'Although 'Hamlet' is an extremely active, indeed feverishly energetic play, it does move forward slowly' (Kermode)
'Hamlet is "a vulgar and barbarous tragedy"' (Voltaire)
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Characterisation
'Before Shakespeare there was characterisation, after Shakespeare there were characters.' (Bloom)
'No-one in this play knows or understands anyone else' (Charnes)
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The Characterisation of Hamlet
'Hamlet is "the hero-villain"' (Bloom)
'There are "many different explanations for his procrastination"' (Muir)
'There are more Hamlet's than actors to play them' (Bloom)
'Hamlet has a "sterile concentration on death and evil"' (Knights) in contrast to 'A character who is "pure, noble and most moral nature" (Goethe)
'Hamlet is full of "meditative excess"' (Coleridge)
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The Characterisation of Claudius
'Claudius is "clearly the antagonist"' (Stockton)
'The cunning and lecherousness of Claudius' evil has corrupted the whole kingdom of Denmark' (Altick) in opposition to 'Claudius is a "good and gentle king" (Knight)
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The Characterisation of Polonius
"A bad parent" (Pennington)
'Polonius is "knowing in retrospect and ignorant in foresight"' (Johnson)
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The Characterisation of Gertrude
'She is "a character of ambiguous morality whom we can never fully know"' (Bradby)
'Gertrude is "negative and insignificant"' (Eliot)
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The Characterisation of Ophelia
'She "suffers a series of patriarchal opressions" (Hamana)
'Ophelia has an "inablility to express herself by means to words"' (Oshio)
'Physically, Ophelia "appears in only 5 of the plays 20 scenes"' (Showalter)
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