Hamlet Essay - Summer Remediation Prompt

Hamlet Essay - Summer Remediation Prompt

Answer one of the following prompts in the form of a short essay (2-3 pages, MLA format), using at least 3 specific quotes or examples correctly cited and pulled from the text. Make sure you form a distinct opinion/thesis in the opening paragraph.

1. Analyze the relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia.  Discuss how he acts towards her at the beginning, middle, and ending parts of the play, using specific examples.  Do you think he loves her, or might it be a more complicated relationship than it appears at first?
2. Hamlet has an inner struggle concerning death and suicide throughout most of the play, and often talks about the subject of death in his famous soliloquies.  What is his view on death, and how does his view on death develop and change as the play goes on?  What factors have an effect on his view of death?
3. Many of the characters in the play are concerned with revenge, especially Hamlet and Laertes.  Analyze the subject of “revenge” in the play, and discuss where this subject appears.  What is the play trying to say about the subject of revenge?