Illusions perhaps; but much that Ray presents deals with allusions, for which he supplies evidence, whether sufficient or not. As one who holds that argument must connect with evidence, I find Ray's approach refreshing.Originally Posted by Beewulf
Poetry so often works this way.
Hi Gladys,
You are right to point out that poetry often relies on allusions. Shakespeare, as a dramatic poet, uses allusions frequently and skillfully. One of my favorite allusions in Hamlet comes in Act 5, scene 2, when Hamlet dismisses Horatio's suggestion that the duel with Laertes be postponed. Horatio senses Hamlet's life may be at risk, but Hamlet shrugs him off, saying:
Not a whit, we defy augury: there's a special providence in the fall of a sparrow. If it be now, 'tis not to come; if it be not to come, it will be
now; if it be not now, yet it will come: the readiness is all:
Hamlet's allusion is to comforting passage from the Gospel of Matthew, "Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows" (KJV 10:29-31).
As this example demonstrates, a literary allusion is a linking device that connects something within a character's immediate experience to something beyond it. In a play, an allusion may make a close reference (e.g. to a previous scene, earlier dialogue, or character) or a distant reference (e.g. to another text, a historical event, etc.). In order for a figure of speech to qualify as an allusion the reference must be apparent and if not, the reference must be capable of being explained using non-subjective evidence and logical reasoning. If someone wishes to establish the validity of a non-apparent allusion, the individual carries the burden of proof to demonstrate his or her allusion is valid beyond a reasonable doubt.
Ray has discovered what he believes are significant allusions and other rhetorical devices that reveal a hidden structure and meaning in Hamlet. Like you, I think his work is imaginative and provocative; however, I disagree with your contention that his study has actually uncovered allusions.
While an allusion is an indirect reference, by definition it cannot be a private code. For a figure of speech to operate as an allusion, a larger audience of readers must grasp the reference. In other words, an allusion must not be so arcane or obscure that the reference is understood by only one person.
Rather than discovering allusions, it is more accurate to say that Ray is practicing a form of post-structuralist interpretation called intertextuality. Intertextuality rejects the idea that a text or portion of a text possesses independent or objective meaning. Instead, the meaning of a text is distilled, often unconsciously, by personal and cultural filters operating within and without the reader. Such interpretations are the property of the reader and beyond dispute. They are true because the reader finds them to be true.
I accept the burden of proof, but reject the standard of "beyond a reasonable doubt." I don't think any interpretation of literature can meet that standard. I try to understand Hamlet with a large collection of ideas having varying degrees of uncertainty. The main criteria I apply in selecting ideas for my collection is connectiveness. I look for ideas that fit together to make the coherent whole that I believe Shakespeare intended.
I don't know the literary term for my style of analysis ("close reading" maybe?). But, though there may be some madness in my method, it is not illusion. As Gladys said (and as Mrs Black, my 10th-grade English teacher taught me), I try to connect argument with evidence. I definitely do NOT believe in interpretations that are only in the mind of the reader. My goal, whether I achieve it or not, is to understand what Shakespeare was trying to communicate.
- Ray
Testing. This thread appears to have disappeared from the forum. I found it with a Google search and am now responding to see if it reappears in the forum.
- Ray
Never mind, my threads have reappeared. So I back-tabbed to the screen that had showed all the threads missing & noticed a little link to a private message in the upper right-hand corner. I clicked on the link and got this:
"Database error
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Open the shakespeareforums.com home page, then try to open another page.
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Thank, goodness! For a while there I thought I was losing my mind, or worse, that I had been banished from the Hamlet forum.
-Ray
I have a reason for being paranoid about this. Several years ago I subscribed to a Shakespeare listserver run by a certain half-baked authoritarian (Hardy M. Cook). On my second post, I included a link to my personal website for further amplification of the point I was making (I think it was the wheel motif). My website contains no advertising. It's nothing but my thoughts on Hamlet and Shakespeare. But Mr Cook sent me a nasty e-mail chastising me for abusing the listserver to promote my website. He rejected that second post and every subsequent post (which had no links) which I submitted.
(I also took it personally a couple weeks ago when Google had a worldwide bug that was telling every Google user that every website on the World Wide Web was malicious.)
Paranoia
by David Friedman
This man I never saw before
At 3 A.M. breaks down the door
To tell me my aspirin is LSD.
"It says right there on the bottle,
Acetylsalicylic Acid."
I tell you doctor, honestly,
It seems like someone's after me.
I don't think fighting is what I'm made for
But this lottery ticket I never paid for
Sold by a pusher known as Sam
Has won me a ticket to Vietnam,
A twelve months, expenses paid, tropical vacation
With a funeral, free, from a grateful nation.
But the doctor says I need therapy
For thinking someone is after me.
And then there are things I just can't ignore
Like the little man in our bedroom door
Says we'll be in jail by the end of the night
Unless we turn over and do it right.
Doctor, Doctor, come and see
There's really someone after me.
Then he asks, as he rips off the sheet,
For our marriage license and tax receipt;
Says "you need a license to shoot at a duck
How come you think that it's free to . . ."
Who so blind as will not see;
The state, the state, is after me.
Oops. Maybe I am losing my mind. The error message I got was from the other Hamlet forum. My threads were missing because I was looking at the wrong forum. I don't know what the error message was about. Anyway, I think I've said about every thing I had to say about Hamlet, so I don't expect to start any more threads.
Your past threads, Ray, have left much to ponder. I hope to respond to some in time.
Thanks, Gladys. I need to think about the points you've raised about Hamlet's depression. I can't deny he's lost his zest for life, but when and why?
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