Mr. Wienberg

AP English/1st Hr

October 26, 2009

Hamlet Soliloquy Analysis

            At the end of Act II scene II of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, a speech is made by Hamlet that signifies what happened in the scene and foreshadows what may happen in the future of the play.  Earlier in the scene, the reader discovers that two of Hamlets old friends, Guildenstern and Rosencrantz, have been called upon by Claudius and Gertrude to spy on Hamlet.  The goal of this mission was for them to find out if Hamlet has gone crazy and why, if so.  Furthermore, Polonius thinks Hamlet is acting bizarre out of love for Ophelia and not being able to pursue her.  After an interesting conversation between the two, Polonius announces the arrival of a troupe of actors sent to “cheer” Hamlet up.  A speech made by one of the actors is full of allusions, in which ironically portray the same situation Hamlet is in.  This therefore gives him the idea for the actors to put on a performance the next night, with an incorporation of his own sixteen lines, for the people of the castle.  His goal in doing this is also his stepping stone to killing Claudius, which leads him to his speech at the end of the scene.  In this soliloquy, the tone, allusions, and use of language help develop a message to the reader that foreshadows the next part of the play.

            The first part of the soliloquy is Hamlet putting himself down by comparing himself to the actor who recited a speech from Virgil’s Aeneid. In this speech, Aenius tells the story of Pyrrhus, whose father, Achilles, was killed at Rome.  The characters in this speech correlate with the characters in Hamlet.  Achillis is Pyrrhus’ father, who was killed by Priam, the King of Troy, and Hecuba is Priam’s wife.  In the end of the story, Pyrrhus kills Priam in vengeance for his father.  The parallels made in this section are evident in which Pyrrhus parallels Hamlet, Achilles parallels King Hamlet, Priam parallels Claudius, and Hecuba parallels Gertrude.  The player who recites this for Hamlet shows a seemingly great amount of emotion while talking about Hecuba.  In the soliloquy, Hamlet is astounded that this actor can cry for Hecuba while having no relation to her in reality, whereas he cannot do the same, being in the real situation. “A broken voice, and his whole function suiting with forms to his conceit? And all for nothing! For Hecuba! What’s Hecuba to him or he to Hecuba that he should weep for her? What would he do had he the motive and the cue for passion that have?” (lines 508-510).  This quote’s use of words, such as “broken voice”, and tone of frustration and disappointment help convey the theme of cowardliness that he feels towards himself for not showing such emotion as the actor does.

            The second part of the soliloquy further establishes the feelings that are surpassing through Hamlet after the incidents of scene II.  He realizes after listening and watching the actor recite the lines of Aeneid, that he is a coward for not yet having killed Claudius.  He calls himself insulting names multiple times, establishing a tone of disgust towards himself for procrastinating and not avenging the stolen life of his father.  “Remorseless, treacherous, lecherous, kindless villain! O, vengeance! Why, what an ass am I! This is most brave, that I, the song of a dear father murder’d, prompted to my revenge by heaven and hell, must, like a whore, unpack my heart with words, A stallion!” (lines 532-539).  In this passage, Hamlet uses the word “villain” to describe his extreme hatred towards his uncle.  In its evocations of heaven and hell, Shakespeare’s Hamlet makes reference to the Christian ideas of the early modern period.  By using “heaven and hell” in his speech, it is implied to the reader that it not clear whether Hamlet would be dispensing divine justice, or, led by the Devil, committing as bad a sin as Claudius’ original act of murder.  Lastly, using the simile, “must, like a whore, unpack my heart with words,” brings a sense of imagery to the reader that further grasps how loathed Hamlet really feels towards himself at the moment.

            In the final part and most important part of the soliloquy, Hamlet deciphers that he will use the conscience of Claudius, the next day during the performance, to find out if he really killed King Hamlet.  He tells the actors previously in the scene to put on a performance of The Murder of Gonzago the following night in front of a crowd in the castle.  This play in a play was a reference to a real murder; Luigi Gonzago, who murdered the Duke of Urbino in 1583.  Furthermore, Hamlet asks the troupe to memorize an additional sixteen lines that he will incorporate to the play.  These sixteen lines will reenact the murder of King Hamlet, making a parallel to the real situation of the story.  Therefore, while observing Claudius’ reaction, Hamlet will be able to concur whether the ghost was telling the truth or if it was the devil. “The play’s the thing wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the king” (lines 556-557).  In this quote, the rhyming of “thing” and “king” grasps the attention of the reader or one who would be watching the play.  The quote also contributes to a new, determined tone that has developed in Hamlet.

