Books / hamlet
Facts about Hamlet by William Shakespeare
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Revenge, mortality, and corruption are central themes in Hamlet, which is classified as one of Shakespeare's four great tragedies alongside Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth.
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Shakespeare's Hamlet draws heavily on a Danish legend recorded by the 12th-century chronicler Saxo Grammaticus in his work Gesta Danorum.
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Hamlet is believed to have been written around 1600–1601 and is thought to draw on an earlier lost play sometimes called the Ur-Hamlet.
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In Hamlet, the famous 'To be, or not to be' soliloquy appears in Act 3, Scene 1 and is one of the most quoted passages in the English language.
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The play Hamlet features the longest speaking role in the Shakespeare canon, with the prince appearing in more lines than any other Shakespearean character.