Tension In Hamlet

The different methods of storytelling available to use is vast. However, each method of storytelling may not have the same effect on a piece of work. Different methods of storytelling impact not only how one conveys meaning, but also the meaning of the work as a whole. A common method is having the story exist in a state of narrative tension, the tension a character feels about an issue or problem and the emotions that follow when he or she is blocked from a resolution. Narrative tension fuels the audience’s desire to know what happens next. Combined with other storytelling methods, such as Question, Answer, Question as seen with William Shakespeare, Stanley Kubrick, and Tom McCarthy, one is able to redefine character relationships and use …show more content…
While Hamlet does act in the end and resolves his narrative tension, the play takes its characters through a range of emotions which resonate with the audience. The use of emotions and narrative tension allow for the creation of personal meaning for the audience. Along with narrative tension, Shakespeare uses a method of storytelling known as Question, Answer, Question, which poses a question to every revelation and answer to a plot or question. This method increases suspense and adds a deeper level of complexity to the character’s struggles and emotions. In the first scene, suspense is built with the changing of the guard and Horatio asking, “What, has this thing appeared again tonight?” (1.1.9). The audience soon finds out that the “thing” is a ghost, but immediately is given the questions of who is the ghost and what is its importance to the play and to Hamlet. The Question, Answer, Question format grabs the audience’s attention and the play begins. Narrative tension is further revealed in the Question, Answer, Question format in Act I Scene II when Claudius, the late king of Denmark’s brother and now king, marries Gertrude, Hamlet’s mother and queen. The coronation and …show more content…
The film follows Alex, the leader of his droogs, as they attack and steal from innocent people in order to convey the themes of one’s morality and internal struggle of good versus evil. The overall question in the film that the audience asks themselves is why Alex and his droogs attack and steal from people. The answer being, society is just as evil as Alex. This raises more questions regarding society and its psychology. Why is society as evil as Alex? If society is not as evil as him, are society’s methods of psychological recondition, like the Ludovico treatment, truly benefitting the goodness of one’s actions or not by choice? The ultimate answer to the film contains two options: instinct or human nature. Is it morally correct for one to be ruled by one’s instincts or have their actions conditioned and adjusted through human nature? A Clockwork Orange allows the audience to decide by purposely leaving many question unanswered at the end of the