Literature is a good background that shows a certain era’s social life and historical events. The play Hamlet by William Shakespeare was published in 1603 and The Handmaid’s Tale, a novel by Margaret Atwood was Published in 1985 whereas the most modern of all three is the novel Life of Pi by Yann Martel which was published in 2001. The comparison may seem difficult because Hamlet is written in early literature, which is different than the two other novels. However, this essay will go over how similar early literature (Hamlet) and modern literature (The Handmaid’s Tale and Life of Pi) really are. The play Hamlet talks about how a ghost visits Hamlet to inform him that his uncle Claudius poisoned his father for the crown and married his mother. Hamlet is enraged by this news and sets out a plan to seek revenge and kill Claudius for the honor of his parents. He comes to succeed with this plan in the end and kills Claudius but dies seconds later because of blade poisoning. The Life of Pi is set in India where sixteen-year-old Pi loses his family on a ship that is hit by a storm. He survives the storm and is stranded at sea for 227 days with a tiger that he learns to tame. The Handmaid’s Tale tells the story of a theocratic government that takes away the rights of freedom from the people of America, mainly women. The book is from a handmaid called Offred’s point of view, on her role in this new society that she is forced to accommodate. The authors of these books; Shakespeare, Yann, and Atwood, use themes in their writings to bring through a message to the readers. The authors also use literary devices to make the message of a book theme clearer to its reader. These authors also use conflict to create drama in their stories to engage the readers. Although the authors of Hamlet, Life of Pi, and The Handmaid’s Tale wrote their books during different periods, their books still share and differ in their use of characteristics, themes, literary devices, and conflict.
The Characters from the three books display some common characteristics. Both Hamlet and Pi lose their fathers. They also both struggle to find their place in society and have trouble making the right choices. Pi, Hamlet, and Offred show a determined and brave personality. Pi is determined to survive and is brave enough to tame a tiger. He states, “I had to tame him. It was at that moment that I realized this necessity. It was not a question of him or me, but of him and me” (Martel 57). Hamlet is determined to seek revenge against Claudius and shows bravery when he talks to the ghost even though the ghost might be a demon. Offred is determined to survive to be a handmaid; this is evident when she states, “I am alive, I live, I breathe, I put my hand out, unfolded, into the sunlight” (Atwood 18). She also shows bravery when she goes out with the commander to forbidden places. A critique from the Mhoke website describes this characteristic well when they state, “Bravery is key in the Gilead society, and the characters in The Handmaid’s Tale demonstrated it well” (Mhoke)
The main purpose of themes is to bring through the main message of a book. Shakespeare’s play, Martel’s, and Atwood’s novel Portray strong themes of religion. A critic known as Peter Milward says that “Hamlet is rich in homiletic material of all kinds, reflecting almost every aspect of the religious situation in a deeply religious age” (Milward 9). In the play Hamlet, the theme of religion is introduced when Hamlet walks in on Claudius trying to pray, and wonders whether he should take this opportunity to kill him. Hamlet doesn’t Kill Claudius, because he thinks that if he kills him, he will send him right into heaven. He says, “A villain kills my father, and, for that, I, his sole son, do this same villain send to heaven” (Shakespeare 3.3.77-79). The theme of religion is also found a lot in Life of Pi.
#literary #literature #poetry #fiction #books #bookstagram #author #writers #writing #poet #writersofinstagram #novel #reading #booklover #writer #bibliophile #bookish #book #writersofig #manuscript #novelist #authoress #art #bookworm #playwright #essayist #literaturememes #paragrapher #booknerd #poems
