Hamlet in Purgatory: Expanded Edition (Princeton Classics, 4)

Fresh, well written, a bit disjointed, author is usually smoother but it may be that he assumes you have already read a great deal on this subject and so are already "in" on the lingo and the activity of the times.Anything written by S Greenblatt is illuminating for the armchair or professional student of the life and times of Shakespeare. Go for it. Don't wait, NOW!

In his book, Stephen Greenblatt attempts to show that Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” is constructed almost entirely out of the theological debate about Purgatory. (The same theme was put forward by Ted Hughes in his “Shakespeare and the Goddess of Complete Being”). In order to make his point, Greenblatt collected quite an impressive review of references to the topic, which was at the heart of the early-sixteenth-century dispute between Catholics and Protestants. Out of five, four chapters of Greenblatt’s book are dedicated to various views regarding the operation and illustration of Purgatory. Some of Greenblatt’s examples are on the border of caricature. But the author is careful enough not to cross it openly. The author devoted the first four chapters to prepare the ground for his final chapter, in which he spells out his hypothesis. Let’s notice, that Shakespeare does not use the word “Purgatory”. Therefore, Greenblatt has to go through quite an elaborate mincing of words and phrases to justify his hypothesis. For example, Greenblatt assumes that Hamlet’s famous line:“The undiscover’d country from whose bourn no traveller returns”means “the bourns of the death’s undiscovered country”. But there is no word “death” in Hamlet’s line. Yet Greenblatt, like most critics, assume that “undiscover’d country” has to do with coming out of a grave. Hamlet speaks these words after he meets the Ghost. It is assumed, therefore, that either Shakespeare made a mistake or Hamlet is forgetful. Greeenblatt chooses the second option for it fits better into his hypothesis.But there is a third option.The plot of “Hamlet” explains that a crime was committed by Hamlet’s father; what is the Ghost’s origin, what he represents, and what his role is. In the final scene, Hamlet has a moment, when a spark of comprehension dawns onto him and he is able to understand everything what has happened to him. But the moment is too short for him to explain it. This is why the rest is silence. The readers are left with all the clues needed to fully comprehend the entire story.However, as long as the reader approaches Shakespeare’s text with a set of preconceived ideas, favourite views or preferred personal opinions, this “third” option reminds invisible. Shakespeare’s plays are designed in such a way that they help to recognize and identify such conditioned thinking patterns. In other words, the plays act as a trap for the warped operation of the mind. In this way the readers may recognize their own thinking flaws and then they may do something about it. “Hamlet in Purgatory” is an interesting example of the working of such a trap. There is no question that Stephen Greenblatt knows Shakespeare’s plays very well; he knows more about Shakespeare’s texts than most of us. But he does not understand the plot of “Hamlet”. Because to understand the plot, something else is needed: a spark of intuitive perception. This spark does not appear if one approaches Shakespeare with a biased attitude. This was the meaning of a statement made by a man, whom Greenblatt refers to in his introduction. And it is so interesting that an explanation of the nature of flawed thinking was given to the author prior to his writing of the book.

I thought this would be a more engaging book but it is not, at least so far.

Good text for teachers of Shakespeare as it analyses the role of purgatory/ afterlife/ ghosts from a historical perspective and how Shakespeare was influenced by these views. Occasional difficult reading and not a book for beginners.

Fantastic book. Eminently readable

Greenblatt begins with a great and interesting overview of the history of purgatory but out five chapters, only the very last discusses Hamlet.

I have only recently started to read Greenblatt's books, since I ( wrongly) assumed they would be full of Eng.Lit. Crit. jargon, which, as a historian, I often find impenetrable. In fact, in the three of his books I have read, there was no jargon and I enjoyed all three. I chose this because a few years ago I wrote an art history dissertation involving Purgatory, and because the problems presented by Hamlet's father's Ghost are interesting. The chapters on Purgatory are lucid and well informed, and I liked the sections on Shakespeare's other ghosts. I lost the author towards the end of the section on the Ghost; as with art historians, when experts have mulled over a topic, picture or text for a long time, they make links and evolve interpretations which are subtle ( i.e. not obvious), and sometimes hard to explain.I noted that Greenblatt draws attention to Shakespeare's " recusant" connections; it is easy to overestimate the importance of these since, the religious changes under the Tudors being so tumultuous, a great many Elizabethans must have had such connections. A most enjoyable book.

The ghost of Hamlet's murdered father comes back to haunt the Prince of Denmark. If you know your 'Hamlet' then you know what happens next!What you might NOT know (like me!) is that Purgatory was banned by the Elizabethan state (Protestant) as a Popish 'plot' to extract indulgences from the devout through fear of the 'unknown'.What Stephen Greenblatt does in this remarkable work of scholarship, is explore the theological backdrop to Shakespeare's masterpiece and to reveal the essentially Catholic underpinnings of the Danish Court.Not only is this fascinating stuff but is beautifully written, for layman (or woman) and scholar alike. Buy it! Now!

Original and insightful. Must for fans of the Bard and this author.

First twp chapters just background and intellectual context so the title almost a misnomer. Not an easy read for the 'lay' reader. As ever with Greenblatt though, total control of subject with erudite insight and stylistic aplomb.

brilliant