Hamlet, William Shakespeare
Hamlet, William Shakespeare
18 Rating(s)
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Hamlet

Author: William Shakespeare

Narrator: Geoffrey Giuliano, The Crush

Unabridged: 3 hr 59 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 11/03/2022


Synopsis

The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, often shortened to Hamlet is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts Prince Hamlet and his revenge against his uncle, Claudius, who has murdered Hamlet's father in order to seize his throne and marry Hamlet's mother. Hamlet is considered among the "most powerful and influential tragedies in the English language", with a story capable of "seemingly endless retelling and adaptation by others".

There are many works that have been pointed to as possible sources for Shakespeare's play—from ancient Greek tragedies to Elizabethan plays. The editors of the Arden Shakespeare question the idea of "source hunting", pointing out that it presupposes that authors always require ideas from other works for their own, and suggests that no author can have an original idea or be an originator. When Shakespeare wrote there were many stories about sons avenging the murder of their fathers, and many about clever avenging sons pretending to be foolish in order to outsmart their foes.

About William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare was born in April 1564 in the town of Stratford-upon-Avon, on England’s Avon River. When he was eighteen, he married Anne Hathaway. The couple had three children—an older daughter Susanna and twins, Judith and Hamnet. Hamnet, Shakespeare’s only son, died in childhood. The bulk of Shakespeare’s working life was spent in the theater world of London, where he established himself professionally by the early 1590s. He enjoyed success not only as a playwright and poet, but also as an actor and shareholder in an acting company. Although some think that sometime between 1610 and 1613 Shakespeare retired from the theater and returned home to Stratford, where he died in 1616, others believe that he may have continued to work in London until close to his death.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Bill on July 05, 2020

I don't have any earth-shattering insights to share from this most recent of god-knows-how-many readings, but this time through I was struck by: 1) what a damn fine piece of stagecraft this is, from the suspenseful, moody opening on the castle battlements to the solemn dead march carrying the prince......more

Goodreads review by daph pink ♡ on October 15, 2020

if you don't ship Hamratio did you even read the play???......more

Goodreads review by jessica on October 28, 2019

shakespeare when pitching this play, probably: this is my OC hamlet. hes a prince. hes bisexual. hes moody, brooding, and is anywhere between the ages of 16 to 30 years old. and no, i am not taking constructive criticism. well, let me tell you what. im sold! i love hamlet. i love his angsty monologue......more

Goodreads review by Paul on February 09, 2016

The Skinhead Hamlet - Shakespeare's play translated into modern English. By Richard Curtis. Yes, that Richard Curtis! Note : those offended by the F word - LOOK AWAY NOW! And Georgia, if you've stumbled on this review by your funny old dad - this is ANOTHER Paul Bryant. Not me! ********* ACT I SCENE I......more

Goodreads review by Vit on May 25, 2024

Something is rotten in the state of Denmark… I watched six different adaptations of Hamlet… This is a review of sorts… All the quirks are deliberate… Attempting Not to Be Why didn’t time choose to stop? How can the sun keep rising up? How dare the earth still turn around? Now that Ophelia’s drowned. Tomorro......more