Hamlet

Written by William Shakespeare

Narrated by Geoffrey Giuliano and The Crush

The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, often shortened to Hamlet is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts Prince Hamlet and his revenge against his uncle, Claudius, who has murdered Hamlet's father in order to seize his throne and marry Hamlet's mother. Hamlet is considered among the "most powerful and influential tragedies in the English language", with a story capable of "seemingly endless retelling and adaptation by others".

There are many works that have been pointed to as possible sources for Shakespeare's play—from ancient Greek tragedies to Elizabethan plays. The editors of the Arden Shakespeare question the idea of "source hunting", pointing out that it presupposes that authors always require ideas from other works for their own, and suggests that no author can have an original idea or be an originator. When Shakespeare wrote there were many stories about sons avenging the murder of their fathers, and many about clever avenging sons pretending to be foolish in order to outsmart their foes.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Icon Audio Arts
• Release date: Nov 3, 2022
• ISBN: 9798887675343

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare is widely regarded as the greatest playwright the world has seen. He produced an astonishing amount of work; 37 plays, 154 sonnets, and 5 poems. He died on 23rd April 1616, aged 52, and was buried in the Holy Trinity Church, Stratford.

Reviews for Hamlet

[antao-3 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Play of Plays: "Hamlet" by William Shakespeare, Jonathan Bate, Eric Rasmussen Published 2008.

“He helps us understand the human condition. But he cannot do this without a good text of the plays. Without editions there would be no Shakespeare. That is why throughout the last three centuries there has been a major new edition of his complete works.”
(Jonathan Bate)

I studied Shakespeare at Universidade de Letras de Lisboa and have seen many plays in performance since then. We read twelve plays in sixteen weeks: “A Midsummer Night's Dream”, “Romeo and Juliet”, “Richard II”, “Richard III”, “The First Part of King Henry IV”, and “Twelfth Night” among others. I did not do as well in that class as I would have liked. In fact, I distinctly remember not studying much for the exam because the girl with whom I was studying asked me if I was interested in going out and, since I was attracted to her, I said yes. After my professor returned my exam to me, she asked me if I would visit her during office hours to discuss my poor academic performance. I told her, "I'm not going to lie. Instead of studying, I went out with a girl in our class." Her reply, "I can hardly fault you for acting upon the sort of thing Shakespeare wrote about. I am willing to give you another chance. If you do better on the final exam, I will not weight this exam as heavily."

The rest of this review is available elsewhere.

[coach_of_alva · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I like other Shakespeare plays better, but I admit that this is Shakespeare's zenith.

[ron_peters-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Critics have varied in their enthusiasm for this play over the centuries. In many ways Hamlet is a typical "modern" - a relativist, caught in perpetual indecision, uncertain of his place in the world, frozen by his anxieties. It also contains some of the best-known lines and soliloquies in all of Shakespeare. It can be, and has been, read and performed from a religious perspective, an existential perspective, a Freudian perspective, or a feminist perspective.

[john257hopper · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

To commemorate in my own small way the 400th anniversary of the Bard's death, I decided to read Hamlet for the first time in my life. While one of his greatest plays, I don't enjoy this as much as Macbeth or Romeo and Juliet, which I studied at school and have enjoyed also in adulthood. There are some amazing scenes, though, and the flow of phrases which have entered the English language from this play alone comes thick and fast.

[lit_chick_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

“Something is rotten in the state of Denmark!” (1.4) Indeed!I thoroughly enjoyed a recent reread of Hamlet, and was much impressed with its layers of illusion, ambiguity, and deception – absolutely brilliant! And I had forgotten how many great lines, still used today with regularity, had their origin in Hamlet; “To be or not to be …” is the most obvious and unforgettable, of course, but there are many more! How about “This above all: to thine own self be true” (1.3), or “What a piece of work is man!” (2.2). And, in some modern English equivalent, who has not said, “Though this be madness, yet there is method in ‘t” (2.2). The wise old adage about the danger of doing business with friends is from Hamlet, too: “Neither a borrower nor a lender be,/For loan oft loses both itself and friend” (1.3). But alas, “The lady doth protest too much, methinks” (3.2). Finally, I couldn’t but marvel at Shakespeare’s continued influence some four hundred years after his time; and this lead me to wonder who, if any, among our contemporary writers, will we (well, not you and I, but others) be quoting four centuries hence?

[loufreshwater · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What didn't I learn from this book? ;-)

[lhlogan1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Good solid Shakespeare read. A bit too much of a "he did, she did" plot at times.

[booksfordinner · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

My fav editions of the Bard.

