english blog act 3 scene 1

The Play Hamlet was written by William Shakespeare back many years ago. Many directors and writers have tried to create the play like Shakespeare wrote it. The most famous speeches of all time is the “To be or not to be that is the question,” (Line 55 Pg.81) This line has been acted out by thousands of different actors and different directors cast it in different ways. Shakespeare is never specific in his book when he talks about this specific soliloquy. It is up to the directors to show whether Polonius and Claudius hear the speech or how much of it they hear. It’s interesting to see how the different directors show the specific soliloquy in their movies. All three movies have different scenes, settings, and the way the lines where given even though their all about the same play. The first one seems to be the most intense and more realistic view of this play just because it isn’t very modernized and it seems as though its how Hamlet would have given this speech if it was to be produced back in Shakespeare’s time.





Out of the three videos, the video by Kenneth Branagh shows how William Shakespeare wanted this scene to look like. Hamlet is at first all by himself much like what it says in the book and he is speaking very dramatically to himself. In the video he is talking to a mirror almost like he is directing the whole speech to himself it is very interesting to see him speak like this. In the video its as though he is speaking so intently that he has his hands in a sort of fist, it makes the scene a lot more intense. He takes out a knife in the middle part of the speech. It’s as if he knows that Polonius and Claudius are watching him in secret. In the book it doesn’t mention Hamlet knowing that Claudius and Polonius are watching him. It makes the scene much more interesting because in the video when Hamlet takes out the knife it’s as if he is pointing at the King and Polonius it makes you think he has a much better motive than just talking to himself. In the book when Hamlet says, “Where is your father?” (Line 141 Pg. 131) It makes you wonder if Hamlet knew that Polonius was there the whole time. In the video, Hamlet stars intently into the mirror while giving his speech before Ophelia comes in. When Ophelia comes into the scene Hamlet leaves the mirror and goes over to her and finishes the speech to her. I think that this video best suits the way the author intended this scene to be like. The deliveries of the lines are so intense hes almost whispering into the mirror in a room where he is completely by himself. If he didn’t know that Polonius and Claudius in the room than why would he stand by the one mirror that they where behind or why would he talk as though he is the only one in the room although he is crazy it just doesn’t make sense. He had to have known that they where there. The famous soliloquy is often debated by many different directors. The first movie shows him like examining himself while he is saying this intense speech. It makes you wonder if maybe he has gone crazy or if he is trying to cope with the fact that his father was murdered by the new king and chances are no one is going to believe him. “Whether ‘Tis nobler in the mind to suffer,” (Line 56 Pg.81) it shows that he is truly and deeply thinking about possibly committing suicide. I wonder why he is thinking about this after he had made the plan to catch Claudius. I think that the director of the movie wanted to show that Polonius and Claudius where listening to the speech the whole time but that maybe they couldn’t necessarily hear what exactly he was saying because in the video Hamlet is speaking very softly even though he appears to be all alone in the room. When Ophelia walks into the room its as though all of his focus and energy goes to her. Although in the movie it doesn’t show them breaking up in the book it shows them arguing at first. Yet in the movie he is very focused on her. The way the movie is laid out it makes me wonder if maybe she was another reason for Hamlet wanting to commit suicide. When Hamlet realizes he is being listened to or set up by her he immediately gets violent even though Polonius and Claudius are still watching they allow him to keep pressing Ophelia for more and more information. Hamlet seems to be very intelligent in the movie but I am not so sure he is in the book as well. In the book it doesn’t mention anything about Hamlet becoming violent toward Ophelia even though he does ask her about where her father is.



The story can also be taken a different way from how this particular video is showing it to be. It is possible that Hamlet truly is crazy and that he has no idea of the plot to set him up to see why he is crazy. It seems as though that if Ophelia hadn’t walked into the room he would have given the real reason as to why he didn’t want to be alive anymore. What if Ophelia didn’t walk into the room when she did ? It makes you wonder what Shakespeare’s intentions really where.




Although there are many different interpretations of this play I believe this is the best one only because it shows us a different view and it seems to be the closet to how Shakespeare wanted Hamlet to be portrayed as. The other videos portray the play as well but I believe that the one directed by Kenneth Branagh is the best to describe the perfect scene while giving this intense and very meaningful speech.