This is our catalog of courses. We will occasionally adjust the course listing to reflect the addition of new courses and the retirement of others.
Sign up today and learn why Hamlet is one of Shakespeare’s finest plays. “To be or not to be” is the question, but the answer to this most complex of plays is beguilingly elusive. Join Professor Pearce and fellow students to go deep into Hamlet and find all of the answers.
Total classes: 6
Duration: 55 minutes per class
Prerequisite: The ability and desire to read Shakespeare.
Suggested grade level: 9th to 12th grade
Suggested credit: ½ semester Shakespearian Literature
Description
Hamlet is perhaps Shakespeare’s finest play and is certainly one of the most popular. It is also one of the least understood. “To be or not to be” is the question, but the answer to this most complex of plays is beguilingly elusive. What does it mean “to be”? And is everything as it seems to be? These are some of the questions that are asked and answered in this course by Joseph Pearce, editor of the Ignatius Critical Edition of Hamlet and author of The Quest for Shakespeare and Through Shakespeare’s Eyes: Seeing the Catholic Presence in the Plays.
Outline
Class 1: Introduction to Shakespeare and Hamlet
Class 2: Act One
Class 3: Act Two
Class 4: Act Three
Class 5: Act Four
Class 6: Act 5 and concluding comments
Materials and Homework
Course materials: Hamlet by William Shakespeare (Ignatius Critical Edition, edited by Joseph Pearce), ISBN # 1586172611 (https://loc.ignatius.com/ignatiuscriticaleditions/shakespeare-hamlet.htm)
Homework: Assigned reading for each week from the course material. Professor Pearce will specify the week’s assigned reading at the conclusion of each class session. There is no assigned reading for the first class session. Students will also need to consult their notes and possibly re-watch the recording in order to review for the weekly quiz. Students should endeavour to take each online quiz prior to the following class, while the class discussion is fresh in their minds.
