Although “Hamlet” is nothing like “The Odyssey,” in the way that there are Gods in “The Odyssey” that help the protagonist on his journey. “Hamlet” is like a “what if” story to “The Odyssey.” What if Odysseus was actually dead from the beginning, never to return home? A suitor now takes Penelope’s hand in marriage. Now with nothing to live for Telemachus sets out to revenge his father’s death. And in “The Odyssey” the person that could have killed Odysseus is a list that could itself tell its own story with each entry. The suitors being the most obvious, wanting to take Penelope’s hand in marriage. Even the Gods in “The Odyssey” could be a candidate such as Poseidon, for injuring his son, Calypso, for not staying with her. “The Odyssey” is a story of a father fighting, and “Hamlet” is a story of a son fighting for something.
-
Recent Posts
Recent Comments
- Rangers jerseys deals on Tragic Irony, Peripeteia, Anagnorisis, Hamartia, and Katharsis
- lundqvist jersey on The Kokinshu
- http://www.asheronline.net/design/wp-content/sitemap.xml on Tragic Irony, Peripeteia, Anagnorisis, Hamartia, and Katharsis
- ph152693 on Hamlet: Act V Scene ii
- pb165314 on Hamlet: Act V Scene ii
Archives
Categories
Meta
I find it interesting how you linked “The Odyssey” storyline to “Hamlet’s”. However, the only thing with that concept that sticks out to be is Penelope’s faithfulness. Penelope was “certain” that Odysseus was dead but she still did not married any of the suitors. However, Gertude was quick to remarry after her husbands death. What makes it even worst is she marries her deceased husband’s blood brother.
I also want to say more about Hamlet’s mother. She is a lot different than Penelope. Suitors make her to chose one of them, they push Penelope to marry one them, she doesn’t have any choice. In contrast, in “Hamlet” I think no one is pushing Gertrude and she doesn’t even try to refuse. However, there may be some rules in the kingdom that she has to follow. I think his son Hamlet still misses his father, and is curious about his fathers sudden death, and later his fathers ghost tells him about how his death. So now he wants his son to take a revenge. Another similarity with the Odyssey, is that when Hamlet ghost tells him to take a revenge, he is pushing his son Hamlet to be strong and fight against his uncle. In The Odyssey, it happens when Athena tells Telemachus to go on journey to find news about his father rather than sitting and waiting.
I agreed with Andy that it is interesting the way you compare “The Odyssey” to “Hamlet.” I agreed with Andy about the idea of the loyalty of the wives. Where Penelope stayed loyal to Odysseus til the very end, and Gertrude tries to marry Claudius just a few weeks after King Hamlet’s death. Also, I think there’s a difference between Claudius and the suitors from The Odyssey. Claudius from “Hamlet” planned ahead to kill King Hamlet, taking over the kingdom then marry Gertrude. In contrast, the suitors in “The Odyssey”, they gathered to Odysseus and tries to marry Penelope after they learned about Odysseus is missing or died after the Trojan War.
However I also found it interesting that Hamlet(the main character) was not the person who takes over the kingdom, and instead his uncle becomes the King after King Hamlet’s death. I thought usually the prince becomes the king after their father dies, but in this case however, the kings brother takes over the crown.
I definitely like the connection you made between Shakespeare’s play and Homer’s epic. While reading the first few acts, the “Odyssey” definitely came into mind. This was helped especially by the fact that one of the characters in the play is named Laertes, a clear reference to the Odyssey by Shakespeare. I agree with the notion that Gertrude is in stark contrast to Penelope for the most part, as she does seem to brush off her husband’s death in the beginning of the play. While it is explained later, I too questioned why Hamlet wasn’t made king and assumed that his uncle seized the throne. Just like Telemachus, Hamlet must claim his father’s kingdom.
Maybe price hamlet was too young? Idk, good question! I didn’t even think about It like that. I agree that Penelope and Gertrude can not be compared. Technically in Penelope’s mind she already assumed her husband was dead and chose not to remarry. I feel like this shows how times have changed not even with just wives but also family. Gertrude , king hamlet’a wife, marries his brother and the brother is the one who killed him!
Whereas in the odyssey it is all about family.