think it has a timeless value. Everyone should read or see it!

[lit_chick_2 · Évaluation : 4 sur 5 étoiles]

“Something is rotten in the state of Denmark!” (1.4) Indeed!I thoroughly enjoyed a recent reread of Hamlet, and was much impressed with its layers of illusion, ambiguity, and deception – absolutely brilliant! And I had forgotten how many great lines, still used today with regularity, had their origin in Hamlet; “To be or not to be …” is the most obvious and unforgettable, of course, but there are many more! How about “This above all: to thine own self be true” (1.3), or “What a piece of work is man!” (2.2). And, in some modern English equivalent, who has not said, “Though this be madness, yet there is method in ‘t” (2.2). The wise old adage about the danger of doing business with friends is from Hamlet, too: “Neither a borrower nor a lender be,/For loan oft loses both itself and friend” (1.3). But alas, “The lady doth protest too much, methinks” (3.2). Finally, I couldn’t but marvel at Shakespeare’s continued influence some four hundred years after his time; and this lead me to wonder who, if any, among our contemporary writers, will we (well, not you and I, but others) be quoting four centuries hence?

[tiffanyak_1 · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

This is truly an amazing work, and is a very well-known story. Even if you haven't read the play, or seen any of the film versions, you probably have heard enough to know much of what happens, and are likely familiar with several very famous lines. This was my first time reading the play, and I truly loved it, because it does go far beyond just the famous lines and core story. There is true depth here, with layers of meaning that really strike at the soul of the audience. As to the edition itself, I found it to be greatly helpful in understanding the action in the play. It has a layout which places each page of the play opposite a page of notes, definitions, explanations, and other things needed to understand that page more thoroughly. While I didn't always need it, I was certainly glad to have it whenever I ran into a turn of language that was unfamiliar, and I definitely appreciated the scene-by-scene summaries. Really, if you want to or need to read Shakespeare, an edition such as this is really the way to go, especially until you get more accustomed to it.

[lhlogan1 · Évaluation : 4 sur 5 étoiles]

Good solid Shakespeare read. A bit too much of a "he did, she did" plot at times.

[tonyasbooks_1 · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

Shakespeare is not easy to understand. This version tries to make it easier for you by defining many archaic terms and spacing out the lines so that it doesn't look like a dense book, and so that you can add your own annotations. I read this in my high school senior English class (albeit with the CliffNotes edition, which has handy explanatory summaries but fewer definitions), and I have to say that the play is easier to appreciate with a teacher pointing out Shakespeare's literary techniques and explaining the situations.

[tadad_1 · Évaluation : 4 sur 5 étoiles]

This continues to remain my second-least-favorite of the seven Tragedies I've read so far. This preference isn't based upon the quality of the play qua play; it boils down to the fact that I simply don't enjoy Mr. Prince Hamlet, Jr. Despite some arguments to the contrary, he still comes across to me as a bipolar obsessive with impulse control problems, a distinct lack of responsibility, a poor attitude toward girlfriends and who, if we read only what is written, appears to make monumental judgments about his mother on little or no evidence. In other words, I don't like him. Of course, I don't particularly like fellows such as Mr. Macbeth either, but it's a different lack of esteem: a dislike for the bad guy (which is a sneaking regard) rather than a disdain for the self-absorbed.I find the characters of Polonius, Ophelia and Gertrude much more intriguing in this play and I do enjoy it for them. So, while I love the language of this play, and the supporting cast, and acknowledge the structure and plot, I still don't enjoy it as much as a romp through Birnham Wood or, better yet, Lear's Britain.

[nules_1 · Évaluation : 2 sur 5 étoiles]

This was a reasonably enjoyable Shakespearean play. It's kind of wild. It's not long, but not the shortest of his plays, either.

[mbmackay · Évaluation : 4 sur 5 étoiles]

It feels odd to be giving Shakespeare a rating in stars - who am I to judge?After many many years, I re-read Hamlet in a fine edition by Signature Shakespeare. This is a beautifully produced book and has a helpful layout with the original text supplemented with meanings of obscure words and suggested explanations for passages. It was a treat to read, and improved my appreciation of the text.I can't see it making it big in prime time - all the lead characters end up dead, but it is a tragedy!Read February 2015.

