Guidelines:
– No less than 1200 words
– Citations in MLA style
– Must incorporate the concepts of homo histrio (modest claims about human capabilities and potential rather than hyperbolic ones) and homo rationalis (the human being as a rational or thinking animal) to support your argument
*Must use the quotation sandwich model in your body paragraphs*
– Must analyze Shakespeare\’s use of figurative language of simile, metaphor, personification, allusion or irony
When you sight a source in the play, at the end of the quote put the (Act, Scene, Line) it was in.
How does the play address theatricality in human life? Are the characters models of homo rationalis? Or homo histrio?
For this essay, you will choose a theme in which you explore the debate of authenticity (true selfhood through the use of reason) and role-playing (a self which adapts to the situation). For example, if you would like to write about the theme of romantic love in Hamlet, you might examine the conflicts Hamlet and Ophelia experience in their interaction with each other. What governs their attitude towards romantic love? Reason? Or are they articulating their love through the roles they were born into?
The topic I chose was Revenge. Revenge between King Claudius and Hamlet and also revenge between the Ghost and King Claudius. The Ghost went through Hamlet to get revenge on Claudius because of what he did.