Dear Class,
I thought it might be helpful, given
last week's discussion of The Decameron,
to say a few words about this week's reading. There are some places where
certain language might have a (WARNING: USE OF A WORD THAT HAS POSSIBLE
CONNOTATIONS OF GUN VIOLENCE) triggering
effect.
I just want to warn you in advance and to make sure you know that I in
no way endorse the activities you'll encounter in the text. Well, some of the
activities I might endorse-- theatrical performance, for instance. And
searching for the truth. And introspection. And maybe a few other things, but
not the activities that might have a-- here's that word again-- triggering
effect on those of you who have experienced trauma. Unless of course you
experienced trauma in the context of a theatrical performance, or discovered something
awful while trying to get to the bottom of things, or were traumatized by the
fruits of your own introspection. If so, then please understand that I do not
endorse those activities insofar as they led to trauma.
As for the other
activities discussed below, I universally do not endorse them-- though please
do not mistake my lack of endorsement for condemnation. Granted, in certain
instances, I do condemn what I don't endorse but not always (extra credit for
anyone who can construct a sound syllogism for this). Here are just a few
cautionary notes in hopes that they allow you to engage with this text in as
meaningful and enjoyable way as possible and avoid some of those pitfalls we
encountered in the Decameron.
First, in Act One there are several allusions to the possible (WARNING:
GRAPHIC VIOLENCE IN THE NEXT WORD) murder of the protagonist's father. Our hero
has to first determine whether his father has passed away due to foul play
before he can decide if he should pursue revenge, which may, word of warning,
consist of a similarly aggressive act of physical violence.
There are also depictions of supernatural beings, namely (WARNING:
UNSETTLING PARANORMAL PHENOMENON) ghosts. Though it is unclear whether said
supernatural being actually exists. It is possible it is only a figment of the
protagonist's mind. If this is the case, then it is possible the protagonist is
suffering from a (WARNING: IMBALANCED PSYCHOLOGICAL STATE) mental illness. However, it is entirely possible that the
protagonist is only (WARNING: POTENTIALLY OFFENSIVE GLIB PORTRAYAL OF MENTAL
ILLNESS IN NEXT PHRASE) pretending to be mentally ill as part of his strategy
to learn whether his uncle did in fact commit a transgressive act of physical
assault, resulting in the father's (WARNING: REFERENCE TO HUMAN MORTALITY)
death.
Since the father was the king,
and his untimely passing was at the hand of his brother, the play deals with
potentially unsettling issues of (WARNING:
TYPES OF TRANSGRESSIVE PHYSICAL ASSAULT RESULTING IN MORTAL INJURY) regicide
and fratricide. Accordingly, there are insinuations that (WARNING: REFERENCE TO
POLITICAL TURMOIL AND ARMED CONFLICT) the Kingdom of Denmark is in crisis and
may face a Norwegian invasion. Also, (WARNING: REFERENCE TO A HISTORICALLY
VICTIMIZED NATION) things go badly for Poland.
Another thing you should know: because the protagonist's uncle marries
his deceased brother's wife, a fact the protagonist dwells on at some length,
this relationship is imbued with hints of (WARNING: REFERENCE TO A
TRANSGRESSIVE SEXUAL RELATION) incest. The same may be said of the
protagonist's (WARNING: MENTION OF AN ABNORMAL, EROTICALLY-CHARGED FILIAL
ATTACHMENT) creepy preoccupation with his mother.
In Act Four there is a reference to a character's (WARNING: EXPIRATION
DUE TO EXCESSIVE WATER INTAKE IN THE LUNGS IN THE NEXT PHRASE) death by
drowning, which may be the result of (WARNING: INTENTIONAL PERFORMANCE OF
MORTALITY AT ONE'S OWN HAND) suicide. If the latter, possible motivations for
such an act could have been her (WARNING: REFERENCE TO MENTAL ILLNESS) severe
depression due to the (WARNING: TRANSGRESSIVE PHYSICAL ASSAULT RESULTING IN
MORTAL INJURY) slaying of her father at the hands of her lover, which may or
may not have been an accident. Or she
could have experienced an onset of mental illness after her lover (WARNING:
REFERENCE TO VERBALLY ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIP) callously dumped her and told her
to move to a (WARNING: REFERENCE TO A RELIGIOUSLY AFFILIATED HOLDING PEN FOR
WOMEN) convent. Thankfully, the convent matter is dropped after that, sparing
us many of the sensitive issues we ran into with The Decameron.
Finally, in the last act, there is a potentially disturbing scene in a
graveyard where the protagonist (WARNING: INAPPROPRIATE CONDUCT WITH A CORPSE)
converses with a skull shortly before engaging in a wrestling match in an open
grave. And of course, this play being a (WARNING:
REFERENCE TO A GENRE PRONE TO UNHAPPY OUTCOMES) tragedy, the end is something
to be prepared for. I doubt it will take any of you by surprise when you get to
it, but the penultimate scene does feature malevolence in the form of a
poisoned goblet, a poison-tipped (WARNING: USE OF A WORD THAT MAY CONJURE
IMAGES OF VIOLENCE OR TWO MEN CROSSING URINE STREAMS) swordfight, and (WARNING:
REFERENCE TO PEOPLE WHO HAVE PASSED AWAY EN MASSE) a pile of dead bodies.
That should take care of most everything, but for anything potentially
triggering that I neglected to mention, please remember that I did not write
this play and I am in no way legally or morally responsible for the disturbing
ideas, images, and language you find therein. As I mentioned during our
conversation last week about Boccaccio's depiction of the lonely monk and the
fourteen-year-old virgin, please keep in mind that we are reading this text in
an academic context, which means the purpose of reading it is to teach you to think
critically and better prepare you to get a tech job.
With that said, I hope you all enjoy Shakespeare's Hamlet!
Sincerely (hoping we can make it
through the syllabus without getting the university ombudsman involved),
Professor R. Scovering
p.s. Please don't forget to check
your email later this week before you start next week's reading: The Hundred and Twenty Days of Sodom by
the Marquis de Sade. I'll likely have a few cautionary words to say about that
one too.
