Academic research on literary works in college is usually closely linked to history. Using characters from plays and novels as examples, students understand the aristocrats’ lifestyle from past centuries and even learn about the tragedies of Ancient Greece. The critical question remains why such works are still relevant. The answer lies not in the language of writing, but the sense. This essay is designed to assess the relevance of Hamlet to contemporary students.
The poet and playwright William Shakespeare is known in the literary society as a brilliant guardian of the English literary style. His works have been translated into many national languages, and the name is known to almost every student around the world (“William Shakespeare”). One of the most famous works, Hamlet, became the poet’s calling card. This literary work is relevant not because it is written in a good and lucid form, but because it tells about human emotions.
Today, as well as 400 years ago, people still care about personal feelings. Regardless of their social status, cultural background, and experiences, Hamlet is deeply rooted in the hearts of readers. It touches on well-known events that many people are familiar with: the death of a parent, a new father or mother, betrayal by relatives and friends (“The Tragedy of Hamlet”). Like most readers, Hamlet is a student who lives by the standards of modern times. However, events in his life seem to tell him to take a sword and go to avenge the death of his father. Therefore, it can be argued that the central drama of the character’s life is the conflict between the intellectual filling of humans and the primitive call of blood. Like Hamlet, the 21st-century generation has all the gifts of technological progress, but sees the horrors of war and armed conflict, causing a desire for revenge.
From the above, it turns out that the play Hamlet is also reflected in the modern student. To some extent, it can even be argued that the work is more relevant to the current generation, which has become even more civilized and progressive than the 17th-century era. Literary work becomes a favorite for many people not because of its particular classical style, but because of the proximity of experiences affected by the character. The picture of oppression and tyranny, the prosperity of meanness, and falsehood depicted in the tragedy are typical for all times.
Works Cited
- The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. 2016. Web.
- “William Shakespeare.” Biography, 2019. Web.