Constant betrayal and deceit, brothers amongst brothers. The dangerous life that comes with being a member of an outlaw motorcycle club. Drowning in a pool of chaotic events, the members of SAMCRO (Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club Redwood Original) struggle to survive engulfed in race war, work with homicidal psychopaths, and stay out of prison. Many view this life as unethical and evil, however the ones who truly know the underlying reasons for this life such as family and brotherhood choose this uncommon path for themselves. Tragedy after Tragedy occur in daily life as fellow members give their life to the cause. How do these themes tie into the plot of Hamlet? How does this life portray a classic Shakespearean tragedy ?
The plot of the show opens with a direct parellel between the two tales. Jax Teller's father John was killed by his best friend Clay Morrow who was hungry for total power and control of the club. After Clay killed John, he then married John's wife Gemma Teller and proceeded to take on the role of club president (Hunman). Jax is Hamlet who deals with constant issues everyday and who's life is filled with stress. Clay is Claudius who betrays his brother and takes his life in secret. Claudius poisons Hamlet's father and allows him to die in agony as he presumes the role of King of Denmark. Clay sabotaged John's motorcycle before a long distance ride and John died as an "inexplicable" malfunction with his bike took place while on the road. After these events transpired, Clay married Jax's mother Gemma (Gertrude) and she remains in the dark when referring to the truth of her husband John's death. Gemma desperately wants Jax to remain in their hometown Charming and when she hears rumor of him moving to Oregon, she begs him to stay. Just as Hamlet's mother pleaded with him to stay when he was thinking of going to Wittenberg for his studies. Jax ofcourse remains in Charming just as Hamlet did after saying "I shall in all my best obey you, madam"(Shakespeare) to his mother.
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An extremely important element of both tales is the ghost of their fathers. The ghost of Hamlet's father comes to him in person and through this encounter Hamlet learns the truth behind the murder of his father. The ghost tells him that Claudius killed him and that Hamlet should avenge his death (Shakespeare). Jax also encounters a ghost of his father's past, however not in true ghostly form. Early in the show Jax finds some old letters and a book that his father had written and kept as a sort of journal.
To see more on the character connections, follow this link: http://brainbusteronline.com/?p=279
An extremely important element of both tales is the ghost of their fathers. The ghost of Hamlet's father comes to him in person and through this encounter Hamlet learns the truth behind the murder of his father. The ghost tells him that Claudius killed him and that Hamlet should avenge his death (Shakespeare). Jax also encounters a ghost of his father's past, however not in true ghostly form. Early in the show Jax finds some old letters and a book that his father had written and kept as a sort of journal.
Jax is intrigued by this journal and spends many a night glued to the pages of his father's past life. By reading the journal, Jax eventually uncovers the truth that Clay betrayed and killed his father. Jax becomes enraged by this truth and sets out to end Clay. After learning of Claudius's murder, Hamlet devises a plan of action. He decides to have a play put on for King Claudius in which he has the actors perform the reenactment of Claudius poisoning Hamlet's father. Hamlet watches the play alongside his royal relatives, but keeps a close eye out for the reaction of Claudius. When the murder takes place in the play Claudius freaks out and exits the room abruptly (Shakespeare). In Sons of Anarchy, when Clay hears of the letters that could possibly expose him, he commits numerous unspeakable acts in order to keep everything quiet. Just as Claudius puts a hit out for Hamlet's death, Clay puts several hits on those who are close to Jax. These people include his long time friends Piney and Opie Winston, Jax, and Jax's wife Tara. Claudius and Clay lose many loved ones around them while desperately attempting to retain the power which they wrongfully obtained.
To see an awesome trailer of Sons of Anarchy click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_XFvVjaKrw
Just as Claudius tries to have Hamlet assassinated throughout the latter end of the play, Clay puts hits out on many of his closest friends and family members. When Claudius discovers the risk that Hamlet presents he organizes a duel between him and Laertes, a skilled swordsman. Claudius has Laertes's sword dipped in poison before the duel begins in order to kill Hamlet when the blade strikes his skin. However, this plan backfires when Hamlet and Laertes switch swords during the chaos and Hamlet ends up stabbing Laertes with a poisoned sword. Clay's attempts at having Opie and Tara killed also backfire in that the cartel is unable to perform the hit on Tara, only leaving her with a broken hand and Opie's wife Donna is mistakenly killed while a hit is attempted on Opie. Donna was driving Opie's car home and a drive-by shooter took the shots from behind before he could realize that it was Donna driving and not the intended target Opie. Both Claudius and Clay have an unquenchable thirst for power and this pushes them past their common limits and cloud their judgment. In the end, both men cause their own demise by pushing too hard for full control and are overwhelmed by greed.
As you can now see, the plot lines of these two works of art are stunningly similar. The creator of Sons of Anarchy, Kurt Sutter, blends his television genius together with an adored classic piece of literature from one of the world's most renowned play writers in history. Despite the polar opposite settings one can see how Sons of Anarchy follows the plot of Hamlet season by season as the dynamic characters slowly progress into shadows of the characters from Hamlet. Despite the unlikely comparison, it is astounding what an incredible television show was established based on such a historic tale. Sons of Anarchy doesn't only stand as outlaws who serve justice, but as pure genius of plot line.
To see an awesome trailer of Sons of Anarchy click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_XFvVjaKrw
Just as Claudius tries to have Hamlet assassinated throughout the latter end of the play, Clay puts hits out on many of his closest friends and family members. When Claudius discovers the risk that Hamlet presents he organizes a duel between him and Laertes, a skilled swordsman. Claudius has Laertes's sword dipped in poison before the duel begins in order to kill Hamlet when the blade strikes his skin. However, this plan backfires when Hamlet and Laertes switch swords during the chaos and Hamlet ends up stabbing Laertes with a poisoned sword. Clay's attempts at having Opie and Tara killed also backfire in that the cartel is unable to perform the hit on Tara, only leaving her with a broken hand and Opie's wife Donna is mistakenly killed while a hit is attempted on Opie. Donna was driving Opie's car home and a drive-by shooter took the shots from behind before he could realize that it was Donna driving and not the intended target Opie. Both Claudius and Clay have an unquenchable thirst for power and this pushes them past their common limits and cloud their judgment. In the end, both men cause their own demise by pushing too hard for full control and are overwhelmed by greed.
As you can now see, the plot lines of these two works of art are stunningly similar. The creator of Sons of Anarchy, Kurt Sutter, blends his television genius together with an adored classic piece of literature from one of the world's most renowned play writers in history. Despite the polar opposite settings one can see how Sons of Anarchy follows the plot of Hamlet season by season as the dynamic characters slowly progress into shadows of the characters from Hamlet. Despite the unlikely comparison, it is astounding what an incredible television show was established based on such a historic tale. Sons of Anarchy doesn't only stand as outlaws who serve justice, but as pure genius of plot line.