College Application Essay (Hamlet)

I suppose it’s a fairly obvious choice for a theatre student to choose a Shakespearean character as a ‘significant influence’ but I’ve decided to adhere to the cliché and write what I know. And ‘what I know’ is Hamlet. Is it his melancholia, his antic disposition, or his slight paranoia that keeps me enthralled in the tragedy that has more than once been called ‘the greatest play in the English language?(I myself, have yet to read every English play, so I’ll hold my judgment)I’ll admit that the whole having an incestuous uncle, a dead father, and an emotionally distant mother doesn’t really connect to me personally, but something about the way Hamlet goes about the whole situation really speaks to me.

I was first exposed to Hamlet by my father (Luckily he was alive at the time, because he has no brother.) who was the production manager of a theatre company known as ‘Shakespeare in the Park’. People from all around the DFW area would bring a blanket and come listen to the Bard beneath the stars, paid for entirely by sponsors (until money got tight, and they had to shut down). I was a little too young at the time to enjoy the poetry and prose of the Danish prince but I remember really enjoying the bit with the swords near the end.

I was in high school when Hamlet reentered my life through Kenneth Brannagh’s uncut 4 hour production of Hamlet. I do not often admit to this, but I have watched that movie more than once. More than twice. More than thrice, even. But four times. 16 hours of my life have been given o’er to Hamlet. And that’s not even taking into consideration how much time I’ve spent reading the play. And not just the play, but books related to the play. I’ve read I Hate Hamlet, Thinking Shakespeare, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, and the very interesting first folio copy of Hamlet (colloquially referred to as the pirated folio, but that’s another essay).

I’ve given quite a bit of thought as to why I’ve given so much time to the original man in black, and I’ve come to quite a simple conclusion. Hamlet’s mortal flaw is his indecisiveness. Without it the play would have been over when he finds Claudius praying in Act III, if not sooner. And I too, suffer from a lack of assertiveness. When confronted with a decision, I would sooner flip a coin than actually decide. And as such, I take Hamlet as a cautionary tale. When my friend turns to me and asks, “Where do you want to go for lunch?” I imagine Ophelia, floating down a river, clutching flowers in her hand. I imagine Gertrude, wrongly poisoned with the treachery of a king. I imagine Laertes, poisoned with his own envenomed blade. And with a renewed sense of purpose I say, assertively, “Spiral Diner. Magnolia Street.”

And this little baby step in the direction of bettering myself is how Hamlet has influenced me. Doesn’t seem like much now, I know. But in the words of Lao-tzu, the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Plus, here I am making a decision that will affect my entire adult life. Who knows, perhaps without Hamlet I would still be standing between colleges ‘like a man to double business bound. . .in pause where I shall first begin, and both neglect’

Any feedback is welcome.