Is Hamlet the greatest of Shakespeare's plays?

[kelby_lake]

I have mixed feelings about it:
- it is far too long- when reading it, I lose track. Presumably the lengthiness is to indicate Hamlet's dithering, but still.

- I didn't think it was particularly tragic- especially not for Hamlet, who basically wrecks everyone.

- It has similar themes to Julius Caesar, which probably came just before it (What trash is Rome!) and is a much tauter, more visual work.

- Apparantly there's an Oedipus complex, which got lost in all the dithering.

However I did like:

- Ophelia. I'm not sure why her character's neglected so much.

- The musings on death

- Hamlet's immaturity: he cannot grow up. He toys with Ophelia and doesn't kill Claudius because that definitive action would force him to make a choice (and presumably leaves his mother open).

Why couldn't Shakespeare just edit the thing?!

[DanielBenoit]

Wow, to each his own I suppose. As for me, it was one of the greatest reading experiences of my life. I was utterly and completely absorbed from begining to end.

If you didn't like it, then I suppose you never will. Hamlet is just one of those works of literature that you either love to death, or don't.
Try watching the Laurence Oliver or Kenneth Brannagh film version maybe?

[LitNetIsGreat]

Yes Hamlet is generally considered to be the greatest Shakespeare play, closely followed by King Lear, then Macbeth and Othello.

Why couldn't Shakespeare just edit the thing?!

Ha, I think it is just fine as it is.

[DanielBenoit]

Ha, I think it is just fine as it is.

Lol
I think the whole of Western literature is just happy with Hamlet untouched.

[Janine]

Wow, to each his own I suppose. As for me, it was one of the greatest reading experiences of my life. I was utterly and completely absorbed from begining to end.

If you didn't like it, then I suppose you never will. Hamlet is just one of those works of literature that you either love to death, or don't.
Try watching the Laurence Oliver or Kenneth Brannagh film version maybe?

I absolutely agree! The reading of the play is captivating and never ceases to make me question and wonder. Same with the films. I can't see the Branagh version enough; normally some time goes by and I get it out again and rewatch it in one sitting. I want to figure out Hamlet each time from a new perspective, do you know what I mean? I think his character embodies so much. How can one not love the graveyard scene and the "to be or not to be" scene, among others? There is just so much there encased in that one play. It's a masterpiece...truly...every line is amazing and meaningful! The Bard at his greatest moment. It's perfection!

[DanielBenoit]

I absolutely agree! The reading of the play is captivating and never ceases to make me question and wonder. Same with the films. I can't see the Branagh version enough; normally some time goes by and I get it out again and rewatch it in one sitting. I want to figure out Hamlet each time from a new perspective, do you know what I mean? I think his character embodies so much. How can one not love the graveyard scene and the "to be or not to be" scene, among others? There is just so much there encased in that one play. It's a masterpiece...truly...every line is amazing and meaningful! The Bard at his greatest moment. It's perfection!

Oooh yes. I always love to approach the play from new percpetives every time. It is so incredibly immense! It contains so much in just sixty pages.

By the way, something interesting I read in an essay on Hamlet, is that one of the reasons why it's still so effective today is that many of its iconic scenes have entered into the cultural subconscious of our minds, for who has not ever heard the line "to be or not to be" or seen the image of Hamlet with Yorrick's skul, even if they've never even seen or heard of the play. Thus when we revisit these familiar images and words within the context of the play, it is like a rebirth of a connection with our collective memory.

[Lokasenna]

Even wearing my professional Medievalist hat here, I'm still happy to proclaim that Hamlet is the greatest thing ever written. From the ages of 14 to 20, I basically was Hamlet in my mind.

As for the dithering, its such an important part of what makes Hamlet's character so unique. If you look at other revenge-tragedies, the protagonists, once they have discovered the guilty party, take bloody and glorious revenge; Hamlet, meanwhile, knows of his uncle's guilt almost from the outset, yet cannot turn his words to actions. It makes him very human.

[prendrelemick]

Taken on the whole, Hamlet is the best. There are other works of his that are more sublime in language- Julius Caeser for instance, or more dramatic, like Macbeth. Hamlet has many faults, is too long, but some how the best.

[kelby_lake]

There are some very good bits in Hamlet but as for each line being powerful...there are words omitted and lines nicked from other folios/quartos. Shakespeare probably did not stage it full-length.