            The soliloquy in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, lines 497-507, helps further establish the theme of the play by incorporating factors of religion, foreshadowing, and shifts in tones.  The reader can see the shift in character of Hamlet from the beginning of his speech to the end. He goes from being very disappointed and feeling cowardly to being determined and focused to avenge his father’s death.  The main idea of using the play to “catch the conscience of the king” is a predominant point of the play, making this soliloquy an essential part of the story.  The allusions, tone, and language of his speech close Act II scene II with suspense and a powerful transition to the next part of this intriguing play.

10/4/09               

Mr.Wienberg    

AP English

“Those Winter Sundays” Analysis

                Though he is best known for his detailed poems about the African American life, Robert E. Hayden’s “Those Winter Sundays” is a short lyric poem that grasps a personal story of the relationship between a father and son.  Hayden’s intricate language of the poem brings a great use of imagery, alliteration, and other forms of figurative language to each line.  The sonnet does not follow a strict rhyme scheme, yet the pattern of the words used brings a sense of euphony to the reader. This poem is about a son looking back on his earlier years to his tough relationship with his father.  The son, who at the time could not perceive his father’s subtle expressions of love, never returned them.  Therefore, guilt and love are the central themes of the poem.

                The first stanza starts off with a simple line that denotes the tone that the poem will pursue.  The notion of “early morning” adds to the silent coldness of the title’s “Winter Sundays”.  The author’s choice of incorporating “Sunday” into the poem initiates a more religious perspective as well.  Sundays are religiously known to be a holy day of leisure, so therefore, the fact that his father got up on Sundays too shows the devotion he put forth into tending for his family.  The image of him getting up in the darkness of the cold to the start the day’s work is sharpened by the word “blueblack” (line 2).  Hayden supplements this uncommon word to create dissonance and negative connotation in which makes the harsh coldness of the line more visible to the reader.  It is made apparent in line 3 that the father’s dedication to get up every morning has led him to suffer and endure pain through his work by the use of the words “cracked hands” and “ached”.  This auditory image and sensory term adds a pensive tone that correlates to the perseverance to work through such harsh mornings.  A consistent use of consonance and alliteration is displayed through different words in this first stanza. The sound of a hard “c” is portrayed in close proximities, adding a subtle and sensory element of pain in words such as blueblack, cracked, ached, weekday, banked, and thanked.  Alliteration comes to play a role as well in phrases such as “banked fires blaze” and “weekday weather”.  Hayden ends the first stanza with the sudden sentence: “No one ever thanked him” (line 5).  This culminates a regretful tone that represents the son’s recollection of his father’s struggles and his shame that no one ever acknowledged him.

                The second stanza focuses more on the Sunday morning experience for the speaker.  The phrase “cold splintering, breaking”, keeps consistent with the connotation and sound of the warmth breaking through created by the fire.  This could metaphorically evoke the progression of dark and cold to luminous and warm throughout the poem.  After describing the splintering of the cold, the father would call to the son “when the rooms were warm” (line 7).  Hayden establishes a connection in which equates warmth with his father’s hard work.  It could be argued that this may be a parallel between the father and son, denoting that the speaker has possibly come to realization of his father’s tough past by finding himself in the same shoes in the present.  Furthermore, Hayden incorporates allusion and personification into the next powerful line through the phrase; “fearing the chronic angers” (line 10).  Though the reader is unsure of the source of the anger taking place in the household, it is made clear that there may have been a dysfunctional familial interaction present.  The etymology of the word chronic is connected to the Greek mythology of Chronos and Zeus, where Zeus was the son of Chronos and wanted to dethrone him due to previous actions.  This adds a complex and psychological element to the poem as well.

                The third and final stanza starts off with a very regretful tone that brings forth an image of emotional distance.  It is not implied whether the father was the source of the “chronic angers” in the house as stated previously, yet as a guardian, he tended to his child no matter what.  Hayden further sets a tone of admiration towards the dad when he refers to him as the man “who had driven out the cold” (line 11), as if he acted superhero-like.  Line 12 gives a sharper and austere image of the father polishing shoes.  Lines 11 and 12 both offer images that display connotations of him acting servant-like.  After the speaker’s flashbacks to his relationship with his father, he imposes a rhetorical question, with an almost sad and shameful repetition, that evokes he was ignorant towards his father.  He realizes that though there was a lack of communication between the two, love was still present in subtle indications through his father’s efforts and quiet care.  The stanza ends with a line decorated with personification; “of love’s austere and lonely offices” (line 14).  The adjective “austere”, meaning unadorned, correlates with the neglect towards the father who faces the monstrous cold every morning only to foster the comfort of his family.  The supplement of the word “lonely” also adds to the sadness of the tone and seclusion that he endured every day. 

