Hamlet in Pakistan

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UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON FACULTY OF HUMANITIES ENGLISH Hamlet in Pakistan by Mohammad Muazzam Sharif Thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy April 2017 UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON ABSTRACT FACULTY OF HUMANITIES ENGLISH Thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy HAMLET IN PAKISTAN Mohammad Muazzam Sharif This thesis tests and questions the concept of revenge in Hamlet against the context of Pukhtun culture in the Khyber Pukhtunkhwa (KP) province of Pakistan. As this study seeks to understand the emotive meaning of revenge in a range of cultural contexts, I explore the way in which Hamlet is read and interpreted in a culture where revenge, as in the debased form of badal, is both current and pervasive. The KP universities‘ students who belong to the culture, where revenge is considered obligatory, tend to identify themselves with various characters of the play, particularly Hamlet. This study seeks to ascertain the experience of the play as a dramaturgical construct which questions the revenge ethos capable of modifying entrenched beliefs among young Pakistanis engaged in reading the play at KP universities. As a result, I explore the role and use of Hamlet as an educational tool to combat revenge practices in Pakistan. This research contributes to the growing work on Shakespeare criticism and performance in different cultures around the world by presenting the relevant appropriations of the play in Pakistan and worldwide. i Table of Contents ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................................... i Table of Contents ..................................................................................................................... iii List of Tables ............................................................................................................................... v List of Figures ........................................................................................................................... vii Definitions and Abbreviations ................................................................................................ix DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP ............................................................................................ XI Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................. XIII Note on Style ........................................................................................................................... XV Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1 The Syllabus for English Literature ............................................................. 7 Hamlet and Badal ................................................................................ 13 The play as question ............................................................................ 18 Chapter 1: Shakespeare in Pakistan ......................................................................... 23 Shakespeare across borders ................................................................... 26 Hamlet in the media reports of Pakistan .................................................... 48 Chapter 2: Why Hamlet ......................................................................................................... 55 The term revenge and its use in Hamlet .................................................... 57 The term Question and its use in Hamlet ................................................... 67 Interrogative structures and questions in Hamlet ......................................... 70 The Question of Revenge ...................................................................... 81 Chapter 3: Revenge Culture in Khyber Pukhtunkhwa ...................................................... 91 Pukhto and Pukhtuns ......................................................................... 101 Badal ............................................................................................. 103 Reasons for Badal in Pukhto ................................................................. 104 Pride in Badal ................................................................................... 108 Drama and Non-violent Protest ............................................................. 110 iii Revenge in Hamlet and Pukhtun Culture.................................................. 143 Chapter 4: A Hamlet for 21st Century Pakistan ............................................................... 147 Haider’s story ................................................................................... 160 Roohdar ......................................................................................... 165 To seek revenge or to forgive ............................................................... 171 The Mouse Trap Song Bismil ................................................................. 179 Prince of the Himalayas ...................................................................... 196 Chapter 5: Influence of Hamlet: an Investigation .......................................................... 205 Background ..................................................................................... 205 Methodology ................................................................................... 212 Discussion ....................................................................................... 217 Hamlet as a revenge play and the practice of Badal .................................... 217 Justification of Hamlet’s revenge ........................................................... 225 Influence of Hamlet ........................................................................... 227 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................. 233 Appendix A: Khudai Khidmatgar’s Oath .......................................................................... 239 Appendix B: ERGO Approval .............................................................................................. 241 Appendix C: Questionnaire and Interview- Questions ............................................... 243 Questionnaire .................................................................................. 243 Interview Questions ........................................................................... 246 List of References ................................................................................................................. 249 Bibliography .......................................................................................................................... 261 iv List of Tables Table 1: Occurences of revenge in Hamlet ................................................................................. 58 Table 2: Quantitative Responses .............................................................................................. 215 v List of Figures Figure 1: Roohdar being protected by security officials on the set of Haider. .......................... 168 Figure 2 : Lyrics of Bismil song from the film Haider ................................................................ 186 vii Definitions and Abbreviations Badal The literal meaning of badal is to exchange or reciprocate. Nowadays, it is used more in a sense of revenge. Khyber Khyber Pukhtunkhwa was formerly known as North-West Pukhtunkhwa Frontier Province and is one of the four provinces of Pakistan, located in the north-western region of the country. Its provincial capital and the largest city is Peshawar. It borders Afghanistan through Khyber Pass. It is officially abbreviated as KP. Pukhto Pukhto, also known as Pashto, is the name of the language spoken in parts of Pakistan, Afghanistan, India and Iran. It is the official language of Afghanistan and is predominantly spoken in KP and the tribal areas of Pakistan. It is the second largest regional language of Pakistan. Pukhto is also a series of tenets on how a Pukhtun must live. These tenets define how the people interact and provide guideline for normative behaviours in living in Pukhtun lifestyle. It is considered as the constitution of the life of the Pukhtuns. HEC Higher Education Commission KP Khyber Pukhtunkhwa ix KK Khudai Khidmatgar. It is commonly translated as Servants of God OED Oxford English Dictionary online (http://www.oed.com/) QEC Quality Enhancement Cell Q2 Hamlet: The Quarto of 1604-05 Q1 Hamlet: The Quarto of 1603 F First Folio of 1623 x DECLARATION

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