In Hamlet, is "Lenten entertainment" oxymoron, royal hypocrisy, or foreshadowing?

"LENTEN ENTERTAINMENT": OXYMORON, ROYAL HYPOCRISY, OR FORESHADOWING? 

Rosencrantz says to Hamlet, 

To think, my lord, [...]

 what Lenten entertainment the players shall

receive from you. (2.2.339-341). 

Students unfamiliar with Christian liturgical seasons may skip over the word “Lenten.” 

The more curious may look it up: A solemn season of fasting and repentance before Easter. 

So what does “Lenten entertainment” imply? 

1. Does “Lenten entertainment” pleasantly break up the drudgery of Lent? 

- In 1598, Elizabeth I issued an edict prohibiting public theatrical performances during Lent, while privately still sponsoring such entertainment at court.  

- Was Shakespeare subtly drawing attention to the hypocrisy of Elizabeth’s policy? 

2. If taken literally, while the opening scene of the play (1.1) was cold at night, perhaps in winter (with Christmas mentioned), does 2.2 occur later during Lent? (Too literal?) 

3. In 1.2, Hamlet is the only person still wearing black to mourn the death of his father, while others put on happier colors to celebrate the marriage of Gertrude and Claudius. Does “Lenten entertainment” reflect on this abrupt shift? 

4. “Tragi-comedy,” a mixing of theatrical genres, implies a similar contrast to “Lenten entertainment.” 

- Does Shakespeare imply a commentary on (or foreshadowing of) the play’s mixing of tragedy (somber, serious, Lenten) and humor (entertainment)? 

5. Rosencrantz doesn’t say the players will *give* Lenten entertainment, but rather, that they will *receive* it from Hamlet. 

- Does this imply that Hamlet in mourning is “Lenten” (figuratively), but might give the players entertainment in spite of personal grief? 

- Or is this grammatical shift, with Hamlet entertaining the players, meant to obscure implied criticism of Elizabeth I for hypocrisy, banning Lenten theatrical performances while still enjoying them herself? 

6. Or does the ambiguity potentially combine a number of these meanings, instead of ruling some out? 

Both Federico La Sala (on LinkedIn) and Bert Coles (on Facebook) encouraged me to think of "Lenten Entertainment" in the context of "man delights not me" - nor woman - at which there is a humorous response and implication - so Hamlet's entertainment for the players will be "Lenten" (or celibate, which both brings to mind, and then negates, the bawdy implication). 

- The melancholy and loss of delight for Hamlet also echoes the loss of delight for Francis of Assisi, when finally released as a prisoner of war, but before he renounced his abusive earthly father in favor of a heavenly one, as described by Thomas of Celano in the "Vita Prima" (first life) of St. Francis.

- This is a kind of dark night of the soul, and not merely dismissed as a malady of "humors" as some Elizabethans assumed. 

- Thomas of Celano also uses the word "delight" in the same way. I blogged about this in 2017 [1]. 

NOTES: All references to Shakespeare plays are to the Folger Shakespeare Library online versions: https://shakespeare.folger.edu

[1] MELANCHOLY: LOST DELIGHT IN HAMLET & FRANCIS OF ASSISI - July 17, 2017: 
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/07/melancholy-lost-delight-hamlet-francis.html

IMAGE: 

Top: Imposition des Cendres (imposition of ashes) – Missel romain – manuscrit napolitain vers 1370.

https://schola-sainte-cecile.com/wp-content/2016/02/Imposition-des-Cendres-Missel-romain-manuscrit-napolitain-vers-1370.jpg

Bottom: Public domain via Wikipedia: 

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3d/Crossofashes.jpg 

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Disclaimer: If and when I quote or paraphrase bible passages or mention religion in many of my blog posts, I do not intend to promote any religion over another, nor am I attempting to promote religious belief in general; only to explore how the Bible and religion influenced Shakespeare, his plays, and his age.
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