How the Authors Biographical Background Leads to a Particular Interpretation of a Work - Case Study Example

BIOGRAPHICAL BCKGROUND AND INTERPRETATION OF WORK The primary stage in a research process, Lusk (2004) views, is the development of a cleared, precise and well-knitted proposal. The aim of the present literary research is to find out whether or not a literary work aims to describe the personality behind it and his biographical background. William Shakespeare’s Hamlet has been taken as the literary masterpiece for the present study. A deep and thorough examination of his life on the one hand, and his political, religious, cultural and social background on the other, have been made during the whole research process with special concentration on his remarkable tragedy Hamlet. The views and analyses made by the scholars while critically evaluating his works have also been included in the present study. The following hypothesis has been developed for the research: More thought-provoking and brilliant the author’s personality as well as observation of the environment, the more his piece of literature covers and reflects different aspects of the biographical background of its author. After the research process, the hypothesis was upheld. INTRODUCTION It is fact beyond doubt that there not only exists a strong and an intimate association between life and literature, but also life is the subject matter of all genres and forms of creative writing. It is therefore it has aptly been said that literature is the reflection of life and the norms, values, traditions, conventions and taboos prevailing in a society which can be found and preserved in gorgeous creative writing as the intellectual heritage of a particular culture and civilization. It is social and cultural features that provide the raw material to creativity on which the foundations of literature stand. Thus, realities of life give birth to the formation of literature. Looking into the history of the world at large, it becomes obvious that all human societies have worked for the preservation of their culture in the form of poetry, art, sculpture, drama, paintings and other forms of creativity. It is therefore ancient Greek philosophers and thinkers have discussed literature in their lectures and writings. Plato has also analyzed literature critically with special focus on poesy. He has declared poetry as mere imitation of life, and a true literary genre presents the actual picture of patterns of life without concealing the bitter facts it maintains. Aristotle, in his renowned Poetics, views men mere objects of imitation. “Since the objects of imitation are men in action, he argues, and these men must be either of a higher or a lower type, it follows that we must represent men either as better than in real life, or as worse, or as they are. It is the same in painting.” (Aristotle: Poetics, Chapter 2) The production and creation of marvelous literature by the king of all ages i.e. Sir William Shakespeare fulfill all the criteria determined and elaborated by the ancient philosophers, critics and thinkers. His stupendous work under the title Hamlet is also one of the most magnificent tragedies of not only Elizabethan times, but of all times and ages at large. Aristotle (384 B.C.—322 B.C.) has discussed the kinds and nature of poetry in his wonderful Poetics (written in 350B.C.). According to him, there are two main varieties of poetry: 1. The Fine, and 2. The Mean. He has placed epic and tragic poetry in the fine variety, and the satire and comedy in the mean variety. Hence, the great philosopher considers Tragedy and Epic as the refined form of expressing one’s views and ideas. It also shows that Tragedy has been declared a sophisticated piece of art. A piece of literature is often the reflection of the personality of its author, which describes the mind, nature, environment and socialization of the author on the one hand, and indirectly exposes the atmosphere as well as circumstances under which the literature has been produced on the other. Looking into the history and works of various writers and poets belonging to different eras, ages, areas, culture, societies and regions, it becomes evident that their stories, plays, novels, lyrics and works are the product of the situation they have either experienced in past, or are undergoing while creating the very piece. For instance, the idea of illegitimate child(ren) of unmarried maid-girls can frequently been observed in the plays produced by great Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, perhaps because of the fact that he himself has been considered as the result of an illicit relationships between his mother and a Norwegian parliamentarian of her times. Ibsen’s plays contain several illegitimate or supposedly illegitimate children including Hedvig Ekdal in the “Wild Duck”, and Rebecca West in “Rosmersholm.” Similarly, the works of other writers including John Milton, Alexander Pope, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, George Eliot, Mary Shelley, Emily Bronte, D. H. Lawrence, Virginia Woolf, Margaret Drabble, Toni Morrison, Dorothy Alison and others also reflect their personalities, social and religious values, political scenario, cultural norms and prevailing laws of their time. But the most powerful and vast elaboration of difficult aspects of culture and society has been revealed and expressed by Shakespeare, who has no