Hamlet Response Journal

Response Journal for Act 1, Scene 1 to Act 1, Scene 5.

1.     How does the play make you feel at this point? Record your emotional response(s) in a few sentences and then explore them for a few minutes, trying to figure out why you feel as you do.

-          At this point of the story, I’m getting more and more excited about it as I’m getting to know, understand, and follow the flow of the story. And I’m eager to know what’s coming next; especially I want to know what Hamlet will do to his uncle, King Claudius, and whether or not he will tell others about his encounter with his father’s spirit, the former king. Frankly, at first I’m totally not interested into this story because I couldn’t understand what its message is trying to tell. But after reading and watching the story, I start to understand it and also coming to know that this story is really interesting, fascinating, and full of curiosity due to the words that Shakespeare used.

2.     In what situations have you felt similar to the characters? What persons, places, or ideas from your own experiences came to your mind while you were reading this portion of the play? Try to list at least three associations, but don’t worry about trying to figure out why they came to mind. Just accept that they occur.

(a)   In act 1, scene 1, where Bernardo and Marcellus said that they saw a ghost and Horatio said “Tush, tush, ‘twill not appear.” There are times that I felt the same as Horatio and my friends are like Bernardo and Marcellus. Before, when I was young, my friends like to say that they saw scary ghosts in the toilet or at the hallway. Then every time, I will tell them, “Don’t say non-sense stuff! There are ghosts in this world!” My friends would argue with me that they really saw it and trying to scare themselves. And I would argue them back that there are no ghosts!

(b)   In act 1, scene 2, I personally felt the same way as Hamlet. His father, the former king, had just died and now everyone is celebrating the marriage of his mother, Gertrude, and his uncle, King Claudius. I can’t understand how their mood can change so fast, just about one month after the former king’s death; they just forget everything and celebrate their own marriage as if nothing had happened. If I was in that situation I would be really mad but also felt a bit happy for the mother. I’m mad about the uncle hurrying to get married so that he can take the place of the king. And also mad about the mother that how can she marry her own brother? But I also feel happy for her that she can find another love and forget the pain.

(c)    In act 1, scene 5, I have a feeling that is quite similar to that of Hamlet’s. When his father’s spirit showed to him and told him that his uncle, King Claudius, is the one who murdered him. If it was me, I would be really angry and mad. And I would definitely find a chance to revenge the uncle for killing my father.

3.     What portions of Shakespeare’s language attracts your attention? These might be individual words, phrases, lines, scenes, or images. Make note of whatever features draw your attention. Speculate for a few minutes about what you think they might mean.

-          The part that Hamlet’s father telling Hamlet about how he was killed by Hamlet’s uncle in act 1, scene 5 it shows a clear image to me showing that Hamlet’s father is really mad about it by the words that he used. The adjectives that he used to describe King Claudius showed that he was really mad about how cruel the uncle was.

4.     Make note of any portion of the play, its language, or events that cause you problems. Note any questions that you might ask.

-          The main problem that I have in this play is the language, or words that Shakespeare used in the story. The words Shakespeare used have very deep meanings and give me confusions on what the message is trying to tell or express.