Hamlet

The Prince of Denmark, the title character, and the protagonist. About thirty years old at the start
of the play, Hamlet is the son of Queen Gertrude and the late King Hamlet, and the nephew of
the present king, Claudius. Hamlet is melancholy, bitter, and cynical, full of hatred for his
uncle’s scheming and disgust for his mother’s sexuality. A reflective and thoughtful young man
who has studied at the University of Wittenberg, Hamlet is often indecisive and hesitant, but at
other times prone to rash and impulsive acts.
Hamlet has fascinated audiences and readers for centuries, and the first thing to point out about
him is that he is enigmatic. There is always more to him than the other characters in the play can
figure out; even the most careful and clever readers come away with the sense that they don’t
know everything there is to know about this character. Hamlet actually tells other characters that
there is more to him than meets the eye—notably, his mother, and Rosencrantz and
Guildenstern—but his fascination involves much more than this. When he speaks, he sounds as if
there’s something important he’s not saying, maybe something even he is not aware of. The
ability to write soliloquies and dialogues that create this effect is one of Shakespeare’s most
impressive achievements.
A university student whose studies are interrupted by his father’s death, Hamlet is extremely
philosophical and contemplative. He is particularly drawn to difficult questions or questions that
cannot be answered with any certainty. Faced with evidence that his uncle murdered his father,
evidence that any other character in a play would believe, Hamlet becomes obsessed with
proving his uncle’s guilt before trying to act. The standard of “beyond a reasonable doubt” is
simply unacceptable to him. He is equally plagued with questions about the afterlife, about the
wisdom of suicide, about what happens to bodies after they die—the list is extensive.
But even though he is thoughtful to the point of obsession, Hamlet also behaves rashly and
impulsively. When he does act, it is with surprising swiftness and little or no premeditation, as
when he stabs Polonius through a curtain without even checking to see who he is. He seems to
step very easily into the role of a madman, behaving erratically and upsetting the other characters
with his wild speech and pointed innuendos.
It is also important to note that Hamlet is extremely melancholy and discontented with the state
of affairs in Denmark and in his own family—indeed, in the world at large. He is extremely
disappointed with his mother for marrying his uncle so quickly, and he repudiates Ophelia, a
woman he once claimed to love, in the harshest terms. His words often indicate his disgust with
and distrust of women in general. At a number of points in the play, he contemplates his own
death and even the option of suicide.
But, despite all of the things with which Hamlet professes dissatisfaction, it is remarkable that
the prince and heir apparent of Denmark should think about these problems only in personal and
philosophical terms. He spends relatively little time thinking about the threats to Denmark’s
national security from without or the threats to its stability from within (some of which he helps
to create through his own carelessness).

Claudius
The King of Denmark, Hamlet’s uncle, and the play’s antagonist. The villain of the play,
Claudius is a calculating, ambitious politician, driven by his sexual appetites and his lust for
power, but he occasionally shows signs of guilt and human feeling—his love for Gertrude, for
instance,seems sincere.
Hamlet’s major antagonist is a shrewd, lustful, conniving king who contrasts sharply with the
other male characters in the play. Whereas most of the other important men in Hamlet are
preoccupied with ideas of justice, revenge, and moral balance, Claudius is bent upon maintaining
his own power. The old King Hamlet was apparently a stern warrior, but Claudius is a corrupt
politician whose main weapon is his ability to manipulate others through his skillful use of
language. Claudius’s speech is compared to poison being poured in the ear—the method he used
to murder Hamlet’s father. Claudius’s love for Gertrude may be sincere, but it also seems likely
that he married her as a strategic move, to help him win the throne away from Hamlet after the
death of the king. As the play progresses, Claudius’s mounting fear of Hamlet’s insanity leads
him to ever greater self-preoccupation; when Gertrude tells him that Hamlet has killed Polonius,
Claudius does not remark that Gertrude might have been in danger, but only that he would have
been in danger had he been in the room. He tells Laertes the same thing as he attempts to soothe
the young man’s anger after his father’s death. Claudius is ultimately too crafty for his own
good. In Act V, scene ii, rather than allowing Laertes only two methods of killing Hamlet, the
sharpened sword and the poison on the blade, Claudius insists on a third, the poisoned goblet.
When Gertrude inadvertently drinks the poison and dies, Hamlet is at last able to bring himself to
kill Claudius, and the king is felled by his own cowardly machination.

