So my Dad used to own multiple fish plants in P.E.I. between 1986-1993. Back in the day, they used to sell fish to the Japanese, so the Japanese would send down some of their inspectors on a yearly basis to make sure that the fish they would get was well processed, that who they were doing business with were legit. This one night as my dad was leaving the plant, on a chilly September evening, and due to cold all the bugs would go up against the big heat pump that was outside. Anyway, has my dad looked over his shoulder back at the shop he saw the Japanese standing beside the heater just killing bugs, and my dad said that it was the same thing every night that the guy was there.

Tell me a story!

Today we discussed what a short story is (and is not), what makes for an interesting story, and why short stories matter. Take some time now to tell me a story: it could be a joke, it could be true, fake, it could be sad, or funny... it doesn't matter. There are only two requirements: it has a beginning, middle, and end... and it has at least one character that has a problem. 

All good stories have a great conflict... ask yourself: What is your conflict? Is it an internal conflict or external? Person vs Nature? Person vs. Self?

Go!!! Ps: it can be short:)

One of the two certainties in Life is death

One of the two certainties in Life is death, and it’s ultimately the most final of the two. Death is the predominant theme in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Because of this exposure to death, Hamlet gains an adolescent fascination of it by the end of the play. Hamlet’s depression and madness enables him to cope with death, to become violent and to even kill. Throughout the whole of the play, Hamlet views death differently. From his dour and gloomy brooding at the beginning, to his intriguing madness and desirability about death in the middle to the comfortable, cold killer in the end.

Hamlet’s depression is quite apparent in the beginning of the play. The people closest to him, his mother and stepfather, make notice of this by mentioning “How is that the clouds still hang on you”(1, II, 66) “Do not forever with thy vailed lids/ Thou knowest ‘tis common. All that lives must die.”(1, II, 70-72).

In the scenes following what happened in the battlements, Hamlet’s situation causes him to think more about death. He beings to think about the ghastly, supernatural revelation told to him by the ghostly apparition of his father. He has now become very depressed because of what he has agreed to do, kill Claudius. It is almost as if a bit of Hamlet is dying with each passing moment. In Act 2, Scene II Lines 301-319 Hamlet announces his plea to the universe, saying that he’s fed up with everything around him.

After the murder of Polonius, Hamlet is much more comfortable with death than he’s ever been before. His madness has reached him so much that he doesn’t feel for anyone anymore. When the King confronts Hamlet about the location of Polonius, he simply states “at supper” (4, III, 17) and begins to rave about being eaten by worms. Hamlet points out that everybody ends up dead in the end. At the beginning of Act 5, Hamlet’s conversation with the Gravedigger shows how lightly he views death. The digger and his partner make jokes about the sturdiest builder of all, and then Hamlet joins in and then they casually begin to wisecrack about death. Hamlet actually picks up a thrown human skull from one of the graves and stares at it in amazement. This is a moment of epiphany for him, he is defiantly staring death right in the face.

In the end, Hamlet has gone through a horrible metamorphosis caused by his madness and depression. He began as a soft and brooding young man and became a stern and hardened man.  

http://www.whatsonningbo.com/education/1439.html

The Noble Horatio

In the world of Hamlet a character with nobility is very hard to find. There are only two Characters that show any slight glimmer of being noble. These characters being Horatio and Laertes, the only difference between the two is that one decided that it was just to cheat death upon Hamlet by poisoning him. Laertes may seem the Noble character, but it is evident at the end of the play Laertes eventually loses all credibility of being noble. Where a noble man would honorably let his opponent have a striking chance during a duel. Laertes agrees to cunningly poison the unknowing Hamlet in the so called friendly fencing match. “With this contagion, that, if I gall him slightly, It may be death” (IV.VII.148-149). Laertes also never says that poisoning Hamlet is against his conscience he merely states it is ALMOST against his conscience and continues with stabbing and poisoning Hamlet. This proves that Laertes is not the honorable man that he was once thought to be.  “And yet it is almost against my conscience.” (V.II.287).

            Horatio on the other hand is most definitely the most honorable character in the play of Hamlet. He is a genuine friend to Hamlet despite the circumstances no matter how dire, “Never believe it: I am more an antique Roman than a Dane: Here’s yet some liquor left.” (V.II.332-5), Horatio’s heroic words prove that he is willing to commit a passionate act of suicide if it means he can still be with his treasured friend. Horatio never commits any foul doings (To the reader’s knowledge) and is always trying to help better Hamlet. The loyalty that Horatio shows throughout the play proves that he is the only character in Hamlet that is respectable and trustworthy. Even Hamlet praises Horatio for his honorable and respectable qualities. “Horatio, thou art e’en as just a man as e’er my conversation coper withal.” (III.II.52-3). These few acts of nobility solidifies Horatio’s spot as the most noble character in Hamlet.

