One of my goals for this summer is to read some canonical literature.
Inspired by our field trip to the American Shakespeare Company this spring (we saw a rousing performance of The Comedy of Errors), I am beginning the project with Hamlet.
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Having read the first two acts, I've learned that he has recently lost his father, and his mother (Gertrude) has quickly gotten remarried (and transferred her allegiance) to his uncle.
The play doesn't explain the ways in which Hamlet was close to his dad, but they must have had a deep and genuine connection. He is confused and troubled by his mother's lack of sorrow -- so much so that he contemplates suicide in one of the early scenes:
O, that this too too solid flesh would melt
Thaw and resolve itself into a dew!
Or that the Everlasting had not fix’d
His canon ‘gainst self-slaughter! O God! God!
How weary, stale, flat and unprofitable,
Seem to me all the uses of this world!
Fie on’t! ah fie! ’tis an unweeded garden,
That grows to seed; things rank and gross in nature
This soliloquy was particularly powerful because of the metaphor of the unweeded garden.
April/May/June is the time of year when the weeds are most aggressive, requiring a ton of attention lest they completely conquer the other plants. In truth, I sometimes get frustrated because I want to be planting things, but I feel like most of my time and energy is focused on weeding.
I do, however, like the idea of weeding as a metaphor. Hamlet's speech is a reminder that each of us is constantly tending the weeds in our soul, striving to keep things fresh and positive. Keeping the weeds away preserves the space for growth.
Alas, my sense is that Hamlet's angst is going to prevail over hope and renewal. I am interested to see how his relationship with Gertrude plays out, particularly since the ghost of his father asked him not to take out his anger against his mom. Will he be able to forgive Gertrude, even as he plots vengeance against his uncle?
This is a statue of Hamlet in Stratford-upon-Avon.