Gertrude
The Queen of Denmark, Hamlet’s mother, recently married to Claudius. Gertrude loves Hamlet
deeply, but she is a shallow, weak woman who seeks affection and status more urgently than
moral rectitude or truth.
Few Shakespearean characters have caused as much uncertainty as Gertrude, the beautiful Queen
of Denmark. The play seems to raise more questions about Gertrude than it answers, including:
Was she involved with Claudius before the death of her husband? Did she love her husband? Did
she know about Claudius’s plan to commit the murder? Did she love Claudius, or did she marry
him simply to keep her high station in Denmark? Does she believe Hamlet when he insists that
he is not mad, or does she pretend to believe him simply to protect herself? Does she
intentionally betray Hamlet to Claudius, or does she believe that she is protecting her son’s
secret?
These questions can be answered in numerous ways, depending upon one’s reading of the play.
The Gertrude who does emerge clearly in Hamlet is a woman defined by her desire for station
and affection, as well as by her tendency to use men to fulfill her instinct for self-preservation—
which, of course, makes her extremely dependent upon the men in her life. Hamlet’s most
famous comment about Gertrude is his furious condemnation of women in general: “Frailty, thy
name is woman!” (I.ii.146). This comment is as much indicative of Hamlet’s agonized state of
mind as of anything else, but to a great extent Gertrude does seem morally frail. She never
exhibits the ability to think critically about her situation, but seems merely to move instinctively
toward seemingly safe choices, as when she immediately runs to Claudius after her confrontation
with Hamlet. She is at her best in social situations (I.ii and V.ii), when her natural grace and
charm seem to indicate a rich, rounded personality. At times it seems that her grace and charm
are her only characteristics, and her reliance on men appears to be her sole way of capitalizing on
her abilities.

Polonius
The Lord Chamberlain of Claudius’s court, a pompous, conniving old man. Polonius is the father
of Laertes and Ophelia.
Polonius is a proud and concerned father. In his first line he tells us he hesitates to let his son
Laertes go abroad, and he draws out his last meeting with Laertes because he’s reluctant to see
him go. In the same scene, Polonius advises his daughter Ophelia to avoid Hamlet because he’s
worried about her. The secure and happy family unit of Polonius, Laertes, and Ophelia provides
a stark contrast with the dysfunctional unit formed by Claudius, Gertrude, and Hamlet. The
happiness of Polonius’s family is reflected in his children’s reaction to his murder. Laertes
passionately pursues revenge, and Ophelia feels so struck with grief that she goes mad. At the
same time, Polonius reveals himself to be a far from perfect father. He sends Reynaldo to spy on
his son, and he uses his daughter as bait to trick Hamlet. Polonius’s actions suggest that
in Hamlet, even relationships that seem loving are ambiguous, a fact which contributes to the
play’s atmosphere of doubt and uncertainty.

Polonius also provides Hamlet with its main source of comic relief. As a comic character, he
consistently shows himself less wise than he thinks. For instance, in Act Two he cleverly
announces that “brevity is the soul of wit” (II.ii.), but he does so in the middle of a tediously long
speech. The fact that Polonius gets himself so wrong contributes to one of Hamlet’s central
themes: the challenge of self-certainty. Polonius’s amusing lack of self-awareness serves as a
comic foil to Hamlet’s existential struggle with self-knowledge. In this sense Polonius offers an
alternative and far less extreme perspective on the impossibility of perfectly knowing oneself.
This difference between Polonius and Hamlet results in a powerful example of irony in Act
Three, when Hamlet mistakenly kills Polonius, thinking it’s Claudius. Whereas Polonius’s lack
of self-awareness is ultimately harmless, Hamlet’s lack of self-certainty drives him to his first act
of violence, which completely and tragically misfires.

Horatio
Hamlet’s close friend, who studied with the prince at the university in Wittenberg. Horatio is
loyal and helpful to Hamlet throughout the play. After Hamlet’s death, Horatio remains alive to
tell Hamlet’s story.
Ophelia
Polonius’s daughter, a beautiful young woman with whom Hamlet has been in love. Ophelia is a
sweet and innocent young girl, who obeys her father and her brother, Laertes. Dependent on men
to tell her how to behave, she gives in to Polonius’s schemes to spy on Hamlet. Even in her lapse
into madness and death, she remains maidenly, singing songs about flowers and finally drowning
in the river amid the flower garlands she had gathered.
Ophelia’s role in the play revolves around her relationships with three men. She is the daughter
of Polonius, the sister of Laertes, and up until the beginning of the play’s events, she has also
been romantically involved with Hamlet. Ophelia’s relationships with these men restrict her
agency and eventually lead to her death. From her very first scene, men tell Ophelia what to do.
In Act One, scene three, where we first meet her, Laertes and Polonius admonish Ophelia not to
trust Hamlet’s expressions of love. Despite the force of their warnings, Laertes and Polonius both
trust Ophelia to make her own decisions. However, as the question of Hamlet’s state of mind
increasingly dire, Polonius tightens the reins on his daughter. At the top of Act Three Polonius
forces Ophelia to return Hamlet’s letters and renounce his affections. Ophelia obeys, but her
action sends Hamlet into a fit of misogynistic rage. Soon after, Hamlet mistakenly kills Polonius.
The combination of her former lover’s cruelty and her father’s death sends Ophelia into a fit of
grief. In Act Four she spirals into madness and dies under ambiguous circumstances. Ophelia’s
tragedy lies in the way she loses her innocence through no fault of her own.