            Nobility in the world today is just as hard to come by as it is in Hamlet. Today society has shaped people to become “Selfish Beasts” (Quoted from Brent Hurley) through the want for self-gain so they can get a seat on Forbes Top 100 and most people will attempt to achieve this almost impossible feat no matter the consequences. However there are people who have no interest in self-gain and only wish for the better of others. In the world today you will find both ignorant self-indulgent people and people who seek to mentor others of good will and happiness. It just depends in which direction you look. 

Picture Link

The value of life is a subjective matter that often dictates people’s lives. Throughout the play, the question of mortality is faced by multiple characters in the play. Hamlet’s begins pondering about the meaning of life after the death of his father. His views on the subject of mortality are dynamic and they change as the play progresses.   His initial opinions are revealed in Act 3 scene 1 with the “To be, or not be” soliloquy. Through this, Hamlet debates on whether it is nobler to go through the struggles of life or to take his life.  He describes death as a way to “end the heart-ache, and the thousand natural shocks” (3.1.62-63). At this point, Hamlet is in a suicidal state as he wonders why he should have to battle through life when he can end it “with a bare bodkin” (3.1.77). After mourning over his father’s death, Hamlet overhears Claudius confessing that he killed his father. This stirs up anger in Hamlet. Although Hamlet has the perfect chance to kill Claudius, he chooses not to.  This quote clearly portrays Hamlet’s change in perception. He is no longer debating on whether he should or shouldn’t kill himself. His “thoughts be bloody” as all he was suddenly hungry to kill Claudius.  At this point, Hamlet has given in to the madness that he has been displaying. The traits associated with madness begin to come into play as Hamlet strives to find the perfect way to kill Claudius.  Based on the situations mentioned above, it is evident that Hamlet’s opinion on the subject of mortality has changed. He is no longer interested in killing himself. All he wants is to avenge Claudius for the death of his father.

http://lifehacker.com/5799860/the-smarter-way-to-seek-revenge 

Uncertain Decisions

Hamlet’s perception of mortality is very complex and evolves quite dramatically throughout the play. All major decision making is expressed in the four soliloquies and certain events in between that make him realize how his view of death can differ in an instant. In Hamlet,

In his first soliloquy, Hamlet is so unbelievably mad at Claudius and his mother that he seriously considers suicide as a solution. He wishes he could leave this “weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable” (1.2.133) world. It sounds like life has very little meaning compare to his problems at the moment. Although it seems like the next logical action to take religion forbids it, and therefore he gives up for now.

The actual problem at this stage is that the ghost of Hamlet’s father asked him to kill Claudius to avenge his death but Hamlet does not seem to be able to do so. “Am I a coward?”(2.2.530) is the question on his mind. He finally admits that Claudius is a “bloody, bawdy villain! Remorseless, treacherous, lecherous, kindles villain!”(2.2.541-543) he finds reasons to want to kill him after all and decide to get himself together and act! Before doing so though, he puts on “The Mousetrap” to prove that Claudius is guilty so he does not kill and innocent man.

So far, Hamlet only really thought about dying and killing as a wrong or right, not as a whole complicated concept. In “To be or not to be,”(3.1.57) Hamlet actually discusses the idea of suicide from a very logical intellect point of view. In this part of play, Shakespeare intertwines themes of death and nobility when Hamlet is wondering if dying is a noble act, or if suffering is the better option. Before, Hamlet just thought of suicide as a way to end his misery and now he compares it to sleeping, but he is becoming more open to expanding his knowledge of death and all its aspects. A new idea he’s considering is afterlife. No one knows what it is like really and it can be wonderful or scary, no one will ever be able to tell. I believe this to be one of the existential questions that everyone must have asked themselves at least one because death is the biggest mystery of life and we do not know if we should fear it, or welcome it when the time comes. As Hamlet recognizes, “conscience does make cowards of us all… thus the native hue of resolution / Is sicklied o’er with the pale cast of thought.”(3.1.84-86) I think this thought illustrates perfectly how someone on the verge like Hamlet might want to reconsider the act of suicide. Because we are human, we think. And because we think, we realize that no one chooses to live, but ending our own life can be hard because of the uncertainty of what is on the other side. This soliloquy is very philosophical and the focus shifts from killing Claudius to this existential mortality question…

