Deadly Thought: Hamlet and the Human SoulThe human soul is for pre-modern philosophers the cause of both thinking and life. This double aspect of the soul, which makes man a rational animal, expresses itself above all in human action. Deadly Thought: 'Hamlet' and the Human Soul traces Hamlet's famous inability to act to his inability to hold together these twin aspects of the soul. Combining careful attention to detail and interpretive breadth, noted scholar Jan H. Blits deftly illustrates how Hamlet collapses life into thought, and moral action into stage acting, and ultimately comes to see his own life as a stage play. Hamlet, the book demonstrates, epitomizes the intellectualism of the Renaissance and the modern age it began, and so becomes tragedy's first self-conscious protagonist, signaling the end of ancient tragedy. Erudite, innovative, and lively, Deadly Thought is a ground-breaking contribution that will appeal to Shakespeare scholars, political theorists, historians of philosophy, literary theorists and anyone interested in a truly fresh interpretation of this classic work. |
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Page 12
... soliloquy , Hamlet asks himself what it means to be a man : What is a man If his chief good and market of his time Be but to sleep and feed ? And he answers : A beast , no more . Sure he that made us with such large discourse , Looking ...
... soliloquy , Hamlet asks himself what it means to be a man : What is a man If his chief good and market of his time Be but to sleep and feed ? And he answers : A beast , no more . Sure he that made us with such large discourse , Looking ...
Page 45
... soliloquy , his " too too solid flesh " speech.32 Immediately surrounding that speech , we hear of Ham- let's wish to return to Wittenberg ( 1.2.112-20 ) and of Horatio's re- turn from there ( 1.2.164-69 ) . 1 . Claudius's opening ...
... soliloquy , his " too too solid flesh " speech.32 Immediately surrounding that speech , we hear of Ham- let's wish to return to Wittenberg ( 1.2.112-20 ) and of Horatio's re- turn from there ( 1.2.164-69 ) . 1 . Claudius's opening ...
Page 47
... soliloquies ( 1.2.157 ; 3.3.90 ) .36 Even Gertrude and Claudius say nothing about it in private . When they discuss the possible cause of Hamlet's apparent madness , Gertrude attributes it to " His father's death and our o ́er - hasty ...
... soliloquies ( 1.2.157 ; 3.3.90 ) .36 Even Gertrude and Claudius say nothing about it in private . When they discuss the possible cause of Hamlet's apparent madness , Gertrude attributes it to " His father's death and our o ́er - hasty ...
Page 59
... soliloquy , wishing for death : O that this too too solid49 flesh would melt , Thaw and resolve itself into a dew , Or that the Everlasting had not fix'd His canon ' gainst self - slaughter . ( 1.2.129-32 ) Hamlet wishes either that his ...
... soliloquy , wishing for death : O that this too too solid49 flesh would melt , Thaw and resolve itself into a dew , Or that the Everlasting had not fix'd His canon ' gainst self - slaughter . ( 1.2.129-32 ) Hamlet wishes either that his ...
Page 60
... soliloquy thus presents a pattern of in- creasing renunciation : first , of his body ; then , of his life ; next , of the ways of the world ; and , finally , of the world itself . Hamlet's wish to melt or to die expands into his ...
... soliloquy thus presents a pattern of in- creasing renunciation : first , of his body ; then , of his life ; next , of the ways of the world ; and , finally , of the world itself . Hamlet's wish to melt or to die expands into his ...
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Common terms and phrases
accuses action actors answer appearance Aristotle asks Barnardo birth body cause Christian Cicero Clau Claudius Claudius's conscience corpse Dane Danish dead death deed Denmark describes despite Diogenes Laertius dius double emphasizes explicitly father fear final Fortinbras Fortinbras's fortune Gertrude Gertrude's Ghost God's Gonzago grave Grave-digger Grave-digger's guilt Hamlet says Hamlet seems hath hear heaven Hecuba hendiadys Horatio imitation incest Jephthah kill King Hamlet King's Laertes Laertes's letter lines lonius lord man's Marcellus marriage means mentions metaphor moral mother murder nature never noble old Hamlet once one's Ophelia Osric play play's Player King Player Queen Plutarch political Polonius Polonius's praise question Quintilian reason refers revenge rhetoric Rosencrantz and Guildenstern royal scene sense Shakespeare silent soliloquy soul speaks speech Stoic Stoicism suggests tell theatrical thee thing thou thought tion tragedy turns twice virtue vows warning words