Laertes
Polonius’s son and Ophelia’s brother, a young man who spends much of the play in France.
Passionate and quick to action, Laertes is clearly a foil for the reflective Hamlet.
Fortinbras
The young Prince of Norway, whose father the king (also named Fortinbras) was killed by
Hamlet’s father (also named Hamlet). Now Fortinbras wishes to attack Denmark to avenge his
father’s honor, making him another foil for Prince Hamlet.
The Ghost
The specter of Hamlet’s recently deceased father. The ghost, who claims to have been murdered
by Claudius, calls upon Hamlet to avenge him. However, it is not entirely certain whether the
ghost is what it appears to be, or whether it is something else. Hamlet speculates that the ghost
might be a devil sent to deceive him and tempt him into murder, and the question of what the
ghost is or where it comes from is never definitively resolved.
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
Two slightly bumbling courtiers, former friends of Hamlet from Wittenberg, who are summoned
by Claudius and Gertrude to discover the cause of Hamlet’s strange behavior.
Osric
The foolish courtier who summons Hamlet to his duel with Laertes.
Voltimand and Cornelius
Courtiers whom Claudius sends to Norway to persuade the king to prevent Fortinbras from
attacking.
Marcellus and Bernardo
The officers who first see the ghost walking the ramparts of Elsinore and who summon Horatio
to witness it. Marcellus is present when Hamlet first encounters the ghost.
Francisco
A soldier and guardsman at Elsinore.
Reynaldo
Polonius’s servant, who is sent to France by Polonius to check up on and spy on Laertes.

Hamlet Summary
The ghost of the King of Denmark tells his son Hamlet to avenge his murder by killing the new
king, Hamlet's uncle. Hamlet feigns madness, contemplates life and death, and seeks revenge.
His uncle, fearing for his life, also devises plots to kill Hamlet. The play ends with a duel, during
which the King, Queen, Hamlet's opponent and Hamlet himself are all killed. 

Act I
Late at night, guards on the battlements of Denmark's Elsinore castle are met by Horatio, Prince
Hamlet's friend from school. The guards describe a ghost they have seen that resembles Hamlet's
father, the recently-deceased king. At that moment, the Ghost reappears, and the guards and
Horatio decide to tell Hamlet.
Claudius, Hamlet's uncle, married Hamlet's recently-widowed mother, becoming the new King
of Denmark. Hamlet continues to mourn for his father's death and laments his mother's lack of
loyalty. When Hamlet hears of the Ghost from Horatio, he wants to see it for himself. 
Elsewhere, the royal attendant Polonius says farewell to his son Laertes, who is departing for
France. Laertes warns his sister, Ophelia, away from Hamlet and thinking too much of his
attentions towards her. 
This above all: to thine own self be true.
— HAMLET, ACT 1 SCENE 3
The Ghost appears to Hamlet, claiming indeed to be the ghost of his father. He tells Hamlet
about how Claudius, the current King and Hamlet's uncle, murdered him, and Hamlet swears
vengeance for his father. Hamlet decides to feign madness while he tests the truth of the Ghost's
allegations (always a good idea in such situations). 
Act II
According to his plan, Hamlet begins to act strangely. He rejects Ophelia, while Claudius and
Polonius, the royal attendant, spy on him. They had hoped to find the reason for Hamlet's sudden
change in behaviour but could not. Claudius summons Guildenstern and Rosencrantz, old friends
of Hamlet to find out what's got into him. Their arrival coincides with a group of travelling
actors that Hamlet happens to know well. Hamlet writes a play which includes scenes that mimic
the murder of Hamlet's father. During rehearsal, Hamlet and the actors plot to present Hamlet's
play before the King and Queen.  
Act III
At the performance, Hamlet watches Claudius closely to see how he reacts. The play provokes
Claudius, and he interrupts the action by storming out. He immediately resolves to send Hamlet
away. Hamlet is summoned by his distressed mother, Gertrude, and on the way, he happens upon
Claudius kneeling and attempting to pray. Hamlet reasons that to kill the King now would only
send his soul to heaven rather than hell. Hamlet decides to spare his life for the time being.  
Polonius hides in Gertrude's room to protect her from her unpredicatable son. When Hamlet
arrives to scold his mother, he hears Polonius moving behind the arras (a kind of tapestry). He
stabs the tapestry and, in so doing, kills Polonius. The ghost of Hamlet's father reappears and
warns his son not to delay revenge or upset his mother. 
What a piece of work is man!
— HAMLET, ACT 2 SCENE 2
Act IV
Hamlet is sent to England, supposedly as an ambassador, just as King Fortinbras of Norway
crosses Denmark with an army to attack Poland. During his journey, Hamlet discovers Claudius
has a plan to have him killed once he arrives. He returns to Denmark alone, sending his
companions Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to their deaths in his place. 
Rejected by Hamlet, Ophelia is now desolate at the loss of her father. She goes mad and
drowns. 
What dreams may come when we have shuffled off this mortal coil, must give us pause.
— HAMLET, ACT 3 SCENE 1
Act V
On the way back to Denmark, Hamlet meets Horatio in the graveyard (along with a gravedigger),
where they talk of the chances of life and death. Ophelia's funeral procession arrives at the very
same graveyard (what luck!). Hamlet confronts Laertes, Ophelia's brother, who has taken his
father's place at the court. 
A duel is arranged between Hamlet and Laertes. During the match, Claudius conspires with
Laertes to kill Hamlet. They plan that Hamlet will die either on a poisoned rapier or with
poisoned wine. The plans go awry when Gertrude unwittingly drinks from the poisoned cup and
dies. Then both Laertes and Hamlet are wounded by the poisoned blade, and Laertes dies. 
Hamlet, in his death throes, kills Claudius. Hamlet dies, leaving only his friend Horatio to
explain the truth to the new king, Fortinbras, as he returns in victory from the Polish wars.
Hamlet Plot Diagram

