Acting & Pretence in 'Hamlet'

Acting & Pretence in 'Hamlet'

1. AO2 (dramatic effects, language, quotations)

   • 'Antic disposition'
   • 'Mad in craft'
   • 'I must be idle'
   • 'the players'
   • 'My uncle-father aunt-mother are deceived'
   • 'I am but mad north-north west'
   • Hamlet has good knowledge of acting (when speaking to the players)
   • 'well spoken with good accent and good discretion'
   • 'Crafty madness'
   • 'he puts on this confusion'
   • 'I know not seems'

2. AO1 (understanding and terminology)

   • Conflict (creates tension)
   • Protagonist
   • Play within a play
   • Motif
   • Plot
   • Comic relief (Hamlet says some funny things e.g. 'fishmonger'

3. AO5 (interpretations, criticism)

   • Everyone is acting or playing a role
   • Hamlet talks himself mad but pretends to be mad at the beginning
   • Play within a play emphasises the theme of acting
   • Hamlet acts as a mouthpiece of Shakespeare

4. AO3 (context)

   • Shakespeare being a playwright and an actor
   • Men more so associated with acting in Shakespearean times because women were frowned upon for acting
   • Madness was seen as something to laugh at by Shakespearean audiences