ROSENCRANTZ AND GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD
             How has Tom Stoppard used Shakspeare's Hamlet to explore traditional themes and ideas and raise contemporary issues through his play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead?
             By transforming a revenge tragedy into an absurdist play, Tom Stoppard has been able to extract ideas from William Shakespeare's Hamlet to construct new meaning for a contemporary audience. This is done through a change in focus from those at the top of the social hierarchy (the Royal family of Denmark) to common man. This change in focus reflects a change in societies values and provides a new perspective with which we can analyse the issues confronted such as religion, fate and destiny, and death.
             The context each play was written in has largely determined the plot of the plays, which acutely echo the values of society. Hamlet for example, opens with an obvious theological discourse that must be corrected by Hamlet, forming the basis of the plot. The idea that the disruption of hierarchical structure (consequently divine order) leads to chaos and tragedy reflects the significance of Christianity in Elizabethan society. It instilled structure and order into everyday living and threatened the collapse of civilisation should anyone wreak disorder. Structure and strong morals were valued in the Elizabethan era, which is why the revenge tragedy genre was prevalent in theatre. Hamlet conforms to the tradition of revenge tragedy in its rigid structure, strong moral and religious overtones, bloody conclusion and heroism.
             Unlike the purpose-driven plot of Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead conforms to the conventions of Absurdist Theatre, which is more cyclical, lacking in direction and reflects a sense of confusion. Like Hamlet, disorder is the crux of the play, made apparent by Ros flipping a coin that consistently lands on heads. The d
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