Introduction
1King Hamlet dies; Claudius takes crown and marries Gertrude.
Rising Action
2Hamlet is visited by his father's ghost.
3Laertes and Polonius warn Ophelia to stay away from Hamlet.
4The Mousetrap is staged.
Climax
5Hamlet kills Polonius and is banished to England.
Falling Action
6Claudius and Laertes conspire to kill Hamlet; Ophelia dies.
Resolution
7Gertrude, Claudius, Laertes, and Hamlet die.

Hamlet's Use of Language

Hamlet is intimidating, head-strong, and stubborn.  This is made obvious through his
choice of words and uses of metaphors, irony and puns throughout Shakespeare’s Hamlet.  The
tongue sparring is found throughout the play, but mostly when Hamlet is speaking to the King
(Claudius, his uncle), Polonius, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.   Less frequently, he turns his
words against others like his mother and Ophelia.  He enjoys turning deserving people’s own
words against them and making them squirm with the very things he says.   
            The first time we hear Hamlet he uses verbal irony against the King, Claudius.  When
Claudius calls him cousin—meaning relative, Claudius is Hamlet’s late father’s brother—and
son—for Claudius is now married to Hamlet’s mother—Hamlet retorts, “A little more than kin, a
little less than kind.”  He says he is “too much in the sun,” not really referring to the celestial body
but to the homophone “son.”  Claudius is abusing the term “son” in Hamlet’s eyes, for Claudius
has quickly married his widowed mother and Hamlet is not yet done mourning his birth father’s
death.
            Hamlet’s abusive language does not go unnoticed.  Even the dim-witted Polonius seems to
notice: “How pregnant sometimes his replies are!” he says, “A happiness that often that madness
hits on, which reason and sanity could not so prosperously be delivered of.”  Once Hamlet gets
sparring he doesn’t slow down.  This is what he enjoys doing, it excites him, and he’s good at it.
            Often Hamlet speaks with double meanings, irony or puns, but not always.  Hamlet doesn’t
waste his good wit on the dull Polonius, he just says things to mess with him.  When Polonius says
the play is too long, Hamlet says his beard is too long.  Hamlet messes with Polonius and Polonius
takes it.  An example of this is when Hamlet is looking up the clouds he says he sees one that looks
like a camel.  Polonius agrees it looks like a camel.  Then Hamlet changes his mind and says it
looks like a weasel and then a whale.  Each time Polonius agrees.   It doesn’t take a genius to realize
that camels, weasels and whales look nothing alike, but Polonius, eager to please Hamlet, who is
just proving his wit, takes it all in stride, oblivious to the fact that he is Hamlet’s joke.
            Most of the time, Hamlet makes his mean remarks to those the reader would usually deem
deserving: Claudius, Polonius, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.  Occasionally, however, Hamlet
will turn around Ophelia’s words or those of his own mother.  One example is when Hamlet and
Gertrude are in her chambers talking Gertrude says, “Hamlet, thou hast thy father much offended.” 
She means he has offended Claudius with his bad attitude and harsh words.  Hamlet says almost
the same exact words back to her, but coming from Hamlet they have a very different meaning. 
“Mother, you have my father much offended.”  They are not talking about the same man.  Hamlet
is speaking of his late father, brother of Gertrude’s current husband, and he is accusing her.  Hamlet
genuinely loves his mother, but not even she can escape his harsh tongue.
            Hamlet’s use of metaphor is almost as impressive as his use of irony.  He can use metaphors,
too, to insult his victims.  He calls Rosencrantz a sponge because he “soaks up the king’s
countenance, his rewards, his authorities. . . . When he needs what [Rosencrantz] has gleaned, it is
but squeezing [him], and [the sponge] shall be dry again.”  Rosencrantz likely has no idea what
Hamlet is talking about, but with a little investigation the meaning becomes clearer to the readers. 
To Hamlet, Rosencrantz is sucking up the king’s attentions and when the king no longer requires
his assistance, he will take those attentions back.  All this meaning can be found in Hamlet’s simple
metaphoric image of a wet sponge being wrung out after use.
            Hamlet sometimes carries his metaphors and puns a little too far.  When the setting is gone
dark and all other characters are distraught, Hamlet keeps a cool head and keeps the irony flowing
from his mouth.  He has just killed Polonius and stashed the body, which is serious business indeed,
but when asked where the body is hidden, Hamlet replies with two words only: “At supper.” 
Claudius falls right into Hamlets verbal trap and asks, “At supper where?”  Hamlet then launches
into one of his most vivid speeches and carries his pun through:
            “Not where he eats, but where he is eaten.  A certain convocation of politic worms are e’en
at him.  Your worm is your only emperor for diet.  We fat all creatures else to fat us, and we fat
ourselves for maggots.  Your fat king and your lean beggar is but variable service—two dishes but
to one table. . . . A man may fish with the worm that hath eat of a king and eat of the fish that fed
of that worm. . . . [And this is] how a king may go a progress through the guts of a beggar.”
            Basically, this is one of the biggest insults anyone could ever give a king, and Hamlet says
it all so matter-of-fact like.  Hamlet has just told his father in law that worms are above him on the
food chain, for when Claudius is dead the worms will eat him.  And a king and a beggar are the
same meal to a maggot.  This is very insulting, as a king would never want to be thought of as
being anything near a beggar.  And then Hamlet says that a beggar could be higher than a king on
the chain if he eats the fish that ate the worm that ate the king.  Hamlet knows exactly what he is
doing.
Hamlet is brilliant at come-backs and insults.  He always abuses and often accuses through
his use of irony, metaphors, and puns.  He uses his language to drive his point hard into the ears of
his victims, to make them squirm under his glance.  Hamlet’s language is what makes him who he
is.  His language is what intimidates.