It's annoying because I do really like some elements but the vast soliloquies (not just by Hamlet) swamp them. Perhaps it has more of an impact on stage but I didn't have that problem reading other Shakespearean plays. And all those archaisms!

Hamlet's dithering quality may be unique but it is just...dithery. As much as I admire that ponderous quality, it should be done in small doses.

Between the acting of a dreadful thing
And the first motion, all the interim is
Like a phantasma, or a hideous dream:

[Janine]

There are some very good bits in Hamlet but as for each line being powerful...there are words omitted and lines nicked from other folios/quartos. Shakespeare probably did not stage it full-length.

It's annoying because I do really like some elements but the vast soliloquies (not just by Hamlet) swamp them. Perhaps it has more of an impact on stage but I didn't have that problem reading other Shakespearean plays. And all those archaisms!

Hamlet's dithering quality may be unique but it is just...dithery. As much as I admire that ponderous quality, it should be done in small doses.

Between the acting of a dreadful thing
And the first motion, all the interim is
Like a phantasma, or a hideous dream:

kelby_lake, obviously, you have missed the entire point of Hamlet. Hamlet is more about internal reflection, than it is about anything else. It's a great commentary on life and death, mortality and immortality, power plays within a kingdom and between kingdoms, between families and loved ones, intricate deceptions, etc; but greater than all these, the play embrasses the inner workings of a human being's mind, who's entire world has been turned upside-down by one rash and selfish act of deception which eventually leads to a string of corruption.

Reflection is the 'dithering' you are speaking of. I am a believer in the entire length of the play, being totally necessary and significant in order to built on the themes and forward the story in the correct sequence. The work is a work of brilliance and I am shocked to hear someone dispute that by saying it's too long and has too many solioques...like any of those are frivolous! Come now. It's really shocking to me. Hamlet, the son (sun), is the center of the play. He reflects the internal diaolgue of a distressed man over his life situation. It's as though the other characters are as satelites revolving around Hamlet himself. He is the center and the core and that is one thing that makes this particular play different than the other plays. In mostly all scenes, Hamlet appears and is a huge presense. One feels drawn into his reasoning and takes the journey along with Hamlet. This is what makes it so totally captivating.

[Gladys]

Hamlet's dithering quality may be unique but it is just...dithery.

I'm tempted to agree. I can well understand why in bygone centuries 'King Lear' was rated best. Indeed, nothing is better in Shakespeare than Act I, Scene 1.

[mtpspur]

Deleted original comment and leaving the field to the victors.

[wessexgirl]

I couldn't agree more, with you Janine . How can anyone not see the masterpiece that is Hamlet? Philistines !

Seriously though, it is a masterpiece. You may not like it Kelby, but I think our Will knew what he was doing when he put in all those reflective soliloquies. I wouldn't change a thing, not one comma or full stop of it. It strikes me as the height of arrogance to suggest that Shakey should have edited his work. Do you think that perhaps the public of today have got concentration issues? After all, the great man wrote for the plebs as much as anyone, (or the groundlings). Do you think they bemoaned its length? I don't think so. He spoke to them, he touched them, or they wouldn't have gone to see the plays, would they? I don't want to sound like an oldie, bemoaning the attention span of the youngsters, but perhaps you'll appreciate it more as you study and learn more. There is so much to be appreciated in it. The man was a genius, and Hamlet, along with Lear, I'd say, is his magnum opus.

[Apathy]

Wow, to each his own I suppose. As for me, it was one of the greatest reading experiences of my life. I was utterly and completely absorbed from begining to end.

If you didn't like it, then I suppose you never will. Hamlet is just one of those works of literature that you either love to death, or don't.
Try watching the Laurence Oliver or Kenneth Brannagh film version maybe?

I concur completely, I loved 'Hamlet'. I've read a hundred times and I never stop loving every word of it.

[Apathy]

I absolutely agree! The reading of the play is captivating and never ceases to make me question and wonder. Same with the films. I can't see the Branagh version enough; normally some time goes by and I get it out again and rewatch it in one sitting. I want to figure out Hamlet each time from a new perspective, do you know what I mean? I think his character embodies so much. How can one not love the graveyard scene and the "to be or not to be" scene, among others? There is just so much there encased in that one play. It's a masterpiece...truly...every line is amazing and meaningful! The Bard at his greatest moment. It's perfection!

Yes! And I think the reason it is SO long is because he was trying to say so much.
There's a method to his madness.