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Below is an analysis of part of Act 1 Scene 5 of ‘Hamlet’, where the Ghost asks Hamlet to revenge his murder. The students chose the extract themselves (Act 1 Sc 5) and examined the presentation of the Ghost. The paragraphs demonstrate how quotations are often used to support a point, but there is very little analysis of AO2 (the ways in which meanings are shaped in literary texts).
Can you improve on these? Type into the space below before comparing your improved analysis with the one suggested.
In this extract we see the Ghost revealing to Hamlet the truth about his murder. He wants Hamlet to know that Claudius is a murderer and to persuade Hamlet to take revenge for him.
Suggestions
In this extract we see the Ghost revealing to Hamlet the truth about his murder. Shakespeare presents the Ghost as an imposing and persuasive character who is very concerned with the immorality of what has happened to himself and Denmark.
He speaks of his own murder as ‘most foul’ and also calls it ‘strange and unnatural’, showing the evil of Claudius in murdering his own brother.
Suggestions
He speaks of his own murder as ‘most foul’ and the repetition of this phrase emphasises how the horror of his own murder is still fresh in his mind. He also calls it ‘strange and unnatural’, suggesting a sense that the act is not only a sin against God but that it also goes against ‘nature’ in a deeply disturbing way.
The ghost calls his brother ‘that incestuous, that adulterate beast’, showing his hatred for him and disgust that he has committed adultery and incest. He calls his brother a ‘beast’ making him seem less than human and insulting him.
Suggestions
The ghost describes his brother as ‘that incestuous, that adulterate beast’, the listing here suggesting that he cannot heap enough insults and disgust upon his brother. Shakespeare’s use of the metaphor of a ‘beast’, presents the Ghost as a very moral and honourable character who is aghast at the inhuman, beastly behaviour of his brother.
This ghost also shows his doubt about the queen and hints that she is as bad as Claudius. He thought that she was ‘virtuous’ and a good woman but now she is impure as she has been disloyal by marrying her brother in law. In this extract the Ghost is angry at Claudius and Gertrude and wants to make Hamlet feel the same way.
Suggestions
The ghost’s sense of morality is further emphasised through his reference to ‘my most seeming- virtuous queen’. Here the phrase ‘seeming-virtuous’ casts doubt over the queen’s moral character and serves to further illustrate the honesty and sense of moral outrage of the ghost’s character. This phrase is also part of a sequence of sibilance in the speech, where ‘shameful’, ‘seduce’ and ‘seeming’ add a bitter tone to the ghost’s sense of disgust.
He refers to his killer as a ‘serpent that did sting thy father’s life’, showing how sly Claudius has been, like the serpent that tempted Eve.
Suggestions
The Ghost refers to his killer as ‘a serpent that did sting thy father’s life’. Here Shakespeare alludes to Genesis and the sly and destructive actions of the serpent in the Garden of Eden. The Ghost seems to feel his ‘banishment’ from Denmark, as keenly as the banishment from Eden. His use of the word ‘sting’ suggests both the poisonous intent of his brother and how the Ghost feels the abruptness of his own loss.
Go through one of your own responses to an extract question and highlight any quotations where you feel you have missed out on an opportunity for AO2 analysis. You could then re-draft and improve your original analysis.
