Hamlet

Hamlet: Week 1


Okay guys, you picked a really tough one! But...I have a feeling that you know that and that's awesome. Since the text is difficult, I'd like for you to have a good working idea of the story line and themes before you read the actual book. The language can be daunting even for well educated adults and it's not fair that you can't enjoy the story just because you don't know the words!! These plays were meant to be seen, not read, so their viewing makes them much, much more enjoyable.

To the left are two video lessons with a pretty spiffy teacher that should get you started. Hamlet (whole works are italicized, but the heading wouldn't let me) is a story of a young man that is terribly conflicted about how to proceed with his life and his indecision, ignorance, and anger are the cause of his downfall. He is grumpy and moody for the entire play and makes everyone miserable in their own right. That's Hamlet in a nutshell, but it takes a GREAT deal of writing to get there.

There was a really, really good version of this staged in London around 2010 with David Tennant and Patrick Stewart. The whole thing is on YouTube in parts and I have pointed you to the first one installment. In addition to this version, there is a version on your Netflix viewing list with Ethan Hawke (2000) that is set in contemporary (current) New York City. I prefer the YouTube version, but it's actually kind of cool to see a Shakespeare's ideas come to life in scenes that are familiar to you. Remember that Shakespeare plays were the movies of the 15th century and they do have violence and a few naughty bits in them, you might want to watch with mom!

Remember what your goals are when you're reading and watching...

Keep notes! Write all over your book, it's yours! For the sake of all that is good...if you find something cool...KEEP THE PAGE NUMBER!
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What literacy goals actually mean to a teenager:
  • You can prove that you're right based on what you have read and can show the teacher where you found your information.
  • You can read between the lines to understand not just the information the author was trying to tell you, but how it relates to thoughts, emotion, and historical events.
  • You can tell the teacher why this document is important both now and in the time it was written.
  • You can understand how the meaning of words changes across time periods to determine comedy, irony, and sarcasm in the text.
  • You try to make sense of why the author or historian arranged the text in the way that they did.
  • You can identify when a theme is used in multiple works of literature (like history repeating itself).
  • You have read, understood, and applied the above standards to texts from the 18th-21st century.
  • The biggest goal of all? That you can do it alone and bring a new perspective to the discussion.
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Evening Guys.

I'm on my way up to the apartment to work on the last bit of Hamlet and to answer your questions. There is a quiz on the Hamlet resource page. I need your answers by Monday at noon. I will get comments back to you ASAP. Monday we will start reading about satire, it is essential for understanding both Jonathan Swift (Gulliver's Travels) and Mark Twain (Tom Sawyer/Huck Finn). I will post links this weekend to the reading material. Satire can be simply wicked :) But you need the tools to unlock the comedy.

I'm actually really enjoying interacting with the two of you. Educational research indicates strongly that kids that completely 'turn off' for the summer can lose up to two months of critical thinking and high level reasoning skills. This is particularly applicable to the smarter students. If they're not challenged constantly with interesting material then the lower level skills are too heavily relied upon when they start school again in the Autumn Term. It's really cool your Mom recognizes that you two are too smart to be "thought free" for the whole summer. Don't think of this as tutoring, but more of a high level book club. Please come to me with questions, ideas, or thoughts on checking your understanding. You're both very different boys and you should both be getting different things from the texts we're reading.

MS
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If you like this one...the WHOLE thing is on Youtube.com by Act & Scene. Who wouldn't love Dr. Who and Capt. Picard in Shakespeare??? Inconceivable.




Watch List


Hamlet (2000) Ethan Hawke
Shakespeare Uncovered--Part Five: Hamlet with David Tennant
A Midsummer Night's Dream (1996)
Coriolanus (2011) Ralph Finnes
Romeo and Juliet (1996)
Black Adder (All Seasons) Rowan Atkinson


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Understanding Hamlet


Quick Quiz for Understanding.

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