parallel to challenge his magnificence at all. The same is the case with his remarkable tragedy Hamlet. Being the literary giant and superman of the playwrights, Shakespeare’s play not only throw light on his individual thinking and personal glimpses about life, but also have a thorough analyses of the prevailing cultural traits and the cult observed and followed by him and the people of his times, but also depict political turmoil and governmental changes taking place in the England of his era. This is the most wonderful and superb quality and distinguishing feature of the asset of the ages and the laureate of the centuries i.e. William Shakespeare. What a piece of work is man! How noble in reason! How infinite in faculty! In form, in moving, how express and admirable! In action, how like an angel! In apprehension, how like a god! The beauty of the world! The paragon of animals! (Hamlet; Act II, Scene II) Shakespeare is not only a poet of England, but also he is the artist of all people and all ages. He was neither a preacher, nor a reformer; yet his universality seeks no bounds. His magnificent tragedy Hamlet reveals many aspects of not only human nature, psychology and dignity, but also unveils inner thoughtfulness and biographical background of the matchless poet. His biography is full of mysteries and no authenticated life history of the great poet is available. The same is the case with his play Hamlet, which begins and goes on in a state of mystery. The murder of the King Hamlet, Prince Hamlet’s madness, appearance of the King’s ghost, Ophelia’s suspicious death in mysterious circumstances, play within the play (frame narrative) Hamlet’s unexpected return from the voyage and bout between Laureates and Hamlet—all depict mystery and obscurity in them. Shakespeare’s religious background can be witnessed by studying and interpreting his Hamlet. Being a Christian, Shakespeare learnt many mythological and theological terms and theories from home, church, peer-group and society. The heaven, prayer, good, evil and others are found in abundance in his play. The concepts and appearance of ghost and Satan are the central notions, basic symbol and supreme source of mystery, evil and iniquity according to the teachings and mythology of all the three Abrahamic religions i.e. Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The Holy Scriptures of these religions emphatically declare Satan as the transgressor and Gods nemesis who refused to comply with the commands of the Creator—Almighty God the Omnipotent. In the same way, soul of a person killed or died in a miserable circumstances and unjust way, become ghost, which appear time and again in order to provoke members of his family for revenge from the culprit and responsible for his death. Since Shakespeare belonged to Christian faith, the notion ghost has been described in Torah and Bible. The ghost has been described in the Book of Saul in these words: “Then said Saul unto his servants, Seek me a woman that hath a familiar spirit, that I may go to her, and enquire of her. And his servants said to him, Behold, [there is] a woman that hath a familiar spirit at Endor.” (Book I, Chapter 28 Verse VII) The same has been described in the play Hamlet: I am thy father’s spirit, Doom’d for a certain term to walk the night, And for the day confin’d to fast in fires, Till the foul crimes done in my days of nature Are burnt and purg’d away. (Act I, Scene V) Clothed in radiant armor, and authorized by titles sure and manifold, as a poet, Shakespeare came forward to demand the throne of fame, as the dramatic poet of England. His excellencies compelled even his contemporaries to seat him on that throne, although there were giants in those days contending for the same honor. Hereafter I would fain endeavor to make out the title of the English drama as created by, and existing in, Shakespeare, and its right to the supremacy of dramatic excellence in general. (Coleridge, 1818) He conceals his personal ideas in such a way that his words look like universal and the voice of the whole community even while depicting his religious and political views. Hamlet’s delay in killing the villain Claudius reveals the goodness of the inner-self of Shakespeare himself, who is not ready on attacking on others until and unless the villain is exposed and revealed to the last end of his wickedness and treachery. Though Hamlet is in serious suspicion regarding the death of his father, and emotionally in severe shock to hear the revelation made by the ghost, yet he is determined to confirm the murder by gathering information in this regard. "The spirit that I have seen / May be a devil, and the devil hath power/T assume a pleasing shape (Act II, Scene II, lines 627-629). It also expresses Shakespeare’s own personality and way of judging a matter with patience and perseverance, without taking unnecessary steps haphazardly. He also arranges a play to detect whether Claudius was guilty of the crime disclosed by ghost or not. "The plays the thing wherein Ill catch the conscience of the King." (Act II, Scene II, lines 581-582) In the same way, though Hamlet is impatient to kill Claudius to take revenge for the murder of his father. As he finds Claudius praying and meditating, Hamlet delays his revenge strategy with the fears killing him while praying may lead Claudius’s soul to heavens. “Now might I do it pat, now he is praying; And now Ill dot. And