Hamlet or The Crucible?

Next term we will be studying a drama text and I am opening this up to a vote for those of you who use the blog.

We have a choice between "Hamlet" and "The Crucible". Below is a short plot synopsis for each one. Post a comment up suggesting which of the two you would prefer to study and the one with the most comments will win. You have until Friday 6th October to make a choice and explain why!!


"Hamlet" -

The play concerns the revenge of Prince Hamlet, whose father, the late King of Denmark, victor over the Polish army, died suddenly while Hamlet was away from home at Wittenberg University, supposedly bitten by a poisonous snake. Prior to the opening of the play, the King's brother Claudius has been proclaimed king, and cemented his claim to the throne by marrying Hamlet's mother Gertrude, the widowed Queen.
The play opens on the battlements of Elsinore Castle, seat of the Danish monarchy, where a group of sentries are visited by the ghost of the recently deceased King Hamlet. Hamlet's friend Horatio joins the soldiers on their watch and when the ghost appears, bids it to speak. They suspect it has some message to deliver, but it vanishes without speaking.
The next day, the Danish court meets to celebrate the wedding of Claudius and Gertrude. The new King urges Hamlet not to persist in his grief. When he is alone, Hamlet expresses his anger at the accession of his uncle Claudius to the throne and his mother's hasty remarriage. Horatio and the guards come to the scene and tell him of the appearance of the ghost of his father. Hamlet is determined to investigate this.
Joining Horatio on the watch on the battlements that night, the ghost appears again. It beckons him to come along with him and then reveals a fearful secret: his father was murdered. He was poisoned through the ear by Claudius, and the Ghost commands Hamlet to avenge him. Shocked by this discovery, Hamlet returns to Horatio and the sentries, making them swear an oath not to reveal details of the night's events to anyone.
"But know, thou noble youth,
The serpent that did sting thy father's life
Now wears his crown."
[Act 1, Scene 5]
Hamlet is unsure whether the ghost he has seen is really his father, and suspects that it might be the Devil taking his father's appearance in order to take his soul to hell. He therefore sets out to test the king's conscience through putting on an "antic disposition" (feigning madness), in the hope that his behaviour might reveal the truth, or otherwise provide an opportunity to kill Claudius.
Hamlet feigns insanity in order to convict Claudius of murder and treason, and takes particular delight in making a fool of Polonius, the king's chief councillor. Polonius, convinced of Hamlet's madness, is certain that it stems from his unrequited love for his daughter Ophelia, whom both he and Laertes forbade to continue her relationship with Hamlet. Polonius fears for his status at court and offers his services to the King in this matter in an attempt to redeem himself before the King of any guilt. He suggests arranging a meeting between Hamlet and Ophelia during which Polonius and Claudius will spy upon them both. Claudius, perhaps suspecting Hamlet's ruse, also asks Hamlet's schoolmates Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to monitor him, but Hamlet does not let his guard down and sees the intention behind his schoolmates' sudden visit. He enlists a company of travelling performers to stage an existing play, The Murder of Gonzago, which he has modified to re-enact the circumstances of his father's murder.
"The play's the thing
Wherein I'll catch the conscience of the King."
[Act II, scene II]
Shortly after the play begins, Claudius, who cannot bear to watch, rises calling for lights. The king's anguished reaction to the performance (which Horatio also notices) convinces Hamlet of his guilt. Shortly afterwards, Claudius arranges for Hamlet to be deported to the Danish territories of England along with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, where he is to be killed upon arrival. Alone, Claudius privately expresses his disgust at what he has done, and offers a prayer of repentance. Hamlet discovers Claudius at prayer and prepares to kill him, but then stops, reasoning that he does not want his revenge to have the result of sending the repentant Claudius to Heaven. Ironically, after Hamlet slips away, Claudius concludes that he is unable to repent in his current state of mind; thus, if Hamlet had not attempted to arrogate to himself the destiny of Claudius's soul, rather than just his life, he would have achieved the ultimate justice he sought. By trying to go beyond the ghost's orders, he has doomed his efforts to failure.