Symbolism in Hamlet
Symbol #1
Ghost
The appearance of the ghost of Old Hamlet in the very first scene of the play symbolizes tough
times are coming ahead. It signifies the presence of supernatural powers like the three witches of
Macbeth. However, it represents the difficult times ahead for Hamlet as well as Claudius,
making the revelation that Claudius is the murderer of Old Hamlet. Ghost also symbolizes the
foreshadow of the upcoming the turmoil in Denmark as Hamlet prepares to take revenge against
Claudius. It shows that the ghost is not a good but a bad omen for the state of Denmark as well as
its ruler, Claudius.
Symbol #2
Flowers
Flowers appear in Hamlet when Ophelia loses her mind. She starts distributing flowers to
everybody she meets. She presents each flower, describing what it stands for and then moves to
the next. The flowers show various features as she states that rosemary is for remembrance,
pansy for thoughts and so on. Ophelia expresses her pain of the betrayal she felt by offering the
flowers and describing what they symbolize. Her father’s murder and Hamlet’s taunt takes its
toll on her. That is why the flowers symbolize her inner turmoil and also her faithfulness.
Symbol #3
Skull
The skull in Hamlet is of Yorick, the court’s jester. This skull is a symbol of death, decay and
uselessness of a person after his death. It is a physical remnant of the dead person that is an omen
of what he may have to face in the life hereafter. The skull makes Hamlet think about his own
destiny and his own life after his death. It implies how man finally returns to dust. The skull
reminds Hamlet that even “Imperious Caesar” is subject to death and decay. Death does not
leave anybody intact or alive.
Symbol #4
Weather
Weather is another important symbol in Hamlet. It shows that the bad weather is the sign of
worse situation coming ahead and good weather points to good times. However, in the first
scene, Shakespeare has shown that the weather is frigid and foggy in which the ghost of Old
Hamlet appears. This confusing and ambivalent weather is signifying the same situation coming
ahead. Hamlet is confused like the situation that is hazy and unclear. Therefore, the good or bad
weather is the sign of good or bad times in the play.
Symbol #5
Graveyard
Although death is in the mind of Hamlet since the play starts, it becomes an important subject
when he enters the graveyard. The gravedigger plays with words when responding to Hamlet’s
questions. He gives him the philosophy of life that all sort of skulls whether they are of the kings
or beggars are lying there in the graveyard. He responds that all the dead persons are equal when
they are stripped of their political statuses. Graveyard signifies a place where all are equal and
the people working in the graveyards become insensitive to the positions and political status of
the dead.
Symbol #6
The Mousetrap
The Mousetrap is the play titled as The Murder of Gonzago, which has been staged in Hamlet.
Hamlet has given directions to the players and written parts of the speech delivered by the queen.
The title ‘The Mousetrap’ shows that the purpose of Hamlet to insert his own ideas in the play to
force his mother to confess her crime, recall her promise to her late husband or at least show
signs of guilt. It is also interesting that almost all the characters in this short play are based on the
real characters who are watching them on the stage. Therefore, the story is symbolical for the
trap laid by Hamlet to catch the real culprit.
Symbol #7
Fencing Swords
Fencing swords in Hamlet have been used in the final scene during the duel between Laertes and
Hamlet. The fencing swords point to the approach of the end of Hamlet’s quest and resultant
deaths. The fencing sword is a sign of a person having courage, bravery and the will to exact
