New-York tribune., 1873-02-25
IRONY IN HAMLET.
CLOSING LECTURE BY THE REV. JOHN
WEISS,


Tbe Rev. John Weiss delivered the last OF
~. .onrse of lectures on Shakespeare at Robinson eh
~, excaine 10 an unusually largo audience Twomc9e
,,ur,s o tins course are to We delivered IN staten
Islaua the first occurring onSht and tSe last on Fri
asy night subject OF tao ccture lest evening was
"Hamct."
In the pl,v,o Hamlet ne said it IS to look |
for An exhibition OF huor in the scene of the grave
,,ecers; brt those personages only amusing as
onle of ren whose 10 have buried hot
their feelings and their Wits one Of them saccaetuy
witty when he asks; is she - be buried IN CHRISTIAN
burial tlat wilfny seeks her cwn salvation y but lie
and hse conpauion DO maxi good the promise o. ths
npcr,rr text They turn ont TO he tedious lOuts who
,Yipe ale house chatter 10 ehurchyard, and opH rise
90 tse dignity of being gha-y. Although we Know that
the grave they dig FOR Ophes, do not properly re-
,5cct and feel this TN thty disappear and the music OF
Tho funeratran in is heard The sections riddles nave
lttle more Juice thcm-the kind that boozy gossps
Clint ont Of their cans S,ow such trvay Is MOI par
cuiary interesting 10 the modern mind metcY because
II u well hit II respect IL Is rot Wei ht on IL
occurs TOO tiresOmely.
But was tins tho Of Shakespeare 10 mshteh the
rahos Of Opbea. who must be the tenant OF TINS -tNo
,o tatnitonsly dag! To tins complexion must we all
come" and beauty itself cannot repe tue loush hah's
which take their lee for ShOvchug dirt upon IT'S clay
There is SO little OF business IN this scene that
sror have always been 80 years at least at their
wits ends to make hold their audience They used to
wear dozen or Two waistcoats, and, pretending to
lie hot and blown with digging Of the grave, they
stripped them off after another and you imagined
cah one must he the last until yOu doubted whether
man were inside tut only yardstick TO measure pat
terms with. lLaughterl so Mt Thackeray takes
George the IVth 10 pieces, stripping on the
wcLkuowu articles OF his apparel" uuder-waiteoa's'
more under waiscoats, and then-nothng" But the
waStcoat business always brought laugh which Their
incpcut discussion could not raise Henri Tame the
Fleu,h critic after MS visit TO England, mentions with
great sllrisc that the English audiences still laugh
when Hau et traces he noble dust Of Alexander TO ITS
fnal bcr ia bung-holc" The French do not relish the
luidncss oi the iucongruy between great commander
and "a ca>k of ale but me the laugh comes
rightly tn with the boldness Of fancy which suddenly
brings together such opposite things Extremes meet
with shock very much d au orators chair should be
,vcpi away u>t as he Hts down from bis climax
HUNOB wHfN LEAST EXFECrED.
I,id,utly IN HamleUs interviews with the ghost. the
autic disposition which he assumes Is ironieal The
leencst of ms remarks come down To where our laugh
lies and lets its blood htc. 1t does not throw open
The greet the suIDurst Of humor does We en-
10Y s.cnc with what superior insight he battles all the
sas who cannot play upon pipe" yet expect to play
upon him This gives The the flavor of comedy
II the sburchyard taste the sub-acid of cyn
eisu so That Yoricks sknll Is quite stripped Of its
hunor aud Is only ch"rI ~ discourse upoh nlinan
ity Ea' Hamlet drops INTO humor when your are least
'acns NJ as g'+&hiS & are are GSppenp9f prt * s1c wIca
tsrr,r after Tamiets dread interview with his
Irnricrcd father. wonder that his wonted evenness
al manner is shaken, and We hear nun pu,!ng al ms
loct what hichv style II is for instance,
that a man may smile ana De a Villain,
De did u VIII interpret to ms the subsequent
ocutaucr which everybody thought was madness In
fbc mean time upon this Specterhannied plat
form. stckug with Hamlets friends 10 discover what
new tho ghost brought Hamlet trhes with them puts
,LinS AN ot6 one 100 that is extorted by the expert
,nce of tnat comes 20 few IL the two friends o
Hamlet know oi The murder their interest III IL Is not
personal cuouCh leud them fortitude to help them
tolerate this unseen yi~iI9r-the murdered man himself
Nitt "h -,,.'r,,r Sb.I.snassr. ,gpa',id
have us e>ma Hamlet 10 he lie peTceyes that their
fIlrud.hip ,oIcy tried aud on thclOnt OF crumbng
anG dbl, re.oif.e u prom Nv ulawn diTm 'n 1 ,I 't @
oau make even a ghost cempah0ndOe lnSh' my /
@ VA t' 'an,J @ and y7hri Why Tor the sake of
hs ti"nh1 SoI h' INV ',,yeI,,god 15ir6rcr rs tbeTc
awaiting ID N a9d en tee PneS nee has TO DEG DeSin % aS,,3
be docs t the fancy plca>ts hl oSaue IL V,euS @ 20
future aud 80 be- calls the molea worthy pioneer abu
MS uc upon ihc platform s the last IN the tragedy
Toirnious belongs 10 comedy because he Is old |
counsellor valuable whose wits have grown seedy
and cisuNen> tine Prince There is mol enough lett OF
Poo"o- {" vr through Sn'S m aSeS bs o of o o ~ f@. f
nd au aII;s 20 get himself mistaken Tor the !
