Exams Not So Easy

In my previous post ‘Fencing Report’ I was asked who the character ‘Osric’ was. Clearly it was an extract from a scene in Hamlet Prince of Denmark.

(Above): Part of a large engraving, the scene of a play enacted before the Royal court, in which Claudius (right, seated) can be seen looking down and holding his head, confirming that he was responsible for Hamlet’s dad’s death.

“..the play's the thing wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king…”

When I looked up the scene to refresh my memory after so many years, I was amazed at the detailed analysis that has been published about the work, and I reflected how much easier our schoolwork would have been in those days if we had at our disposal what the Internet now has on offer. Much of it becomes a lot clearer and so easy to understand (not that it was such a difficult play, in any case).

From what I gather, though, the youngsters of today face an entirely different set of criteria when it comes to this type of situation. The sort of questions which are posed in exams require a lot more thought and insight, so perhaps I should shut up about them having it so easy…

[    Aside – I find things like the engraving (above) so interesting… The faces of Hamlet, Claudius and Gertrude and their expressions are so perfectly portrayed.. the picture says it all. (A detail of the engraving of Daniel Maclise’s 1842 painting The Play-scene in Hamlet, portraying the moment when the guilt of Claudius is revealed.) ]