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Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead


IAer2012

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Have you tried actually reading the play? :P

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead is an absurdist work. If you don't know or understand what absurdism is, go look it up NOW. Absurdism, in a nutshell, basically means that the play does not follow logical character development or plot. The dialogue is illogical and nonsensical. Take a look at any section of dialogue between Rosencrantz or Guildenstern or between any of the other characters, such as the player.

In addition, make note of the similarities and references to Hamlet. If you've read this play, you'll immediately recognize that the same course of events is in both plays, we just see it from Rosencrantz/Guildenstern's point of view. Oftentimes the characters (especially those from Hamlet like Claudius, Gertrude, Hamlet, Ophelia, etc) will come out and speak in the same lines as they did in Hamlet, such as the last lines where we see Horatio talking to Fortinbras. The title of this play refers to the fact that in Hamlet, towards the end of the final act, a messenger comes and announces "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead." So having read Hamlet, you already know that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern will die. They're trapped in another play that you already know the outcome to. And if you've read Waiting for Godot ​you'll also find several similarities here, especially in comparison to its characters and themes ;)

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