Soldan High School - Scrip Yearbook (St Louis, MO)

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nw. ' Ax- W' :' ' 3' ' ' If , . ,,4, V , , -,gi .v Y Q.,-iff 1.,-Q., In every court of every king their types may be found. Hamlet de- scribes them as Usponges that soak up the King's rewards and authori- ties. Then there is Horatio, whose fidelity to Hamlet forms an ideal friendship. Never does he betray the confidence of his friend. True in all trials, he is the only one upon whom Hamlet can rely. . In Hamlet is depicted a great deed laid upon a soul unequal to the performance of it. He is the type of man whose intellectual powers completely overbalance his powers of action. He had dedicated his life to the avenging of his father's murder. V But when the opportunity for doing this is given to him, he can not carry out his purpose. His inner spirit tells him to wait until a more favorable opportunity is given. He is incapable of quick, decisive action, but he does not know how to remedy his defect. Thus, one of the greatest of Shakespeare's 'charac- ters is of vacillating disposition, weighing now this, now that, in his mind until he almost loses sight of his already blunted purpose. Shakespeare, in his historical plays, has brought on the stage vari- ous kings of England, showing why they failed or why they succeeded. King john failed through cowardiceg Henry VI. because of a weak and yielding dispositiong Henry IV. had not failed, but his success was hampered by his craft and suspicion. Henry V. cannot be considered as a truly great character. His chief appeal is to the patriotism and the love of conquest inherent in every heart. When Shakespeare placed this popular hero on the stage, it was one of those lucky strokes that a poet in touch with the people can always be depended on to make. We ought not to leaveout the two Portias, Rosalind, Beatrice, Ophelia and an infinite number of others, each of whom typiiies some trait of human nature. But to describe all is impossible. Their char- acters are as varied as human nature itself. For Shakespeare no more invented men than he invented plots. He adopted those whom he found among his neighbors and associates. No real character is ever conjured up from the imagination. Such a char- acter has to be taken from life. Probably Shakespeare had a living rep- resentative for nearly every character he drew. A word or an incident would often unfold to him the whole soul of a man. Shakespeare showed him as he saw him. He knew how he would think, act, and talk on given occasions, and painted him accord- ingly. The greatest of dramatists, Shakespeare contributed to the drama nothing but himself, his power of holding the mirror up to nature and recording the impressions made therein. Q -Ruth Campbell. 113

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-.gn f' .- 'vif ----vii -Q A-2 9, Y -,tiQx '- , r . A - , g read his plays. There is hardly a language capable of literary expres- sion into which his works have not been again and again translated. What a boundless attraction and fascination must people find in his dramas! What is his magic secret, what quality has he breathed into his plays, that should make them interesting and enchanting to all people for all time? From the beginning, Shakespeare had that freshness of feeling which marks the true artist of every kind, he had also the sensitive ima- gination and the ear for melody. The world was reflected in his mind as in a mirror, its large outlines and its more delicate shadings lying luminous before him. To us he is inexhaustible. There is no development of character, no trait of human nature, that does not somewhere find expression in his plays. Character-painting was his forte. In Shylock Shakespeare has represented the embodiment of a down-trodden raceg the product of centuries of cruel exclusion from the larger opportunities of life. He is a man misshapen by the hands of those who feed his avariceg and because of the limitations imposed so harshly upon him, he makes a stronger appeal to the human heart. On the other hand, Brutus, the dominating power in Julius Cae- sar, is a scholar, a philosopher, an idealist, one who sits high in all the people's hearts , but who, because he is not practical, is drawn into a position Where it is impossible that he should be entirely true to him- self. It is inevitable that he should meet with ruin, as many another good-intentioned reformer has done since his time, in like circum- stances. Macbeth is a victim to his own ambition. He requires only the strength of will to hscrew his courage to the sticking-point and he would succeed. This is supplied by Lady Macbeth, who is equally am- bitious. She is determined to rule. But when all obstacles have been swept from their path, and they have gained the kingship, are they happy? No, haunting fear is ever present, Even in the dead of night, Lady Macbeth arises and tries to rub the spot of blood from her hand, stained by the murder of the king. Macbeth continually reproaches himself for his deeds. Confidence cannot silence, and even despair cannot stifle the cries of his conscience. Every noise appals him. He listens when nothing stirs. The darkness and stillness of the night strike terror into his heart. This play shows the working out of jus- tice, for Shakespeare never would portray the successful criminal as a happy man. , ' Another phase of human nature is shown in the portrayal of Rosen- crantz and Guildenstern, the political tools of the King of Denmark. 112

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-v- - .. -J :afar .17 ,- Y -- Y . ' :+A 4-1-S-.. Falstaff: Slialqespearefs Greatest Humorous Character N Shakespeare's play, Henry the Fourth, the chief justice says to Sir john Falstaff, Thou art a great fool. The If chief justice is right, but Falstaff is more than that. Any one of Shakespeare's readers will say, Falstaff, thou art 1 the greatest fool ! Why was Falstaff a great fool? He was morally de- linquent, having for his favorite pastimes lying, drinking, and robbing. And yet we are all delighted with the old man. It is not that we ap- prove of his moral character, but that we appreciate his ingenuity and brilliance of wit. Shakespeare did not give Falstaff a part in his play as a moral exampleg he is there to amuse the audience-a part he plays admirably. And he does not try to amuse us by merely saying funny things and acting in a comical way as did many of the fools of litera- ture. Fa1staff's humor appeals to us in a different way, his wit is not soon forgotten as are the actions and sayings of many fools of which we read. A genius, and only a great genius, could do the things that Fal- staff did-he was no ordinary man. If Falstaff never said a word, he would serve the purpose for which he was placed in the play-that of amusing us-by walking across the stage, so funny was his appearance. He is such a fat man that one can not look at him without laughing. It has been said that his jokes come from the quantity of Hesh through which they make their way, as he shakes his fat sides with laughter, or 1ards the lean earth as he walks. The First time that We meet Falstaff he is planning to rob some pil- grims. If We are shocked at his doing such a thing we soon admire the old knight because of his vivid imagination and his clever handling of a diilicult situation. After he and his companions had committed the theft, Prince Hal and Poins, disguised as robbers, very easily took the money from them. When Falstaff meets the Prince, he tells a great story about a large band of men wresting the treasure from them after a long and fierce struggle. Then when Hal makes it known that he and Poins were that great company, the quick-witted old man is not the least disturbed. He very quickly remarks that instinct kept him from harming the Prince. And this was not done because he feared the Prince's teasing. He no doubt knew that Hal would see through the ruse. But the old knight did this because, for him, telling such tales was amusement. Some one has said that Falstaff is an artist making the impossible ap- pear probable by his skill in argument, and like all true astists, he de- lights in his Work. 114