Hip Hamlet
A New Look At An Old Character
by
George Enice Lawhon
Copyright © 2011 George Enice Lawhon
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INTRODUCTION
In the opinion of some scholars, Hamlet was really created by William Shakespeare as an autobiographical character, a person who could never make up his mind, liked to make gassy speeches to no one in particular, and was fond of sticking his sword through curtains in case anyone was trying to steal one of his plays that he never wrote anyway.
There are also those who hold that Queen Gertrude was really Queen Elizabeth, which would have made her Shakespeare's mother, which would certainly revise the theory of the Virgin Queen. This is a stretch for most Englishmen, who are unwilling to go there.
Enough of theory. The play is the thing, Bill S says, and in Hamlet we have a story of a hip lad not understood by his generation, and who has worried successive generations since. Today's youth would certainly dig him, for he was hip, he was with it. He smoked high grade pot, wore the latest in mod fashion, and protested with vigor and class. It is not known if he had any tattoos.
A note of warning. This author has taken a little liberty, here and there, too, but only with the timing and the text. You may want to check the original to see how much and who I have offended in the name of humor. You might want to watch a good video of the play. I liked the one with Olivier as Hamlet.
THE PLAY
The story opens on the battlements of Elsinore Castle. We find two nervous guards, Francisco and Bernardo. Bernardo is so jumpy that he challenges Francisco, who in turn challenges Bernardo.
(Francisco has the right to be suspicious. Bernardo has come to relieve him of his watch.)
Horatio and Marcellus then enter, and the conversation turns to ghosts, specifically that of the late King Hamlet, Hamlet's dad. Bernardo and Marcellus claim to have seen him several nights in a row, convincing Francisco that they have been drinking cheap, bad booze. While they are talking, the ghost appears again, scaring them and making an instant believer of Francisco. They decide to tell Hamlet, and to break up the watch. (This angers Francisco, having just fended off Bernardo's attempt to steal it.)
Meanwhile, King Claudius and Queen Gertrude have been trying to cheer up Hamlet from the blue funk he has been in since his return from college. He is not to be consoled, even by the noisy sounds of preparation for a party. Usually a party at castle Elsinore would find Hamlet being cool, digging the scene, making it with the maids, and hitting the sauce. This is different. The occasion is to be a celebration the wedding of his mother Queen Gertrude to Claudius, and our lad is in no mood to enjoy it.
Hamlet's father King Hamlet lays but a little while in his grave, and Hamlet the son is a bit put out by all the revelry. This is not just out of the usual respect for his daddy; they had really dug each other. The elder had taught his son all he knew about the fair sex, which was considerable, and he had instructed Hamlet in how to make the finest home brew in the entire kingdom. A part of the royal garden always had a particular patch of pot reserved for Hamlet's private use, and it is little things like this that bring a father and son together in mutual respect. In a word, Hamlet misses his Daddy.