revenge. As both the characters engaged in fencing swords have some cause, and also have their
honors at stake, they come to fight a duel in which both are killed. Therefore, fencing swords
symbolize violence and deaths in the play.
Symbol #8
Gravedigger
Although there are two gravediggers, one of them is not only a good player of words but also a
good philosopher. His responses to the questions posed by Hamlet show that he knows how
death makes all equal in the graveyard. He also knows that he has dug graves of everyone who
died. When digging Ophelia’s grave, they also point out to Hamlet that it doesn’t matter whether
somebody has committed suicide. Their presence signifies that deaths make all people equal in
spite of their positions.
Symbol #9
Hamlet’s costume changes
Throughout the play, Hamlet wears dark blue cloak to express his mourning for his dead father.
As the days pass, his mother insists him to stop mourning. However, Hamlet continues to wear
black clothes that keep him apart. It symbolizes that Hamlet doesn’t care about outward
appearance and wanted to remember his father until he seeks revenge. Hamlet’s black costume
shows his anguish.
Symbol #10
Poison
Poison is a recurring symbol in the play that appears in various scenes specifically when the
ghost appears. The ghost explains to the young Hamlet the henbane is poured into the ears of Old
Hamlet to kill him. This poison killed him instantly, blocking his blood. Therefore, poisoning a
person here in Hamlet symbolizes betrayal, deception, and treachery. This symbol of poison is
significant and exposes Claudius evil character.

THEMES
Madness
Obfuscating insanity —uh, faking madness to throw people off—is one of the oldest tricks in
the book. In Hamlet, Shakespeare takes it up a notch: does Hamlet truly go "mad," or is the
cuckoo-talk, like the play itself, all an act? And if madness is a form of theatricality (maybe with
some "method" in it, as Polonius says) —does that mean that all actors are crazy?
While Hamlet's "mad" behavior starts out as an "antic disposition," his mental state deteriorates
over the course of the play so that he ends up legitimately insane.
It's impossible to know whether or not Hamlet is actually "mad," because our uncertainty about
Hamlet's mental state is supposed to mirror the play's general ambiguity and doubt.
Revenge

Ghosts, perverse family drama, and a vow of revenge: Hamlet is all geared up to be a traditional
bloody revenge play… and then it grinds abruptly to a halt. The play isn't about Hamlet's
ultimately successful vengeance for his father's murder at all—that's taken care of in about two
seconds during Act 5. Instead, most of the play is concerned with Hamlet's inner struggle to take
action. Our point? The play is a lot more interested in calling into question the validity and
usefulness of revenge than in satisfying the audience's bloodlust—although, sure, it does that too.
Shakespeare had a theater to fill, after all.

Hamlet deals with three revenge plots, all of which involve a son seeking vengeance for the
death of a father. In the end, though, the resolution of each revenge plot highlights the
inadequacy of revenge.
Hamlet's delay is what separates the play from other revenge tragedies; it's also what marks the
play as modern.

Mortality
Hamlet may talk—and talk, and talk—about suicide, but what he's really concerned with is
mortality, and the fact that the living world is made of death and decay. (Yeah, we know that life
looks pretty grim when you put it that way. Sorry.). From Hamlet's initial confrontation with a
dead man's ghost to the final bloodbath, the play is trying to come to grips with just this problem:
if we all die eventually, then does it really matter who kills us?