In Act 3 Scene 3, Hamlet has the opportunity to kill Claudius but for some reason he delays… (Why the delay? You’ll have to read another post to figure that one out!) After that major event, the ghost appears to Hamlet once more to remind him of his purpose because he seemed to have backed down. This is the first step of a big motivation for Hamlet. Following that conversation with his father’s ghost, he observes something that truly inspires him to accomplish what is asked of him. Noticing how Fortinbras’ army is ready to fight and die for him for a valid cause in their eye, Hamlet is now certain he has the motive he needs to act and kill Claudius! At that point, he even questions why he delayed earlier, he wants blood! Also, he sends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to their death instead of him! He does not seem so worried about killing people for his personal benefit anymore...

Near the end of the play, Hamlet is discussing with the gravediggers and he sounds like he is almost mocking death, but he will discover a whole new side to it when they show him the skull of someone he once knew, Yorick. Seeing his old jester’s in this decaying state makes him truly uncomfortable, we can even say upset. At this moment, he stops laughing at death and makes a realization that will completely change his view on the matter: death is what makes us all human, it is the great equalizer. It does not matter who you were when you were alive, we all end up in the same place because death is unavoidable no matter how famous, rich, or beautiful someone is.

In Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, the idea of mortality finds very deep meaning in Hamlet’s character. In the beginning, he did not know exactly how he felt about death; if he understood it, or if he hated it. In the end, it is clear that he finally accepted the fate of the human race and uses it to avenge his father and welcomes his own death when it comes.

This is a video of Steve Job’s speech at Stanford University. His third story is about death and seems relevant after reading Hamlet. Start watching at 9:00, it’s a really inspirational story that can actually be related to Hamlet! 

This picture simply illustrates how Hamlet keeps changing his mind about the concept of mortality and how much he questions it.

The Noble Prize

I believe one of the only noble characters in Hamlet is Laertes. There are multiple ways to define noble, and Laertes embodies almost all these characteristics. A noble person to me is someone who is loyal, just, compassionate, honourable, merciful, forgiving, and righteous. Throughout Hamlet there are many examples of Laertes exhibiting these characteristics. At the beginning of the play, in Act I Scene iii, Laertes talks to Ophelia and shows genuine concern for her happiness, worried about her relationship with Hamlet: “Fear it, Ophelia. Fear it, my dear sister” (I.iii.33). Laertes warns her not to get too attached with Hamlet, for he will not be able to be with her. This exemplifies Laertes compassion. Laertes is also honourable, and has lots of pride. When he discovers the death of his father and the madness of his sister was caused by Hamlet, he vows revenge against him. “Let come what comes, only I’ll be revenged. Most thoroughly for my father.” (IV.v.109-110) Although it may not be the most intelligent or thought-out of vows, it is certainly noble to want and actively seek vengeance, as opposed to moping and hesitating like Hamlet. Laertes is also honourable in the sense that he opposes the idea of using poison to defeat Hamlet, instead desiring to defeat him in a fencing match. Although Laertes does use poison and trickery to kill Hamlet, he starts feeling guilty when fighting Hamlet, “And yet it is almost 'gainst my conscience,” (V.ii.288) and shows genuine remorse after he is mortally wounded by Hamlet and forgives Hamlet of all his wrongdoings: ”Exchange forgiveness with me, noble Hamlet. Mine and my father’s death come not upon thee” (V.ii.324-325). Laertes is truly a noble character, exhibiting noble traits such as compassion, honour, loyalty, remorse, and forgiveness throughout the entirety of the play, from first appearance to untimely death.

Nobility in the modern world is very similar to nobility in Shakespearean times. The same characteristics that made someone nobel in Hamlet still apply today. A person is noble if they are loyal, just, compassionate, honourable, merciful, forgiving, and righteous. There are many people today who fit the criteria, although it is difficult to pick them out. The reason for this is that it is very difficult to remain noble while still being successful. Oftentimes success relies on doing ignoble things and requires ignoble practices and principles. It is just as important to be a noble person today as it was in Hamlet’s time, as nobility is a trait that transcends cultural and material changes. Even as the world and the people in it change, being noble will always be an important trait.

http://0.tqn.com/d/taoism/1/0/0/-/-/-/yinYang.gif