                Robert E. Hayden’s “Those Winter Sundays” reveals not only ungratefulness, but an important theme that love can be displayed in more than one way.  It is apparent that the speaker, as a child, expected love to be expressed in more obvious ways.  Yet in remembrance, when he is older and wiser, he realizes that love is often expressed in indirect and more abstruse ways.  This enables him to finally acknowledge the acts of his father.  Though he never got to thank his father, the sonnet ends with a feeling of internal resolution, as if reverence is finally being paid in the making of the poem.

9/8/09

Mr. Wienberg

AP English

                                                            The Psychoanalytical Dream

        A Mercy evaluates many aspects of the patriarchal life in the 1700s that are coherent to modern life.  The author, Toni Morrison, investigates themes that have to do with gender, class, race, and most importantly, identity.  In A Mercy, Toni Morrison analyzes the lucid yet paradoxical theme of identity and attains the conclusion, predominantly through the role of Florens, that despite gender, race, or social class, one is merely constrained in the hands of others not only physically, but mentally as well when no personal identity is accommodated through self subjugation.  The callow character of Florens portrays experiences of losing and finding identity through her journey in the novel.

            Florens derives throughout her entire journey to be with the Blacksmith.  Her naïve and unsophisticated self gives her mind and soul to him for the sole purpose that he gives her the love and feeling of belonging that she has lacked in her life as a slave.  “I am on my knees in soft grass with white clover breaking through.  There is a sweet smell and I lean close to get it.  But the perfume goes away.  I notice that I am at the edge of a lake. The blue of it is more than the sky. More than any blue I know” (Morrison 138).  Florens’ dream holds great significance to her identity and the Blacksmith.  The grass, sweet scent, and the beautiful blue of the water all symbolizes what she desires and has never had. 

            Florens has lost her identity for most of the duration of the novel from enforcing all that she has to the Blacksmith. “Are you meaning I am nothing to you? That I have no consequence in your world? My face absent in blue water you find only to crush it?” (141). Though she sees everything around her and the beauty of it all leading to the Blacksmith, she ultimately fails to see herself.  Like the Blacksmith makes clear, “Own yourself woman, and leave us be” (141).  Florens only sees what she wants, and with no constraint, she cannot see herself.  Though contradictory to popular belief, the Blacksmith confronting her about it may possibly have been an act of mercy to allow her to find her identity in the process of finding true independence from rejection.

            Morrison investigates forms of Identity in almost every chapter of the novel.  Jacob Vaark loses his identity from being a modest, hardworking husband to a self-gaining, isolated, hypocrite.  Rebekka, like Florens, gives her whole to Jacob, and when he is no longer in existence and dissipates the once joyful person she was.  Sorrow and Lina both struggle with identity with their past still lingering amongst them.  A conclusion can be drawn from textual evidence in this novel that people rely on others for their identity, and not themselves.  For example, it can be shaped by economic forces as Marxists would see it, or even through the reliance on men, as Feminists would presume.  Florens’ dream symbolizes that identity is beyond gender, race, or class. It is one’s personal justification of themselves and independence that they acquire on their own without the help of others.  As Minha Mae says nearing the end of the novel, “To be given dominion over another is a hard thing; to wrest dominion over another is a wrong thing; to give dominion of yourself to another is a wicked thing” (167).  To give dominion of yourself to another is to give away your identity, and by rejecting Florens, the Blacksmith allows her to keep her dominion.

            Though many themes and symbols are represented in Toni Morrison’s A Mercy, the theme of identity plays a pivotal role in making salient why it is immensely important for one to find his/her own identity before finding anything else.  Morrison shows that regardless of gender, class, or race, one’s agency and right to live their life for themselves is the most powerful thing to be able to attain.  “One is a lion in the skin of an ass. The other is an ass in the skin of a lion” (160).  At the end of the day, it is the lion that prospers, even if it looks like an ass, because it is the identity within that defines one, not the identity that is clear to the eye.