1828.] Retzsch's Outlines of Shakspcare. 619 



series. They consist of Hamlet, and the two officers on watch ; and, in 

 both scenes, the group is arranged with great ease, yet with great force 

 and spirit ; and the expressions are as fine in themselves, as they are 

 appropriate to the action going on. 



PLATE the FIFTH represents Hamlet, commencing the celebrated 

 soliloquy on life and death, in the chamber of Ophelia, with the king 

 and Polonius listening without ( Act 3, Sc. 2.). In regard to the two 

 principal figures, we conceive this plate to be a total failure. Ophelia, 

 in particular, is a sort of disagreeable nonentity ; but the king and Polo- 

 nius are capital. 



PLATE the SIXTH is the play scene (Act 3, Sc. 1.). It contains many 

 figures ; but the point of time chosen, is one from which little or nothing 

 in the way of expression, can be extracted. It is where Hamlet begins 

 to explain the nature of the play ; for he has evidently not reached that 

 point of his explanation at which " the conscience of the king" becomes 

 touched. The Ophelia, in this scene, is much better than in the pre- 

 ceding one she is utterly self-absorbed, and unconscious of all that is 

 passing about her. 



PLATE the SEVENTH is a very admirable one. It is that ( Act 3, Sc. 2) 

 where Hamlet asks for a " Recorder," and entreats Guildenstern to play 

 upon it. The infinitely deprecating air and action of Guildenstern, are 

 excellent : and the group of players on the left are, perhaps, finer than 

 anything else in this whole series of plates unless it be the ghost, as 

 before noticed. They are looking on at the conference between Hamlet 

 and the courtier, with that air of empty, idle, yet intent curiosity (a 

 curiosity utterly apart from all interest in the matter) which is habitual 

 with that class of persons ; who, by perpetually repeating the thoughts 

 of others, have lost all habit and power of thinking for themselves ; and 

 to whom all things but their own paltry personal interests are matters 

 of equal curiosity and indifference. They want to know all about every- 

 thing, without caring one farthing about anything. What is the mad- 

 ness of a prince to them, except in so far as it may chance to interfere 

 with some one of their favourite performances ? Au restc, they are think- 

 ing how odd it is that a courtier should not know how to play upon a 

 pipe : and if he had known how to play upon it, they would have 

 thought how odd that was ! It is a little curious, that at least two of 

 these players, if not all three, might pass for very fair portraits of cer- 

 tain of our own players of the present day. If our remark is a just one, 

 there is no need to point out the resemblance more particularly ; and, 

 if it is not a just one, it might seem invidious to do so. But, perhaps, 

 this resemblance exists in our fancy alone ; for all players, when they 

 are not playing, are pretty much alike. Their faces are a kind of plastic 

 mask, which they have acquired the art of moving at will, to certain 

 arbitrary and gratuitous imitations of expression. But in themselves as 

 Charleville, or Somerton their faces, like their minds, have no charac- 

 ter at all. We should not quit this plate, without remarking that the 

 Hamlet of it is better more full of appropriate character and spirit 

 than in any of the others. 



PLATE the EIGHTH is good, but not fine. It is from Act 3, Sc. 3, 

 where Hamlet finds the king at prayers, and refuses to kill him on that 

 account. There is a sort of conventional grandeur about the king 

 throughout, which is very good, and is particularly so in this plate. But 

 the Hamlet is here poor, and insipid. This plate contains two more of 



1 K 2 



