Self reflection: 

I think that my writing has improved a great deal since the very beginning of the course in September.  I think I started quite strong with my analysis of the two basketball poems, where I think I had solid quotational analysis backed up by substantial claims.  In the Hamlet speech essay, I wrote an essay on the speech patterns of both Claudius and Gertrude.  However, as the essay progressed I started to veer a bit off topic.  Instead of solely focusing on the speech patterns, I started to dabble a bit into the psychology of the "royal couple."  While I do thinkl that this was a good essay, it was slightly off topic.  I have to learn, especially in college, to stay completely on topic, no matter how tempting it might or might not be to explore othera areas of a specific text.  Finally, in the final essay, the Hamlet film essay, I was quite challenged at first but eventually ended up enjoying the assignment.  I chiose the Branagh and Jacobi version to compare/contrast.  This was not like any other essay I have ever written, as I only made minimal use of quotation analysis and instead focused more on the different aspects of the films: their lighting, settings, and character dispositions.  I look forward to seeing the coments on it.

As I go off to cellege next year, I realize that I need to eliminate the wordiness of my essays, while still maintaing a complex sentence structure.  Sometimes, I use flowery language, instead of getting straight to the point, which can sometimes take away from the essay.  In order for my writing to evolve, I need to eliminate these things that sometimes do not let the essay reach its full potential.

I loook forward to a great second semester!

draft of essay(second body in progress, will post later):  

There certainly is no one way to depict William Shakespeare’s Hamlet on the “big screen,” as there have been over a hundred versions of the play on film, including ones in which Kenneth Branagh and Derek Jacobi star as Hamlet.  While both of these films actually cast Jacobi, this is the only similarity between the two versions of the film. The difference between these versions comes down to more than just the fact that Branagh’s is in color and Jacobi’s is not.  Both directors of the films made decisions, some less obviously seen than others, in order to promote what they feel is the most innovative representation of the life and toils of Hamlet, while not veering too far away from Shakespeare’s original In the Derek Jacobi and Kenneth Branagh versions of Hamlet, there are certain directorial choices regarding the setting, tone, and dispositions of Hamlet, Claudius, and Gertrude, that creates two identities for the film.  Branagh's take on the play focuses more on the modern and contemporary aspects, while Jacobi's depicts a more conservative portrayal of Hamlet.

Kenneth Branagh’s version is visually appealing.  With its extravagant palace laced with red, gold, and white, and bright lighting, the viewer feels as if there are thousands of spotlights gleaming onto each one of the actors.  The director of the film has done what no other film has done, depicting the wedding of Claudius and Gertrude.  Here, the people of Denmark have flocked to see the ceremony and are wearing bright red and white garments.  However, when Hamlet walks in, one can truly sense his loss and the fact that he is still deeply grieving about the loss of his father.  The director wants to make it obvious to the audience that this is the case, so he has Branagh dress in all black, the color of death and funerals, instead of wearing white, the color of celebration and purity.  Branagh truly is wearing a “solemn suit of black,” but the director not only wants the audience to see Hamlet’s pain (with the black attire), but to sense his suffering.  Branagh’s pain can be heard in his voice as he sarcastically responds to Claudius claim that he has been grieving for far too long:  “Not so, my lord; I am too much i’ the sun” (1.2 line 69).  Branagh is on the verge of tears, as he cannot stand to watch his mother take his murdering uncle’s hand in marriage.  Additionally, there is an immense and vivid contrast of the joyous wedding and Hamlet’s disgruntled and unsettled disposition.  Branagh’s portrayal of Hamlet allows to the audience to delve into the character’s inner emotions, as Hamlet is portrayed as an “open book” wen it comes to his expression.  One can hear the gut wrenching pain in his voice and see his head droop down when he watches Claudius and Gertrude intimately hold hands, all the while seeming to be constantly on the verge of bawling because he cannot stand to watch his beloved mother marry an evil and manipulative man.  Additionally, Gertrude and Claudius are depicted much differently in the Branagh version than in Jacobi’s.  In this film, Claudius is represented as a so-called caring stepfather; he speaks in a gentle manner to Hamlet because he wants to create a “healthy” relationship with him.  Claudius states the phrase, “Tis’ unmanly grief,” because he is attempting to teach Hamlet that his actions are unfit for that of royalty.  Claudius “babying” Hamlet is a sign of false caring, and Hamlet sees right through it.    What really perturbs Hamlet is that his mother stands in union with a man who obviously has anything but good intentions, yet is steadfast in supporting him, with no sign of wavering.  Branagh’s Hamlet feels as if he is old news and cannot stand Claudius receiving more attention than he receives.  

Body paragraph 1 so far:

Kenneth Branagh’s version is visually appealing.  With its extravagant palace laced with red, gold, and white, and bright lighting, the viewer feels as if there are thousands of spotlights gleaming onto each one of the actors.  The director of the film has done what no other film has done, depicting the wedding of Claudius and Gertrude.  Here, the people of Denmark have flocked to see the ceremony and are wearing bright red and white garments.  However, when Hamlet walks in, one can truly sense his loss and the fact that he is still deeply grieving about the loss of his father.  The director wants to make it obvious to the audience that this is the case, so he has Branagh dress in all black, the color of death and funerals, instead of wearing white, the color of celebration and purity. 

Intro for Hamlet film comparison essay:

There certainly is no one way to depict William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” on the “big screen,” as there have been over seven versions of the films, including ones in which Kenneth Branagh and Derek Jacobi star as the grieving Hamlet.  While both of these films actually cast Branagh, this is the only similarity between the two versions of the film. The differences between these version comes down to more than just the fact that Branagh’s is in color and Jacobi’s is not.  Both directors of the film made decisions, some less obviously seen than others, in order to promote the manner in which they depicted the life and toils of Hamlet and his family. Again, this means that it is solely up to the director to decide how he or she might want to present or adapt Shakespeare’s creations.  A perfect example of an adaptation would be Ethan Hawke’s version of the film which took place in a modern metropolitan area that had sophisticated technology.  In the Derek Jacobi and Kenneth Branagh versions of Hamlet, there are certain directorial choices regarding the setting, tone, and dispositions of Hamlet, Claudius, and Gertrude, which creates two identities for the film.  Branagh's take on Hamlet focuses more on the modern and contemporary aspects, while Jacobi's depicts a more conservative portrayal of Hamlet.

Working Thesis:  In the Derek Jacobi and Kenneth Branagh versions of Hamlet, there are certain directorial choices regarding the setting and the tone and dispositions of Hamlet, Claudius, and Gertrude, which creates two identities for the film, Branagh's being more modern and Jacobi's more on the conservative side.