Hamlet, full name The Tragedy of Hamlet or Prince of Denmark, is probably one of the most important works of Shakespeare at the turn of the 17th century. The play was written somewhere around 1600. Ever since then, there have been re-writes resulting in multiple versions of the play. But how can a play receive such a great reputation? This essay focuses on two major factors that created the success in Hamlet: Freytag’s dramatic structure, the revenge structure of the play and the decision to delay of Hamlet that makes him such a unique character. Before going into the major plot points that resonate with the above-mentioned structures. We must first elaborate what happens in Hamlet in a brief summary. Hamlet is story of a Prince Hamlet after
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Hamlet then puts up a play to perform a scene. To his guilt, Claudius leave the theater, proving Hamlet’s suspicions. Hamlet goes to kill Claudius but finds him praying, thus delaying the revenge. Hamlet then goes to confront his mother, Queen Gertrude, and, in a hasty move, draws his sword killing Polonius, the Lord Chamberlain. Claudius plans to banish and kill Hamlet in England. Laertes swears revenge on Hamlet. The two ended up in a sword fight challenge. Claudius successfully poisons Hamlet at the cost of his own life and his wife, Queen Gertrude. Laertes also dies of the poison.
The first reason to why Hamlet is such a timeless play is because it follows a dramatic structure that is exciting and full of plot points in an organized manner. Here, we take a look at Freytag’s dramatic structure which is the underlying base for movies and TV shows in our modern world. Freytag’s dramatic structure, which can also be referred to as Freytag’s pyramid, is the basic overall structure of a film or a play. Freytag himself composed this structure after much exploring into Shakespearean plays. David G. Welton in The Formula for Screenwriting Success stated that: “Freytag’s analysis revealed a structural …show more content…
So the closet scene and Laertes’ decision to join forces with Claudius can be summed up as the climax of Hamlet. Following the climax is the falling action, which David sees as where “the struggle between the protagonist and antagonist ends with the protagonist’s success, or defeat” (Welton, 46). Sometimes in this part there is also a “fake ending” where the final suspense is at play. “It’s common for this stage to include a moment or two when the audience doubts the final outcome.” (Welton, 46). Acts four and five are dedicated to this part as the play “descends to its catastrophic resolution.” (Bowers, 25) Finally comes the dénouement where the story wraps up to a satisfying end where all the actions are done and the results are revealed. This is obviously the end of the battle scene as Hamlet is poisoned by Laertes and ends up killing King Claudius himself. Hamlet ended up “resolving with his own death and the deaths of those who fall by or with him his involvement in the murder, treachery, spying, and deceit which has plagued his Court” (Barry, 125). All this conveys that Hamlet has the overall structures of a classic dramatic play. Freytag’s structure is the base of scripts and screenplays when it comes to creating compelling plays. It has a lot of implications and variations in the modern context. For example, the three acts structure in film is loosely based on this pyramidal
Hamlet then puts up a play to perform a scene. To his guilt, Claudius leave the theater, proving Hamlet’s suspicions. Hamlet goes to kill Claudius but finds him praying, thus delaying the revenge. Hamlet then goes to confront his mother, Queen Gertrude, and, in a hasty move, draws his sword killing Polonius, the Lord Chamberlain. Claudius plans to banish and kill Hamlet in England. Laertes swears revenge on Hamlet. The two ended up in a sword fight challenge. Claudius successfully poisons Hamlet at the cost of his own life and his wife, Queen Gertrude. Laertes also dies of the poison.
The first reason to why Hamlet is such a timeless play is because it follows a dramatic structure that is exciting and full of plot points in an organized manner. Here, we take a look at Freytag’s dramatic structure which is the underlying base for movies and TV shows in our modern world. Freytag’s dramatic structure, which can also be referred to as Freytag’s pyramid, is the basic overall structure of a film or a play. Freytag himself composed this structure after much exploring into Shakespearean plays. David G. Welton in The Formula for Screenwriting Success stated that: “Freytag’s analysis revealed a structural …show more content…
So the closet scene and Laertes’ decision to join forces with Claudius can be summed up as the climax of Hamlet. Following the climax is the falling action, which David sees as where “the struggle between the protagonist and antagonist ends with the protagonist’s success, or defeat” (Welton, 46). Sometimes in this part there is also a “fake ending” where the final suspense is at play. “It’s common for this stage to include a moment or two when the audience doubts the final outcome.” (Welton, 46). Acts four and five are dedicated to this part as the play “descends to its catastrophic resolution.” (Bowers, 25) Finally comes the dénouement where the story wraps up to a satisfying end where all the actions are done and the results are revealed. This is obviously the end of the battle scene as Hamlet is poisoned by Laertes and ends up killing King Claudius himself. Hamlet ended up “resolving with his own death and the deaths of those who fall by or with him his involvement in the murder, treachery, spying, and deceit which has plagued his Court” (Barry, 125). All this conveys that Hamlet has the overall structures of a classic dramatic play. Freytag’s structure is the base of scripts and screenplays when it comes to creating compelling plays. It has a lot of implications and variations in the modern context. For example, the three acts structure in film is loosely based on this pyramidal