HAMLET’S WINDOWS TO OTHER TEXTS
Biblical allusions are not the only kinds in Shakespeare—there are many—
and Hamlet invites us to consider many texts in light of others,
as Julia Kristeva and Bakhtin would say regarding intertextuality;
Robert Alter (“The Art of Biblical Narrative”) notes that allusion opens windows to other texts, inviting us to revisit/rethink each in new dialectics.
Hamlet includes allusions to Horace and to Virgil’s Aeneid, a founding myth for Rome, founded by outsiders (Trojans),
like England, settled/raided/conquered by many outsiders (including Danes).
Like Aeneas, Hamlet has a kind of sacred duty.
Rome later fell, suggesting in the play that, just as Rome fell, Shakespeare’s England, too, could fall.
By the end, Hamlet’s idolatry of his father, voiced in Greek/Roman mythological allusions, effectively stops after his Jonah-like sea-voyage.
Suicide, the “Roman” way out, is also rejected.
Why? So that Horatio might tell Hamlet’s tale (spread his gospel?).
In Hamlet, the potential for conversations among classical, biblical, religious, philosophical, scientific, and other texts is quite rich.
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[Originally posted around the week of 9/10/18
on LinkedIn]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Links to a description of my book project:
On LinkedIn: https://lnkd.in/eJGBtqV
On this blog: https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/05/hamlets-bible-my-book-project-im.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
#Shakespeare #Bible #Hamlet #Literature #LiteraryCriticism #Drama #Theatre #EarlyModern #religion #Renaissance #EnglishLiterature
and Hamlet invites us to consider many texts in light of others,
as Julia Kristeva and Bakhtin would say regarding intertextuality;
Robert Alter (“The Art of Biblical Narrative”) notes that allusion opens windows to other texts, inviting us to revisit/rethink each in new dialectics.
Hamlet includes allusions to Horace and to Virgil’s Aeneid, a founding myth for Rome, founded by outsiders (Trojans),
like England, settled/raided/conquered by many outsiders (including Danes).
Like Aeneas, Hamlet has a kind of sacred duty.
Rome later fell, suggesting in the play that, just as Rome fell, Shakespeare’s England, too, could fall.
By the end, Hamlet’s idolatry of his father, voiced in Greek/Roman mythological allusions, effectively stops after his Jonah-like sea-voyage.
Suicide, the “Roman” way out, is also rejected.
Why? So that Horatio might tell Hamlet’s tale (spread his gospel?).
In Hamlet, the potential for conversations among classical, biblical, religious, philosophical, scientific, and other texts is quite rich.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[Originally posted around the week of 9/10/18
on LinkedIn]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Links to a description of my book project:
On LinkedIn: https://lnkd.in/eJGBtqV
On this blog: https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/05/hamlets-bible-my-book-project-im.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
#Shakespeare #Bible #Hamlet #Literature #LiteraryCriticism #Drama #Theatre #EarlyModern #religion #Renaissance #EnglishLiterature
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