Hamlet context

Hamlet context

1. Religion

2. The Elizabethan chain of being

   • An Elizabethan philosophical idea that everything in society is part of a hierarchy. It was believed that if thee hierarchy was disrupted chaos would ensue. Elizabethans were terrified of this occurring, this demonstrates why in his plays Shakespeare shows the consequences of people taking things that are not rightfully theirs.
   • The Chain of Being: God, Angels (Archangel Gabriel at the top), Man (the King at the top - then classes), Animals (Lions at the top), Sea creatures (Dolphins at the top).

3. Superstition

   • In 1597, King James VI of Scotland published a compendium on witchcraft lore called Daemonologie. It was published in England in 1603 when James acceded to the English throne. Although it was not published when Hamlet was written it showed how common superstition was.
   • Due to the high levels of superstition many of the scenes of Hamlet are symbolic of the supernatural, this includes the beginning of the play shows this. Act 1 Scene 1 begins at witching hour - midnight.

4. Monarchy

   • The English monarchy
   • The Danish Monarchy

5. What prompted Shakespeare to write Hamlet?

   • The (1596) death of Shakespeare's 11-year-old son, named Hamnet—prompted the dark tone in the playwright's later works.
   • The death of Shakespeare's father in 1601—the same year he wrote Hamlet— could haveinspired his exploration of a grieving son.

6. Amleth, Saxo Grammaticus

7. Heaven and Hell

8. Greek mythology