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Hamnet


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The fathers in the book create a physical and/or emotional distance between themselves and their families. Do you think this affects their children and lineage overall, and if so, in what ways?

Created: 06/16/22

Replies: 10

Posted Jun. 16, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
davinamw

Join Date: 10/15/10

Posts: 3442

The fathers in the book create a physical and/or emotional distance between themselves and their families. Do you think this affects their children and lineage overall, and if so, in what ways?

The fathers in the book—John, Hamnet's father, and King Hamlet—create a physical and/or emotional distance between themselves and their families. Do you think this affects their children and lineage overall, and if so, in what ways?

How did John's actions ultimately impact how his own son would be remembered?


Posted Jun. 17, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
jans

Join Date: 01/15/21

Posts: 4

RE: The fathers in the book create a ...

Brutal punishment isn’t conducive to building relationships and can turn to anger, which is how John seemed to me. His son didn’t copy the harsh discipline, but perhaps his father’s gruffness turned Will toward his creative ideas, making him more introspective and focused on his passion, leaving no room for his family. Perhaps he didn’t want to repeat his father’s harsh manner, and instead - with his wife’s encouragement - found a way to get to London, driven by creative ideas, and selfishness. Hamnet wanted to see his father more, but we can’t determine if his father’s absence would have had an impact on the boy. Today we know that healthy emotions displayed by adults in their inner circle have tremendous impact on kids’ emotions and self-esteem. Perhaps the Bard was thinking about the need to follow his own path instead of being like his father and do as expected, and he was a bitter man.

The world would be diminished without Shakespeare’s genius. His family’s great loss was the world’s gain.


Posted Jun. 20, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
kimk

Join Date: 10/16/10

Posts: 889

RE: The fathers in the book create a ...

Well, John's actions certainly caused his son to move far away from his influence, and as a result he was free to pursue his passion in London. The downside, though, was that he was't able to live with his wife and children. I have to wonder if he'd have had more children if he'd been able to have Agnes with him.


Posted Jun. 20, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
katherinep

Join Date: 07/16/14

Posts: 374

RE: The fathers in the book create a ...

Like many sons, he had no interest in his father's business. Like many fathers, John was angry about that and wanted him to become involved in it. As a result, the father berated and demeaned the son, causing him to feel frustrated and angry and resentful. With Agnes' help the son is able to follow his own path but in the process he becomes an absentee father, who, when he returns home, comes bearing material gifts, presents to make up for the lack of his presence. Who knows how that affected his children but often it causes girls to seek a father figure in adulthood and for sons to either live aimlessly or else live constantly striving to gain their father's approval. Which rarely manages to be achieved.


Posted Jun. 20, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
juliep

Join Date: 04/07/12

Posts: 250

RE: The fathers in the book create a ...

I agree with katherinep. John’s abuse as a father probably caused Shakespeare to distance himself, both physically and emotionally. And perhaps he had no real role model to be a father to his own son. Or maybe it had nothing to do with his father’s treatment, but everything to do with the fact that he felt compelled to write and produce his plays. Either way, he certainly felt true grief when Hamnet died, while not physically present as a father.


Posted Jun. 30, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
debbieg

Join Date: 05/12/22

Posts: 4

RE: The fathers in the book create a ...

The fathers distance in the book also affected their relationships with the women in their lives…Mary appears as a solitary yet formidable presence in the household, Agnes has to go through so much in her life emotionally by herself and Susanna and Judith do not have a consistent father figure and role model in their daily life to help them understand how to develop healthy relationships with men.


Posted Jun. 30, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
tracyb

Join Date: 09/22/11

Posts: 102

RE: The fathers in the book create a ...

Even today in a cruel family getting away can help a person gain sanity, learn who they are. In the times that Shakespeare lived in this wasn't easy. He used $$ to support his family.

Considering the
type of men that surrounded him in his home I wonder if he was emotionally scared of being a typical man/father.


Posted Jun. 30, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
terriej

Join Date: 07/28/11

Posts: 422

RE: The fathers in the book create a ...

The fathers' behaviors impacted their children and their wives. The children were much closer to each other and their mothers than their fathers.


Posted Jul. 02, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
arlenei

Join Date: 08/12/21

Posts: 100

RE: The fathers in the book create a ...

Ditto for Katherinep. Lack of a “present” father for a male can lead to a chaotic life both in work and family. For girls, they many times marry a father figure and are not happy at all. There are a lot of “ifs” in my statements above because as we all know their are circumstances that can turn lives this way or that way.


Posted Jul. 02, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
ColoradoGirl

Join Date: 05/16/16

Posts: 149

RE: The fathers in the book create a ...

This is an interesting question and I didn't really think about that aspect until I read this question. John's behavior was certainly impactful and he didn't have a good relationship with his son at all. I think this distancing does create an impact as two involved parents can help a child feel loved and supported. We know that William loved his children, but his frequent absences were hard on his children and his wife.


Posted Aug. 10, 2022 Go to Top | Go to bottom | link | alert
audrey1

Join Date: 09/02/13

Posts: 43

RE: The fathers in the book create a ...

John's father made it impossible for John to remain in Stratford. In London he was free to become the person he yearned to be. The downside was that circumstances made it necessary to choose between remaining in Stratford and making his family the priority or sacrifice that gift to become his own person. So me of that was the circumstances of the plague. It was partially a decisi on he made


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