[a_reader_of_fictions · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Story:
Everyone knows Hamlet. Okay, maybe not everyone, but most people do. Now, if you were to ask me if I liked Hamlet, my short answer would probably be 'no.' Really, though, it's not fair for me to encapsulate my feelings on Hamlet into such a simple answer. If Hamlet and I were in a relationship on facebook (assuming he it could ever decide whether to be in one...punned!), it would most definitely be complicated.

Here's the thing: Hamlet is a great play. There's no denying it. When I think about the play objectively, there's a lot of amazing stuff in there. Shakespeare's wit is fantastic; gotta love all of those dirty jokes he makes in here. And, of course, the language is completely gorgeous.

The characters I have never been particularly tied to, which is one reason Hamlet does not rank among my favorite plays; the tragedies often lack the sassy heroines you can find in the comedies. Hamlet's indecisiveness frustrates me endlessly. Whine, whine, whine, think about doing something, wimp out, wine more. Cry moar, anon. Yoda judges you. Hamlet's uncle father and his aunt mother are not especially likable, even if you don't think they're guilty of what Hamlet's ghosty father accused them of (namely, turning him into a ghost). Ophelia isn't the brightest; plus, her end does not for admiration make. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are probably my favorites, and that's only because of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead by Tom Stoppard.

Truly though, the reason that I don't really like Hamlet is how prevalent it is. I just get so tired of always hearing this same play over and over. I mean, who didn't have to read this in high school, and again in college?

Performance:
This audiobook is the recording of a stage version of the play, performed by the Oregon Shakespeare Festival cast. They do a good job, and I imagine it was quite a fun performance that they did. It sounds like they did some interesting things with the characters, such as changing gender in some cases and some modernizing (thus the leather jacket Hamlet's wearing).

Unfortunately, listening to a play and watching it just aren't the same. Had I not already been very familiar with Hamlet, I have little doubt that I would at time have been confused by some of the quick scene changes or by which voice belonged to which character. Some of the actors did have rather similar sounding voices.

Between scenes, there is creepy dramatic music, which definitely set a mood, but I don't think I liked. Nor did I care for the fact that the players rapped everything. That was kind of weird. At least Ophelia didn't rap her crazyface songs. Speaking of Ophelia, she was my favorite part of the performance. Her voice and manner definitely reminded me of River Tam (Summer Glau's character in Firefly, who has a couple of screws loose). What an awesome way to portray Ophelia. Now I kind of want to try to write some fan fiction with the characters from Firefly performing Hamlet. Maybe not.

[26kathryn · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was the first time that I've read Hamlet, I've heard it quoted so many times and I thought it was about time I read it.Hamlet's mother is married to her dead husband's brother. And after seeing his father's ghost Hamlet decides to take revenge on his uncle/step-dad who apparently murdered his father. It's a kind of crazy story with lots of death, and there were some places where I didn't really understand what was going on, but I still got the overall jist of the story.I enjoyed reading this but when reading a play as a book I find it a bit hard to keep track of the characters and the settings, I think I would like to see it performed so that I can really get a feel for the story.

[wellreadcatlady · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It amazes me how many people like Hamlet, no exception here, when it's really hard to relate to, but yet it's just one of those plays once you get into it, you come to love it. I read it for the first time in 12th grade and everyone would talk about it even when they didn't have to. The characters in Hamlet are amazingly complex and it doesn't just state how they are, you learn it through their actions and what they say. It's just so unique, I know everytime I read it I get a different opinion of the characters and the overall play.

[cebellol · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Possibly one of the only tragedies Shakespeare wrote that I can really, truly say I enjoyed. I really can't say much about it without ruining it though, so I'll just say READ IT (avoid the movie until you've done so though. I really like Kenneth Branagh, but it's just a little overkill.)

[hollyinnnv · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I do not have a degree in literature, so maybe I am unqualified to remark on this classic work. However, one of the hallmarks of a classic is that many people enjoy it and read it. So, I'm going to go ahead and forge on with this review anyway.I teach high school literature to a group of students weekly. We read Hamlet after finishing Richard III. The students were much more passionate about Hamlet. And when I use the term passion, I mean that in both a positive and negative sense. Some of the students felt Hamlet was a whiny, pathetic nincompoop. Other students were impressed with Hamlet's deceptive insanity and classified him as a hero, although of a more darker variety of heroes.Some of the more interesting discussion topics included the following:1. Does Hamlet rule events or do events rule Hamlet?2. What is the definition of a hero? Does Hamlet fit that definition?3. Is Hamlet truly insane? What is the definition of insanity? 4. Is inaction actually action?Even when the students disliked Hamlet, they still seemed to feel that his character had a depth of authenticity. Because of Hamlet's "realness," they were able to feel the play and feel Hamlet more than some of the other characters they have read about this year, like Aeneas, Antigone and Richard III. It felt like a clinical, dispassionate discussion with the other works of literature. But, the Hamlet discussion was real.During our classroom discussions we remarked on the fact that the play seemed full ambiguity. Could we trust ourselves to make any determinations. One student humorously remarked that maybe Shakespeare did this purposefully, laughing at all of the confusion and argument that this would create in future generations.And while Hamlet is not my favorite work of Shakespeare, I do think it has a timeless value. Everyone should read or see it!

