Words, words, words...

"There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so."

This quote was said in Act II, Scene ii, from Hamlet to Rosencrantz. This quote really gets me in the fact that how simple it is but behind its simplicity is a very complex, and philosophical idea. My understanding of this quote is that he is saying nothing in the world is labeled until one labels it. It's hard to explain, but I feel he is saying we are all the same in a way, but once one chooses to think and differentiate, we become different, not through our own choices, but through the choices of others. This quote could go as far as support the idea of semiotics. It's one of these quotes that Shakespeare creates in his plays that are so casual and insignificant, yet can puzzle and capture the minds of students even hundreds of years later.

Something is Rotten in the State of BHS: My Favorite Version of Hamlet

From all three different versions of Shakespeare's Hamlet, I must say the Ken Branagh version was my favorite by far.  I feel the version had much different qualities that kept the film unique from the other two versions. This was the only film which exemplified color and happiness instead of focusing only on the dreariness of Hamlet's disposition, like the other two versions did. This contrast of bright colors and Hamlet's lack of really showed how depressed he truly was. Also, at the beginning of the movie, it started with the true beginning of the play, where the guard maned his station, which I appreciated. Furthermore, when the ghost was introduced, the camera angle was set to make the audience feel as if they were the ghost, making it more convincing of the reactions of Barnardo and Francisco. Also, Hamlet's soliloquy in this version was amazing. His anger and dramatic tone really exemplified his inner turmoil from his sadness of his father's passing and his disapproval of his mother's marriage to his uncle. I really enjoyed how when during his soliloquy, he paced around the wedding aisle, juxtaposing his distaste of the marriage. I really enjoyed Branagh's interpretation of Shakespeare's Hamlet.