Hamlet confronts his mother about the murder of his father and her sexual relations with her new husband. During their conversation, he stabs Polonius, who has been hiding behind a tapestry and eavesdropping on their conversation. Initially suspecting his victim was Claudius, he appears unrepentant and unconcerned when Polonius is revealed, continuing to admonish his mother. King Hamlet's ghost makes a reappearance to rebuke Hamlet. Hamlet's mother cannot see the ghost, but sees him conversing with it, convinced that her son has really gone mad.
Claudius, who has finally understood Hamlet's real motivation, sends Hamlet to England, supposedly for his safety, but accompanied by a sealed letter to the English ordering his death. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are sent along to ensure the orders are carried out. When later he returns to Denmark, Hamlet describes how his ship was attacked by pirates, who took him prisoner but then returned him to Denmark.
During Hamlet's absence, Ophelia, gravely disturbed by Hamlet's rejection and the death of Polonius, goes insane. She sings a number of rustic melodies that Shakespeare may have borrowed from the English folk tradition. Meanwhile, Laertes, her brother, leads a mob to Elsinore when he hears of his father's death. He also discovers his precious sister's madness, and is even more inclined to avenge his family. Claudius turns Laertes's anger on Hamlet, and they plan to have Laertes fence with Hamlet in a fixed fencing match. Laertes will be using an unbated and poisoned foil. In addition, Claudius prepares some poisoned wine for Hamlet to drink as a toast, in case Laertes is unable to hit him.
"I will do't.
And, for that purpose, I'll anoint my sword.
I bought an unction of a mountebank,
So mortal that, but dip a knife in it,
Where it draws blood... it may be death."
[Act 4, Scene 7]
"I'll have prepared him a chalice for the nonce, wheron but sipping,
If he by chance escape your venomed stuck,
Our purpose may hold there."
[Act 4, Scene 4]
But as they are plotting, Queen Gertrude enters and informs Laertes that his sister drowned in what is a suspected suicide. Laertes runs out of the room, grief-stricken.
Returning from his voyage, Hamlet meets Horatio at a graveyard outside Elsinore castle just as Ophelia's funeral cortege arrives there, where a gravedigger (jester/clown) is digging. Hamlet finds the skull of Yorick (see skull as a symbol), an old jester to the court who carried him on his back during his childhood days, and proclaims, "Here hung those lips that I have kissed I know not how oft." As Hamlet broods on mortality, the cortege arrives with the King, Queen and Laertes. Hamlet is so distraught to learn of Ophelia's death that he leaps into the open grave and grapples with Laertes.
The scene then moves back to the castle, where Hamlet tells Horatio all that has happened at sea, and how he made his escape. There was a sea-battle in which pirates overtook the ship on which Hamlet was sailing. During the confusion, Hamlet found instructions from Claudius to the English court that Hamlet should be killed immediately upon his arrival in England. Hamlet re-writes this death warrant for Rosencrantz and Guildenstern instead. Suddenly, Hamlet and Horatio are interrupted by Osric, who comes to tell them that Claudius has set a large wager that Hamlet can out-fight Laertes (who is famous for his swordsmanship) in a fencing match. Horatio advises Hamlet against this, but Hamlet counters with the fact that if he does not die now, his death will be still to come.
When the match begins, Hamlet wins the first two rounds, and Gertrude drinks some of the wine to toast him, unaware that it is poisoned (although some critics and performances treat this as a deliberate suicide [1]). Hamlet is hit with the sword and fatally poisoned, but in the ensuing brawl, he swaps blades with Laertes, and deals a deep wound to Laertes with the poisoned sword as well. The Queen dies from the wine, warning Hamlet that the drink is poisoned. With his dying breath, Laertes also confesses the whole plot to Hamlet. Enraged, Hamlet kills Claudius with the poisoned weapon, forcing him also to drink the poisoned wine, at last avenging his father's death.
Horatio, horrified at the turn of events, seizes the poisoned wine and proposes to join his friend in death, but Hamlet wrests the cup away from him. He orders him to tell his story to the world to restore his good name. Hamlet also recommends that the Norwegian prince, Fortinbras, be chosen as the successor to the Danish throne. Hamlet dies, and Horatio mourns his passing:
"Now cracks a noble heart: Good night sweet prince:
And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest!"
[Act V, scene II]
Fortinbras enters with English ambassadors. Shocked by the carnage, he orders a military funeral for Hamlet, whilst Horatio offers to relate the whole tale