[mzzkitee · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

One of the greatest works ever written.

[pgchuis · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

More of the action seemed to happen off-stage than on! Excellent notes, and again many familiar lines I have seen referenced another literature and in everyday speech. Most of the cast dead by the end...

[lisamaria_c · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It's said that someone once read this, and said, "I don't see what the fuss is about, it's just a bunch of quotes strung together." That has advantages and disadvantages in reading. The more you're familiar with Elizabethan language, the better you can comprehend and appreciate the plays. But sometimes reading something such as "To Be or Not to Be" I'm reminded of a friend's reaction to the presence of Ted Danson in Private Ryan. He said all he could see was Sam of Cheers. It can be disconcerting to hear or read something that familiar. And I recommend doing both--hearing and reading if you want to get the most out of Hamlet. Precisely because the language and some of the literary and historical allusions are unfamiliar, reading an annotated copy of the play is a must--all the more because this is Shakespeare's longest play. But the text of a play is after all just a scaffolding--it's really not meant to be read, but seen. The title role is the quintessential test of an actor; Hamlet appears in a larger proportion of the play than in any other Shakespeare role--two thirds--and some fine Hamlets have appeared on film. There's the classic 1948 film directed by and starring Laurence Olivier, there's the 1990 Zeffirelli version starring Mel Gibson with Glenn Close as Gertrude and there's the 1996 film directed by and starring Kenneth Branagh. Branagh's film is visually stunning, has incredible depth of casting with celebrated actors taking even the minor roles, and it's the longest using the full "eternity text;" it's a little over four hours. Those with less stamina might prefer Zeffirelli's version, at close to half the length. One thing about performances you're likely to see. Especially because the title role is so demanding, you usually see mature, veteran actors as Hamlet. Olivier was in his forties when he played the role, Gibson and Branagh in their thirties. I think this throws off the character. Hamlet is young--still a student and often referred to as "young." And age matters. One thing I loved about Zefirelli's Romeo and Juliet was how he cast actors that actually were the right ages--it made so much more sense of their actions, and I think that's true of Hamlet too. It makes more sense of his famous hesitations, his emo soliloquies, his grief over his father, his near suicidal musings and manic turns and why he feels so betrayed by his mother. If she married young and he is still young, she could possibly still produce a child that could displace him as heir. But all that is lost with a Hamlet pushing 40 and a post-menopausal Gertrude. One of those books/plays you have to read or you're an ignoramus, but one that pays to know, and is even enjoyable if you have one whit of poetry in your soul. It's not my favorite Shakespeare play, but if by some miracle you got through high school and college without being exposed to Shakespeare, this is probably the one you really should know over all the others.

[tiffanyak_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is truly an amazing work, and is a very well-known story. Even if you haven't read the play, or seen any of the film versions, you probably have heard enough to know much of what happens, and are likely familiar with several very famous lines. This was my first time reading the play, and I truly loved it, because it does go far beyond just the famous lines and core story. There is true depth here, with layers of meaning that really strike at the soul of the audience. As to the edition itself, I found it to be greatly helpful in understanding the action in the play. It has a layout which places each page of the play opposite a page of notes, definitions, explanations, and other things needed to understand that page more thoroughly. While I didn't always need it, I was certainly glad to have it whenever I ran into a turn of language that was unfamiliar, and I definitely appreciated the scene-by-scene summaries. Really, if you want to or need to read Shakespeare, an edition such as this is really the way to go, especially until you get more accustomed to it.

[regularguy5mb · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is, I believe, my absolute favorite of Shakespeare's tragedies. Primarily because Hamlet is a thinker throughout most of the play. When we first meet him, he is thinking of the inevitability of death and the loss of his father. Then he is tasked to dispatch his uncle when he learns from his father's ghost that Claudius poisoned him for his crown, and he spends the rest of the story considering the logistics of actually doing the deed.Many of my favorite Shakespeare lines also come from Hamlet, not only the brilliant soliloquies, but also little bits like "neither a borrower nor a lender be," "sweets for the sweet," and "goodnight, sweet prince." Also, Hamlet provided the inspiration for one of my favorite modern plays, "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead."This particular edition also includes a series of essays on the play and Shakespeare's writing, my favorite of which is an in-depth look at Gertrude by Carolyn Heilbrun in a piece titled "The Character of Hamlet's Mother." It also ends with a look at Hamlet on stage and screen, breaking down the various and varied performances of Hamlet through the years, ending with the Laurence Olivier film version (fitting since that is what inspired me to reread the play this time around).I'm pretty sure this exact copy was my sister's in high school, it is also filled with several notes written by her hand, in pencil, in the margins.

