Presenter:
Hamlet is not the most painful of the great or mature Shakespearean tragedies. Othello and King Lear compete for that honor. There are reasons why Hamlet can, however, be seen as the saddest of the great tragedies. Part of this sadness springs from the fact that—unlike Lear, Othello, or Macbeth—Hamlet did nothing at all to initiate the tragic situation in which he finds himself. But what intensifies this sadness, this presentation argues, is the sense the play gives us that there was an alternative life for Hamlet. This discussion will focus on this aspect of Shakespeare’s play.
**This presentation is full.**