"The Crucible" -

The Crucible is set in the small Puritan town of Salem, Massachusetts. The play begins with the discovery by the despised local preacher Reverend Parris that some local girls were performing a sinful dance in the woods with the slave Tituba. One of the girls, Parris's daughter, Betty, upon being discovered, falls into an unconscious state. Panic spreads through the village as people believe that witchcraft is afoot. The town sends for the Reverend John Hale, an authority on witchcraft, to investigate. Reverend Parris questions Abigail Williams, the unofficial leader of the group of girls, regarding what took place in the forest. Abigail denies any witchcraft and claims she and the girls were just dancing.
Abigail manipulates the other girls into not revealing what really happened in the forest that same day. She is secretly infatuated with John Proctor with whom she had an affair while working at his home. Proctor has since rejected Abigail, but she is still obssessed with having him. As the witch trials begin, Abigail and the girls lie and find a new power: accusing others of witchcraft. The madness and the hysteria build, and the girls continue to lie to seek revenge against those whom they do not like. Many residents, mainly the old and the sick, are found guilty of denial of witchcraft and are sentenced to execution.
All are fooled by the girls, including Thomas Danforth, the Judge, and many women are brought to trial. These people include John Proctor's wife Elizabeth Proctor and other respectable citizens. Proctor tries to counter the girls by producing Mary, his servant, who is willing to admit the girls lied. However, all the girls accuse her of witchcraft, and Mary eventually accuses Proctor to save herself. By this point, Reverend John Hale realizes the corruption and injustice of the court and attempts to defend Proctor. Proctor is sentenced to death. Hale denounces the proceedings and quits his position within the court. The night before the execution, Proctor gives in to the advice of Reverend Hale. Hale is now a broken man who spends all his time with the prisoners, praying with them and hoping to save their lives from their unjust fates, as the punishment for denying witchcraft is hanging whilst there is no such penalty for pleading guilty and repenting. Hale's advice is to confess, which will get Proctor leniency from execution and save his life. Although Proctor eventually agrees, he will not let the confession be displayed in the church and finally rips it up. The play ends with Proctor being led off to his execution.

Some Essay Questions You May Wish to Think About....

I suggest that you have a good look and think about how you may answer the following questions over the next week (remember that you will be writing an essay in class next week!! Hint Hint).

1. Choose a novel in which your admiration for a particular character grows as the plot unfolds. Explain briefly why your admiration increases and, in more detail, discuss how the writer achieves this.

2. Choose a novel which reaches a climax which you find dramatic or moving or disturbing. Explain how the writer achieves the effect and discuss how it contibutes to your appreciation of the text as a whole.

3. Choose a novel which you enjoyed because of the effectiveness of its ending. Explain how the ending satisfies you and adds to your appreciation of the novel.

Interested in becoming a wider reader?

Hey.

Whilst being off today trying to regain my breath after horrible asthma attack I have found some interesting website. This is a website created by Highland Council to help pupils with Specialist Study choices. There are lots of links to author sites so you might find it useful when working on your own specialist study.

http://highlandschools-virtualib.org.uk/hsenglish/

Galloway website

If you are interested in finding out more about Janice Galloway check out her website:

http://www.galloway.1to1.org/

tips for critical essays

WRITING CRITICAL ESSAYS
The Requirements:

Your critical essay will be assessed on the following criteria: -

Understanding
Analysis
Evaluation
Expression

ANALYSIS No matter how the critical essay question is worded, you will always be asked to give a detailed analysis of the text, quoting, explaining and commenting on examples.

