The story of Cinderella is, perhaps, one of the most well-known stories in the world. Many cultures have traditional folk stories involving the rags-to-riches story arc; becoming massively successful in the face of adversity seems to be one of humanity's driving personality features. Because the story of Cinderella is so ubiquitous, it is not surprising that great storytellers borrow tropes, character arcs, and thematic ideas from the folktale. Tales like the Cinderella story are generally not created merely as a form of entertainment, but also as a way to educate people-- particularly children-- about cultural mores and societal expectations. These tales also provide a warning for the audience about the dangers of failing to conform to the standards and requirements set by society as a whole (Olrik). Shakespeare's Hamlet, on the other hand, is not a story that follows the Cinderella rags-to-riches story arc. On its face, it seems to be a completely different story, with different thematic ideas and a vastly different cast of characters. However, upon closer examination, there are certainly elements of the Cinderella story contained within Shakespeare's Hamlet. To understand the ways in which the thematic ideas from the Cinderella folktale can be applied to the dramatic work Hamlet, it is important to first consider the thematic idea of the family.
Hamlet's family life is complex and embattled. His father is dead, and his uncle has assumed the throne in his father's absence. Hamlet himself is one of the most complex, cunning characters created by Shakespeare; he is, by all accounts, witty, intelligent, and morose (Shakespeare). He is also going slowly insane over the course of the play. The interactions between the characters in the story are full of betrayal and distrust, much in the same way the Cinderella story utilizes the deceitful nature of humanity to create a believable folktale for the audience.
Cinderella is the coming-of-age story of a young woman, and Hamlet is neither poor nor a woman; however, there is a character within the play who does fit this character type. Ophelia, the daughter of nobility, is downtrodden throughout the play. Her character is kind and sensitive, and seeks the approval and love of the Prince-- in this case, the titular Hamlet (Shakespeare). Ophelia’s end is not a happy, one, however; Shakespeare deviates from the Cinderella story arc with the death of Ophelia, creating a contrast between the folk tale and the play. Hamlet’s madness and wanton killing of her father is arguably the reason for Ophelia’s suicide. The death of the father is, however, a common theme in the Cinderella story.
The idea of coming-of-age is a thematic one that is explored within Hamlet. Although Hamlet’s character cannot be said to parallel that of the Cinderella character, he does experience the problems of coming of age. Hamlet wants desperately to be recognized for the throne after his father’s death, but he cannot become the man and king he is meant to be because he is usurped by his uncle, Polonius and Laertes. After her mother’s death, the Brothers Grimm’s Cinderella is meant to become the primary woman in the household, but she is usurped by her stepmother and stepsisters, a triad that becomes important thematically throughout the developmental course of the folktale.
Olrik writes that one of the primary laws of folklore is the law of threes. Characters appear in threes; scenes that repeat tend to repeat in threes; tests for the protagonist happen in threes, and so on and so forth (Olrik). In the Grimm version of Cinderella, for instance, the festival in which Cinderella is fated to meet the Prince lasts three whole days and nights, and the Prince must try three times to find the woman whose foot will fit the lost slipper (Heiner). Shakespeare’s Hamlet makes heavy use of this law of threes throughout the text as well. The family groups within the play exist in threes: Gertrude, Claudius, and Hamlet form one trio, while Ophelia, Polonius, and Laertes form another. These trios are meant to be foils for each other, which is, incidentally, another very important law of folktale that both the Cinderella stories and Hamlet employ.
The law of contrast is fundamentally important in folktales (Olrik). Considering that folktales are meant to teach a moral, ethical, or life lesson to the audience, it is important to create two contrasting entities throughout the tale that provide the audience with a clear picture of the proper course of action and the improper course of action (Olrik). In the Grimm Brothers’ version of Cinderella, there is a contrast drawn throughout the tale between the white doves from heaven and the evil stepsisters that try to harm Cinderella at every turn (Zipes). The twin white doves represent the pure goodness of heaven, while the evil stepsisters are representative of what happens when humanity gives in to the cardinal sins of greed, gluttony, and envy (Zipes).
In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Shakespeare used the law of contrast in a similar manner. One pair of twins, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, is introduced at the beginning of the text. These characters are meant to be comic relief for the audience, although they also function to state the obvious for the audience, to ensure collective understanding (Shakespeare). They are contrasted with the gravediggers at the end of the play, witty commoners who are thought by the audience to be simple, but play well with words and discuss heavy topics like the legitimacy of suicide in the face of great personal pain (Shakespeare). The gravediggers speak candidly to Hamlet, engaging him in thoughtful philosophical discussion, while Hamlet’s old friends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are sycophantic, trying to ingratiate themselves to the Prince to uncover his secrets (Shakespeare). Hamlet himself comments that he will trust Rosencrantz and Guildenstern “as I will adders fang’d” (Shakespeare). These two characters eventually suffer the fate of all characters who act immorally in folk tales: their death comes by way of messenger, who utters the famous line “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead” (Shakespeare). Thus, Shakespeare utilizes contrast to teach the audience a moral lesson about the importance of candor and loyalty to one’s friends and royal family.
The gravediggers and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern also exemplify another aspect of the traditional laws of folklore: the represent the laws of twins (Olrik). The idea of twins is closely tied to the idea of contrast within folklore, but the idea of twins is used as a literary device very commonly throughout folktales. In the Grimm version of the Cinderella story, the twins are played by the stepsisters who are, by and large, indistinguishable from each other, as well as the twin doves from heaven (Heiner). In Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern and the gravediggers are both, effectively, sets of twins that are designed to create a character foil (Shakespeare).
It is no surprise that Shakespeare used many different aspects of the traditional folktale in his work as a playwright. Unlike many of the literary masters that came before him, he was creating plays for the common people; this is why his plays are so full of bawdy humor and popular culture allusions to incidents occurring in Shakespeare’s time (Pogrebinsky). The reason why Shakespeare used so many literary devices common to folklore is arguably because it made the work more recognizable to audiences, and easier for the audience to follow. In addition, folktales were often designed to tell a story that served as a moral or ethical lesson (Heiner). While Shakespeare did not write his work in the pursuit of teaching a moral or ethical lesson to his audience, there are certainly aspects of Shakespeare’s plays that teach the audience about the importance of good, moral, culturally-appropriate behavior.
Works cited
Heiner, Heidi Ann. "SurLaLune Fairy Tales: Tales Similar To Cinderella." 1999. Web. 10 Aug 2013. <http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/cinderella/other.html>.
Olrik, Axel. Principles for oral narrative research. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1992. Online.
Pogrebinsky, Alexander A.. "Hamlet: A Research Guide." Hamlet Guide. www.pogrebinsky.info, n.d. Web. 10 August 2013. <http://www.hamletguide.com/>.
Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Santa Fe, Argentina: El Cid Editor, n.d.. Online.
Zipes, Jack. The Great fairy tale tradition. New York: W.W. Norton, 2001. Online.