so he goes to heaven; And so am I revenged. That would be scannd: A villain kills my father; and for that, I, his sole son, do this same villain send To heaven. O, this is hire and salary, not revenge.” (Act III, Scene III, lines 73-78) In S. T. Coleridges words, Hamlets central weakness is that he is "continually resolving to do, yet doing nothing but resolve". (Quoted in http://www.123helpme.com/preview.asp?id=8310) The concepts of heaven and hell have also been extracted from theology prevailing both in Catholic and Protestant England of Shakespeare’s era. Political background of Shakespearean England can also be found in the play Hamlet. There was a challenge for England from outside countries and foreign invasion. In the late 1560s when Spanish forces were in the Netherlands, the commercial and mercantile challenge raised in the country, which continued through many years of religious, cultural and commercial hostility to Spain. Hawkins had been defeated at San Juan De Ulua in 1568, and Drake’s treasures raids at Nombre De Dios took place in 1572. The internal and external tensions began rising in England, though Shakespearean era is thought to be very peaceful. The ray of conspiracies and the role of the Queen’s Counsel appear in the person of Polonius as a main conspirator playing negative but intellectual role in the court. Despite the compromise of the 1559 settlement, there was the doubtful loyalty of the English Roman Catholics or ‘recusants’. The Northern rising took place in 1569, the Pope bull excommunicating and deposing Elizabeth I, while absolving Catholics from their allegiance was also issued in 1570. Shakespeare’s image is fully mirrored in his work. Shaw has claimed that we know more of him than Dickens and of Thackeray. No writer can wholly disguise himself as Shakespeare does, yet many of the aspects of his vision on socio-political changes appear in his words and plays. (Ivor Brown, 1973) Hamlet’s response to Ophelia’s proposal of marriage is not queer and odd in nature, but his advice to Ophelia to surrender her plan of marriage is also a satire on the Queen Elizabeth’s reluctance towards entering into marriage. Get thee to a nunnry: why wouldst thou be a breeder of sinners? I am myself indifferent honest; but yet I could accuse me of such things that it were better my mother had not borne me: I am very proud, revengeful, ambitious; with more offences at my beck than I have thoughts to put them in, imagination to give them shape, or time to act them in. (Act III, Scene I, lines 114-120) Queen Elizabeth I was requested again and again by the Earls, Lords and Parliament, but she paid no heed to it at all. Rather, she condemned the parliament for intermeddling her personal life. Hence, her dynasty could not transfer the reign to its next generation due to the fact that the Queen did neither get married, nor she gave birth to any child. Shakespeare suggests that if a lady belonging to the elite stratum is not interested in getting marriage, it is better for her to join nunnery rather running the affairs of the government. Shakespeare’s morality and Puritanism has also been elaborated in the play. He always lays stress on moral values to the extent that he seriously condemns and nullifies incest, murder, conspiracies, intrigues and other evils of this kind. “Here, thou incestuous, murderous, damned Dane, Drink off this potion. Is thy union here? Follow my mother.” (Act V, Scene II, lines 328-330) The above lines are an extract from Shakespearean play, Hamlet, where Hamlet shouts at Claudius while stabbing Laureate’s in Claudius’s body. The scene gives the readers a moral lesson that by doing wrong with others for nothing not only may jeopardize one’s peace of mind, but also one’s life is surely ruined in the course of time sooner or later. Nature has its own criteria of taking revenge and man has to suffer a lot consequently. It is perhaps in the nature of man that he deliberately commits an offense and this wrongdoing leads him towards the way to disturbance and turmoil. All this wrongdoing takes place both in literature and real life. Same is the case with Claudius and Gertrude in Shakespearean tragedy Hamlet. It is why Ben Johnson declares Shakespeare as the soul of ages and the wonder of the English stage. REFERENCES Eltman, Frank. “Jury Convicts Man of Murder in DWI Case.” Washington Post. 17 Oct. 2006: B1. Washington Post Newspaper. Montgomery College, Rockville Campus. 30 Oct. 2006. www.washingtonpost.com. Finn, Robin. “A Wedding, a Crash, a Family’s Pain.” New York Times. 01 Oct. 2006: 14.LI. Proquest Newspapers. Montgomery College, Rockville Campus. 30 Oct. 2006. www.proquest.umi.com. Lambert, Bruce. “Drunken L.I. Driver Convicted of 2 Counts of Murder in Limo Crash” New York Times. 18 Oct. 2006: B.1. Proquest Newspapers. Montgomery College, Rockville Campus. 30 Oct. 2006. www.proquest.umi.com. S. T. Coleridge Shakespeare as a Poet (Retrieved in www.4literature.net/Samuel_Taylor_Coleridge/Shakespeare_as_Poet/) 1818 William Shakespeare. The Tragedy of Mac Beth New York: Dover Publications, 1993. Updike, John. “A & P.” Life Studies. Ed. David Cavitch. 7th ed. New York: Bedford/St. Martins, 2001.352-57. Vitello, Paul. “Alcohol, a Car and a Fatality. Is it Murder? ” New York Times. 22 Oct. 2006: 4.1. Proquest Newspapers. Montgomery College, Rockville Campus. 30 Oct. 2006. http://www.godrules.net/library/kjv/kjv1sam28.htm Read More