[ysabeau_1 · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

The Tormented Boy who spawned an entire genus of Tormented Boys. My Ur-story.

[john257hopper · Évaluation : 3 sur 5 étoiles]

To commemorate in my own small way the 400th anniversary of the Bard's death, I decided to read Hamlet for the first time in my life. While one of his greatest plays, I don't enjoy this as much as Macbeth or Romeo and Juliet, which I studied at school and have enjoyed also in adulthood. There are some amazing scenes, though, and the flow of phrases which have entered the English language from this play alone comes thick and fast.

[mzzkitee · Évaluation : 4 sur 5 étoiles]

One of the greatest works ever written.

[floratina · Évaluation : 3 sur 5 étoiles]

READ IN ENGLISH

To be or not to be; that is the question

That's probably one of the best known parts of Western literature.
I never really like Shakespeare (okay, I only read Romeo and Juliet and my school forced me to do so), but things have changed a bit lately after I went to see a theatre production of The Tempest in London's Globe Theatre.
So, why not try and read Hamlet? (The Tempest will be read as well, as soon as I have the time to do so)
Indeed, and I liked the play. It was still a relatively easy read and great for some winter evenings.

[rosenstern · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

After King Lear, this is one of my favorites. Hamlet, in short, is the Lion King. Rather, I should say The Lion King is Hamlet. My reassurance of Shakespeare's credibility and talent is purely unnecessary so a review is kind of pointless. But if you liked the Lion King, attempt Shakespeare's version. It has more blood and wit.

[kswanteck · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

Shakespeare is good to teach in any classroom, because it is so timeless. The struggles Hamlet faces throughout this play, wondering who he is and what he should do, are things that everyone goes through at some point in their life. Students could really see character development and inner struggles within a character while reading Hamlet. It could also be a good way to get students to interact with a text, because it is a play and they could act it out.

[kmass_2 · Évaluation : 3 sur 5 étoiles]

By far the best Shakespeare play ever, and that's saying a lot. It's just so incredibly complex. Hamlet's soliloquies give insight into the human psyche that even most novels, let alone dramas, can't match. And Horatio just might be my favorite Shakespeare character of all time,

[the_awesome_opossum · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

Hamlet's an amazingly dynamic and complex play about the lure of death and the struggle against inaction. Wonderful and dark and always a pleasure to read

[kellyholmes-1 · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

One of my favorite Shakespeare works.

[regularguy5mb · Évaluation : 5 sur 5 étoiles]

This is, I believe, my absolute favorite of Shakespeare's tragedies. Primarily because Hamlet is a thinker throughout most of the play. When we first meet him, he is thinking of the inevitability of death and the loss of his father. Then he is tasked to dispatch his uncle when he learns from his father's ghost that Claudius poisoned him for his crown, and he spends the rest of the story considering the logistics of actually doing the deed.Many of my favorite Shakespeare lines also come from Hamlet, not only the brilliant soliloquies, but also little bits like "neither a borrower nor a lender be," "sweets for the sweet," and "goodnight, sweet prince." Also, Hamlet provided the inspiration for one of my favorite modern plays, "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead."This particular edition also includes a series of essays on the play and Shakespeare's writing, my favorite of which is an in-depth look at Gertrude by Carolyn Heilbrun in a piece titled "The Character of Hamlet's Mother." It also ends with a look at Hamlet on stage and screen, breaking down the various and varied performances of Hamlet through the years, ending with the Laurence Olivier film version (fitting since that is what inspired me to reread the play this time around).I'm pretty sure this exact copy was my sister's in high school, it is also filled with several notes written by her hand, in pencil, in the margins.

[misslizzy_1 · Évaluation : 3 sur 5 étoiles]

I read this play once during my senior year of high school, and have yet to read it since, but something about it makes me like it. Scandal amongst royal families will ALWAYS be interesting, I suppose.