A New Dramatic Depth for Shakespeare's Women in Sherwood Hu's Prince of the Himalayas

Abstract

One of the most perplexing questions about William Shakespeare's Hamlet from the perspective of modern audiences, especially those who are not unfamiliar with feminist ideas, is why Gertrude has chosen to marry her late husband's brother, Claudius, in such a great haste. In fact, the play's lack of a satisfactory explanation for Gertrude's hasty marriage vexes some audiences just as it does Hamlet. While contemplating in agony about the behavior of his mother, this young prince seeks his own explanation and formulates one of the most famous lines in the play: ”Frailty, thy name is woman.” As an adaptation of Shakespeare's Hamlet, Sherwood Hu's 2006 movie, Prince of the Himalayas, addresses this perplexing question by inventing a reason for the queen's hasty marriage. This paper discusses the new dimension this Chinese adaptation has created for Nanm, equivalent to Shakespeare's Gertrude, which contradicts that famous quote about women's frailty from Hamlet's mouth. It also discusses the dramatic functions of the three other female characters in the movie, which contribute to a sea change in the theme and meaning of the original play. The adaptation reflects an important strategy in Shakespeare's original work: had Shakespeare rationalized Gertrude's actions or had he given her some more character depiction, he would have weakened the cause of the prince's agony and, hence, the dramatic effect of his play. In great contrast to Shakespeare's original play, Prince of the Himalayas creates a new dramatic depth for the queen and the other female characters. This different strategy in Hu's adapted version of Hamlet, well supported by other modifications in plots, generates a fascinating new interpretation with a difference.