[faith_murri · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The only Shakespeare plays I had read before this were Romeo and Juliet and Macbeth, Macbeth being my favorite. Having now read Hamlet, I can honestly say that Macbeth is still my favorite.

Let's discuss.

So, Hamlet himself is an emo icon, and also a misogynist, who basically goes crazy, murders someone, and essentially ruins everything.

The ending came a little too quickly for me, tbh. There wasn't enough time to really develop any other characters. It was pretty quotable, though. Really, it gave me more Romeo and Juliet feels than Macbeth feels.

[katieloucks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great classic

[thedivineoomba · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

On rereading classic plays - I found Hamlet to be, well Hamlet. As in any book that gives extra information, much of it is useful, a lot of it repetitious. I found the information about the folio's vs the quarto's and the difference between the two fascinating. For example, some of the editions were put together from actor's memories well after the last performance. So parts are added, removed, and expanded on. Putting this all together in the way Shakespeare intended it is always a lot of guessing and arguing.

[stefany_6 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It's difficult to critique a work that is widely considered to be the best piece produced by the greatest author who ever lived. To put it in simple terms, I did enjoy Hamlet for the most part. Once I got used to the language and re-familiarized myself with reading a script, the story flowed very well. My only real complaint was that the format took a bit out of the climactic finale for me. I feel that it would have read much better in a novel format.Shakespeare has written one of the most compelling tragedies ever in Hamlet, and his plot and character development are topnotch. Hamlet's downward spiral into madness is classically done. All said, a must read.

[jennaelf · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The more I learn about the English language and literature in general, the richer Shakespeare's works become. Hamlet is no exception.

When considered as a boundary/change marker in the landscape of literature, it makes an interesting mile-marker between earlier eras of the oral heroic, the epic and the blossoming of humanism. (Forgive me if I'm using any of these terminologies incorrectly; I will elaborate what I mean.) Which is to say, the oral heroic focused (in general terms) on family units, clans, tribes, etc. and the conflicts between them. These narratives usually dealt with inscribing some sort of expected behavior(s) that sorted out the violent chaos that accompanied the birthings of civilizations. As an example of a major trope in this early literature that's relevant to Hamlet: blood-feud violence.

The Odyssey comes from the beginning of this and in its ending tries to address the ending of such tit-for-tat retribution.

In this way, Hamlet might be considered (and I'm happy to do so) the ending of this particular literary tradition as a major trope. Instead of focusing on the blood feud (the plot going on with Fortinbras & Norway), it turns a bit more inward. Instead of Hamlet marching off to claim what is his by rights from Norway, there's a more humanistic struggle at play.

I feel that most Shakespeare could benefit from a little extra knowledge and context than most of us get upon our first exposure. Hamlet's definitely gotten 'better' for me over time.

[deckla_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

My favorite, of all the histories and tragedies. I've seen it in performance at least 5 times--with Kevin Kline and Ralph Fiennes two of the most memorable.

[bryndahlquis · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

While it can be quite long and tedious in parts, it's still Hamlet.I mean, it's hard to beat Hamlet.

[bookomaniac-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Vertaling van Komrij. Uiteraard een tijdloos stuk met een ongelofelijke diepgang, maar geen gemakkelijke lectuur. Ligt me minder dan de iets eenduidiger stukken King Lear of Macbeth.

[boltgirl · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Hamlet is the most annoying lead in Shakespeare. And the play is the most apt metaphor for the last couple of months of my high school career. Anenergy, baby! It took me forEVER to finish the term paper on the play; Brother Phil graciously gave me a C+ despite me turning it in, oh, probably a month past the due date. And that dinged my GPA just enough for someone else to win the Senior English prize. Ah well. At least it was one of my friends.

[stormydawnc · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My favorite of Shakespeare's plays(that I've read). Is there a more interesting character than Hamlet? The amazing this about this play is that I know the end from the very beginning, but I'm always compelled to read on.

[aglassman-452875 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I was expecting Hamlet to be more like the Lion King, but Hamlet ended up being one of the most enjoyable Shakespeare plays I've read. He really is a pun master.

[kellyholmes-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One of my favorite Shakespeare works.