The Tragedy of Hamlet

Year 8 students in Braeburn Imani are having a wonderful term, exploring Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

It is a Shakespearean term for Year 8 students who are reading one of Shakespeare’s tragedies, Hamlet. Set in Denmark, the play retells the old but familiar intrigues of jealousy, revenge, and love.

In reading the play, we equip our learners with vital social skills to understand the consequences of vices in the world. All these are done in embedment of our core value of promoting Responsible Citizenship.

How do we ‘read’ drama?

We remain cognisant to the fact that plays are meant to be performed by actors in front of a live audience. We, therefore, as much as possible, keep up with the expectations of drama even while reading.

We use a range of teaching and learning approaches to cement the learning process. For example, we reenact some scenes, hold discussions, and role play to make the ‘reading’ better.

Have you read Hamlet?

Well, it is an interesting tragedy by William Shakespeare that follows Prince Hamlet's quest for revenge after his father's murder. Plagued by grief and doubts, Hamlet feigns madness to uncover the truth and gather evidence against his uncle, Claudius, who married Hamlet's mother and usurped the throne. As the story unfolds, relationships crumble, alliances shift, and tragedy befalls the characters. Hamlet's internal struggle, fueled by moral dilemmas and the complexities of human nature, drives the play towards a climactic duel and a devastating conclusion, leaving a lasting impact on both the characters and the audience.

Our students’ thoughts:

Here are some views about this play from our students:

I feel good about this play because it reveals the secrets of life such as love. As a teenager, I find this play quite relatable.

• Joseph

I think this play is a very interesting play. It reveals to us how people thought during the era of Queen Victoria. As a young girl, I empathise with women in the Victorian era because of how wrong they were treated.

• Michelle

I believe that the plot is different from other plays I have read or movies I have watched. It is an interesting play but stereotypical towards women and we can clearly see the difference in views of that time and our time.

• Aisha V.