That does not mean, however, that it will be unnecessary to read the question; you will be asked to use your analysis of the text to prove something: that ‘something’ is the important part of the question, and your answer must always be directed towards dealing with it.

EXPRESSION refers to the quality of the essay – how well it is written – in terms of structure, style and language.

Structure it should show a clearly developed line of thought or argument, as you attempt to prove what was asked in the question.

Style should be fluent, communicating your meaning clearly.
-Incorporate short quotations into a sentence.
-Longer quotations should be on a separate line but should still fit into the sense of the surrounding explanation and comment.
-Avoid quoting and then simply translating the quotation into different words; use the quotation to prove the point made.
Remember! Point – Quote – Comment

Language should include the use of appropriate critical terminology; Spelling, sentence construction and punctuation should be accurate.

Length : Minimum 650 words.


PLANNING YOUR ESSAY

Typical question

‘Often a poem is inspired by an incident in the poet’s everyday life. Show how the post uses her experience and, by skilful use of poetic techniques/devices, makes it important to a wider readership’

1. Read the question carefully and underline/highlight what you are being asked to prove e.g. you are asked to show how the poet/author uses an incident in her own life to make a significant comment on something which is of universal importance.


2. Introduction (Understanding)
A short paragraph which should include:
· The title of the text
· The writer’s name, and
· A reference to the main points of the question, in this case the incident and the area of universal importance on which the poet/author is commenting.
· In other words, you are stating, in your first paragraph, what you intend to prove: but avoid the clumsy, non-literary ‘In this essay, I shall prove…’ kind of introduction. Simply write:
‘In her poem, Revelation (title of text), Liz Lochhead (name of writer) recalls an incident from her childhood, when she was taken to see a bull. She goes on to show that this incident, which marked her transition from innocence to experience, illustrates the vulnerability of the female in
the face of male aggression (area of universal importance).


3. ANAYLIS : THE MAIN BODY OF YOUR ESSAY
This part will cover several paragraphs
· Make reference to the question at the beginning of each paragraph, and sum up what you have proved in that paragraph at the end.
· It should be possible to discern your line of thought or argument from a glance at the beginnings and ends of your paragraphs e.g. ‘The incident clearly made a lasting impression on the child … (analysis of description and poet/analysis reaction in the first verse paragraph)…. At the end of the first verse, the emotional impact of the experience on the poet/author reaches a climax with …”
· Work through the text quoting, explaining and commenting on the poetic techniques/devices used by the poet/author.
· Show how each technique/device contributes to the impact of the poem/text, helping you to understand the author’s ideas


4. CONCLUDING SECTION : EVALUATION

· In this final part of your essay, you should respond explicitly to the ideas in the poem/text.
· This response should be directed to the main themes of the poem/text; the kind of things you have discussed in the Evaluation section
· What you have understood about the author’s attitude to the theme(s) she has presented
- The extent to which you agree or disagree with her, giving reasons
· The different ways the author has conveyed her theme(s)/attitudes to you.
- How effectively she has done so
- Whether you found some techniques more effective than others did.
· Whether this poem/text revealed to you anything new, made you think about an are of life you had not considered before, confirmed or changed your mind about any aspect of life.
· End with a few sentences, summing up your argument and making a clear reference to the question you have been answering.


Avoid!
- Do not through down everything you know about the text, stick to the question
- Do not simply tell the story, include a brief summary of the situation
- Do not depart too much from the text when you are relating ideas in the text to your own experience
- Do not write a paragraph on each technique/device used by the writer
- Do not forget the importance of the title: it can often give a clear indication of the main theme

Welcome!!

Hi folks,

nice to see you have bothered to use this resource!

The purpose of this blog is for you to post up essays, revision questions, etc. to help each other. Obviously I will also be popping on to give advice, tips, extra gems of information and just to make sure you are using it!!

Ms. Moore