The fact that Hamlet is still talking about suicide even after he has sworn to avenge his father
shows that the Prince's problems lie much deeper than simple grief over his father's murder.

Hamlet's anger against his mother is rooted in the fear that if someone's life can be so easily
forgotten after death, life itself has no meaning. His crisis is therefore an existential one, not one
of morality.

Religion
For a play about incest and murder, Hamlet registers many of the 16th century's religious
anxieties, like the effects of the Protestant Reformation on Christian ideas about mortality and
the afterlife. And it also seems to be in basic conflict with itself: how can a play about murder,
suicide, and revenge square with Christian notions of acceptance, Providence, and forgiveness?
Well, maybe they can't—and maybe that's why Hamlet drags his feet for so long.
Hamlet is a play that dramatizes the spiritual uncertainty and religious confusion of sixteenth
century Europe.

Shakespeare's play weaves together Christian attitudes toward murder with the classic tenets of
revenge tragedy, which can't always be reconciled; this makes the play all the more dramatic and
complex.

Art and Culture

You know how all of Stephen King's books are about writers? Or how an unlikely number of
movies have writer characters? Sometimes people take the advice to write what you know pretty
literally—like Shakespeare, who filled Hamlet with self-conscious references to the workings of
the theater. But it's not just for lack of other material. Hamlet is self-reflexive: it constantly
draws attention to the fact that it's a play. By taking on various theatrical roles, like "antic" or
"revenge hero," Hamlet is pushing us to ask just how much of our identity is based on
performance. Have you ever used a line from a movie as a Facebook status? Or quoted a song
when a conversation gets a little too real? Then you know what we're talking about.
In Hamlet, theater is exactly what Hamlet says it is: a faithful reflection (a "mirror") of what's
going on in the world.
Hamlet defines theater as an art designed to "hold, as 'twere, the mirror up to Nature" (3.2.21-
22). But in Hamlet, Shakespeare presents theater as something that shapes reality, rather than
merely reflecting it.
Lies and Deceit
For someone who hates deception, Hamlet sure finds himself coming up with a lot of
lies. Hamlet depicts a seamy political world, where deception is a necessary part of life
and political "spin" rules the day. In other words, it's a lot like our world—and like pretty much
every political court or congress in history. No wonder directors seem to think it's infinitely
adaptable: lies and deceit aren't limited to one time or place.
Hamlet is miserable not just because of his father's death, but because he craves honesty while
everyone else around him is engaged in deception and manipulation.
Hamlet's form of justice involves punishing every character that practices deception, often by his
own form of treachery
Sex
Hamlet is a perv. Really. Oh, not the kind of perv who goes around doing gross stuff—as far as
we can tell, Hamlet isn't actually interested in girls at all—but the kind who just can't stop
thinking about other people's sex lives. Including (especially) his mom's. The young prince is
disgusted by his aging mother's sexual appetite, which eventually becomes the way he feels
about all women in general. According to Hamlet, female sexuality makes the entire world seem
like an "unweeded garden: in other words, it's associated with deception, sin, and a fallen world.
No wonder he can't lay off the dirty jokes.
Hamlet's suicidal disgust with the world has more to do with his mother's sexual betrayal of his
father than Claudius's murder of his father.
Hamlet's view that all women are "breeders of sinners" not only reveals a sexist attitude but also
suggest that Hamlet (a "sinner") finds himself to be just as revolting as the corrupt world around
him.
Gender
"Frailty, thy name is woman" (1.2.6)—but Hamlet's men are pillars of stability and constancy,
right? Right?? Well, maybe not. But Hamlet's attitude toward women is definitely sexist, and it
stems from his disgust at his mother's sexuality and seeming unfaithfulness to his dead father.
But the play doesn't seem to agree. Hamlet's mother's final guilt is left ambiguous, and we just
end up feeling really bad about Ophelia. Hamlet's attitude toward women reveals more about him
(and maybe men in general) than it does about women's true nature.
Hamlet is critical of women because he believes that their sexual "appetites" constantly lead
them to betray men.
The play doesn't share Hamlet's sexist attitude. In fact, it paints a sympathetic picture of Ophelia
and seems to blame the men for her tragic death.

Family
Blood is thicker than water, which is easy to see when it's spilled all over the floor at the end of
the play. Hamlet dwells on issues of incest and revenge, both of which just might be taking the
familial bond a little too far. You shouldn't have sex with your family—pretty much everyone
can get behind that—but maybe, Hamlet says, you shouldn't be murdering for them, either. So,
what's left? Normal families? Nah. This is Shakespearean tragedy; keep looking.
In Hamlet, parents can't be trusted to look out for their children, especially when matters of
politics are involved.