t.1s. and as lac does this, after sending SPY into |
T,ce 10 watch ms ,oI's habits we have not tear TO
sJ4re, and only think how delightfully."- bewlldered be
Do IN guosi gets out oi Tue Doiy aer that i@peI
a., f Of Hamlet u time To- receive the other ghost aud
- .' ,ri'rcd and Hamlet Is harIing on something
els. d, eide ils daughter. llAuShterJ
IRONY IHE kEi-NOIE
TIC l.,:uI,rl, explained what he REGARDED the
mental -,ud iou aud temper q Hamlet shakefpeare
,ctc,,d Of m asking his audience 10 note that the
srt.eai,ut behavior of Hamlet Is the counterpart
d., t.o,,y of the conviction terribly emphasized clear
through thc play That may smile and be william.
TGc lcICurd behavior OF Hamlet is pro
an la cover purpose His mind is too well hung to
ami into iauCle OF crazIneSs. When the ghost
tr-i tells hm OF the murder he IS quite capable OF
uccsou and what converts ms mood INTO lr1eSoute-
n.s-f SIMPLY. that the ghost tells him he
was murdered by his own brother, aud the
or,Ati"u Of revenge then becomes more difficult for
81 involves widowing his mother Throughout the play
md superiority ls the keynote or his
character you this in one respect when he says,
We viii teach you 10 drink deep tut he Keeps him
srf a0ol FROM contracting habt. You have heard
about lIs desire 10 commit suicide; well, ns tendency
10 speculate upon suicide belongs to mind IN which
consciousness il 50 supreme so strong 80 sweet, SO
doinnocrug, Il ought TO be, that s ideal makes the
Vulgar life the court almost ntolerdble TO him; but
lear the ghost. lie says What should be the fearl
my life al pins fee, aud for my soul-what
oan u do that, being thlng Immortal as ltselfF'
II seems me that Shakespeare plainly meant US 70
iuicr that Hamlet had inherited the traits OF noble
father, Tor VINO 9u such son coui1 describe the kngly
qualities which had given birth 20 hun. Ihe second ap
Of the ghost was not the ghost il was Hamlet
making ghost out Oi hls IememDrdnces OF his father
" Look took here upon TINS picture p and on this"
This was your hn9Oann, O.Iy a son who
IN al respects worthy 10 ne born OF |
natures uObemen could pay TINS debt Of being nobly
horn and give ima giuatOns birth Of such The
question occurs 10 Vo what was the bthaVor OF what
ture the fighting and engmatic style which he puts
onI IL - not tie troubled ehdeaNer OF sustaining the
character OF nadman. LOOK al The question
Of the motive. lie could not need
r,o., conesive that his mind driven from its or
duary gravity insttcuycy saved itself by this gesture
of o,y and peared 10 9e madness 70 those VINO dla
lad q following out Of ~. IL - trle that he
cautions he friends 10 he secret pereaanee ne shall
hereafter put the antic what is autei The word
Irony" dd not exist ~ the Englsh language
when S1Asspesie WV %i3te nxn,sns n Poorus
he u with a book, apparently Deditating, and