Hamlet Lesson Plan

Hamlet's Madness on Stage and Screen

Kind of Activity:

Mixed Media

Objective:

Students will explore how differences in media can affect how a literary work is interpreted.

Common Core Standards:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.11-12.7

Structure:

Obtain a copy of Laurence Olivier's 1948 film version of Hamlet. Show students the interaction between Olivier's Hamlet and Felix Aylmer's Polonius in Act II, Scene 2. As before, have students take notes on how the staging, acting, etc. affect the way they feel about the scene. Lead a short discussion in which you ask students about their reaction to that scene. Then, show students the same scene from John Gielgud's 1964 Broadway...