Hamlet – Critical Interpretations
‘Hamlet: The play within the play’, Gillian Woods
“From The Murder of Gonzago to Hamlet's pretence of madness, Hamlet is a
work obsessed with acting and deception.”
“Hamlet – both the character and the play in which he appears – is deeply
concerned with performance”
“In his very first scene, Hamlet polices the boundaries between performance
and reality.”
“Outward displays of emotion are untrustworthy, Hamlet reasons, because a
person could ‘play’ or mimic them.”
“his own sincere demonstrations of sadness are compromised because it
would be easy to feign them.“
“Hamlet insists [his outward grief is] not significant: his inner feelings are his
true meaning.”
“When he discovers that his uncle has murdered his father, Hamlet interprets
the news as a lesson in deceitful appearances: ‘meet it is I set it down / That
one may smile, and smile, and be a villain!’ (1.5.107–08)”
“At the very moment Hamlet insists that his mourning is authentic and
internal, he seems deliberately to parade his grief for all to see.”
“Renaissance plays are particularly self-conscious about their own
theatricality, as their writers explored the technical possibilities and ethical
implications of the form.”
“The play staged at Elsinore gave audiences at the Globe an opportunity to
reflect on the nature of the entertainment they had paid to view.”
“Hamlet’s enthusiastic welcome of the players reveals his affection for
theatre, in spite of his distaste for ‘seeming’.”
“Hamlet is tormented by the ‘monstrous’ relationship he perceives between
acting and authenticity.”
‘Hamlet: The play within the play’, Gillian Woods
“From The Murder of Gonzago to Hamlet's pretence of madness, Hamlet is a
work obsessed with acting and deception.”
“Hamlet – both the character and the play in which he appears – is deeply
concerned with performance”
“In his very first scene, Hamlet polices the boundaries between performance
and reality.”
“Outward displays of emotion are untrustworthy, Hamlet reasons, because a
person could ‘play’ or mimic them.”
“his own sincere demonstrations of sadness are compromised because it
would be easy to feign them.“
“Hamlet insists [his outward grief is] not significant: his inner feelings are his
true meaning.”
“When he discovers that his uncle has murdered his father, Hamlet interprets
the news as a lesson in deceitful appearances: ‘meet it is I set it down / That
one may smile, and smile, and be a villain!’ (1.5.107–08)”
“At the very moment Hamlet insists that his mourning is authentic and
internal, he seems deliberately to parade his grief for all to see.”
“Renaissance plays are particularly self-conscious about their own
theatricality, as their writers explored the technical possibilities and ethical
implications of the form.”
“The play staged at Elsinore gave audiences at the Globe an opportunity to
reflect on the nature of the entertainment they had paid to view.”
“Hamlet’s enthusiastic welcome of the players reveals his affection for
theatre, in spite of his distaste for ‘seeming’.”
“Hamlet is tormented by the ‘monstrous’ relationship he perceives between
acting and authenticity.”