Hamlet is sad that his dad's been murdered, but he's more sad about his mom's remarriage to
Claudius.
revenge
There are two young men bent on avenging their father’s death in this play. Hamlet and Laertes
are both on the same mission, and while Hamlet is pondering his approach to the problem
Laertes is hot on his heels, determined to kill him as Hamlet has killed his father, Polonius. This
is, therefore, a double revenge story. Shakespeare examines the practice of revenge by having
two entirely different approaches to it – the hot-headed abandon of Laertes and the philosophical,
cautious approach by Hamlet. The two strands run parallel – invoking comparisons, each one
throwing light on the other – until the young men’s duel and both their deaths. The revenge
theme feeds into the religious element of the play as Hamlet is conflicted by his Christian
aversion to killing someone and his duty to avenge his father’s death, whereas it is not a
consideration for Laertes, whose duty is clear to him, and he acts on it immediately.

corruption
Corruption is a major concern in this play. The text is saturated with images of corruption, in
several forms – decay, death, poison. From the very first moments of the play the images start
and set the atmosphere of corruption which is going to grow as Shakespeare explores this theme.
The tone is set when Marcellus says, ‘Something is rotten in the state of Denmark,’ after seeing
the ghost of Hamlet’s father. What Shakespeare is doing here, and in using the image structure of
corruption, is addressing the broadly held view that a nation’s health is connected to the
legitimacy of its king. Here we have the ghost of a murdered king, and his murderer – a
decidedly illegitimate king – is sitting on his throne. All through the play, Hamlet is preoccupied
with rot and corruption – both of the body and the soul, reflecting the way in which society is
destroyed by the corruption of its inner institutions – in this case, the court, which is the
government.

Decay, rot and mould are always in Hamlet’s mind, and his language is full of those images – ‘an
unweeded garden that grows to seed – things rank and gross possess it,’ and countless images of
death and disease. He hides Polonius’ body in a place where it will decay rapidly and stink out
the castle. It’s an image of the corruption in secret places that is going to contaminate the whole
country.

religion
Religion has an impact on the actions of the characters in this play. Hamlet’s ‘to be or not to be’
soliloquy outlines his religious thinking on the subject of suicide. He declines to kill Claudius
while he is praying for fear of sending him to heaven when he should be going to hell. Hamlet
believes, too, that ‘there is a destiny that shapes our ends.’

One of the most important things of all in this play is the Christian idea of making a sacrifice to
achieve healing. Hamlet is Christ-like in his handling of the crisis. The court is rotten with
corruption and the people in it are almost all involved in plotting and scheming against others.
Hamlet’s way of dealing with it is to wait and watch as all the perpetrators fall into their own
traps –‘hauled by their own petards,’ as he puts it. All he has to do is be ready – like Christ. ‘The
readiness is all,’ he says. And then, all around him, the corruption collapses in on itself and the
court is purified. Like Christ, though, he has to be sacrificed to achieve that, and he is, leaving a
scene of renewal and hope.

politics
Hamlet is a political drama. Hamlet’s uncle has murdered his father, the king. He has
subsequently done Hamlet out of his right of succession and become king. Hamlet’s mother has
married the king while the rest of the palace is engaged in palatial intrigues, leading to wider
conspiracies and murders. The king, Claudius, determined to safeguard his position in the face of
the threat Hamlet presents, plots in several ways to kill Hamlet. Polonius plots against Hamlet to
ingratiate himself with Claudius. Characters, including Hamlet’s mother, Gertrude, spy on each
other. This is all to do with power and the quest to achieve and hold it.

appearance and reality

This is a major theme in every one of Shakespeare’s plays. The text of Hamlet is saturated with
references to the gap that exists between how things seem to be and how they really are. Very
little in this play is really as it seems. That is bound to be so in a play in which there are so many
murderous plots and schemes by those who, on the surface, strive to appear innocent, like
Claudius, who, behind his charismatic smile, is a damned villain. He is, as Hamlet puts it, a
‘smiling villain.’ Although Ophelia loves Hamlet she pretends to spurn his affections. Hamlet
pretends to be mad so that he can explore the ghost’s assertion that Claudius killed him. All the
characters, in one way or another, are hiding their true intentions.

What makes this theme particularly interesting and different in this play is that as the play
develops the gap between appearance and reality narrows by the characters becoming more like
the masks they are using than any reality that may lie behind that so the identities they have
assumed eventually become their realities.

women
For much of the play, Hamlet is in a state of agitation. It is when he is talking to either of the two
female characters that he is most agitated – so much so that he is driven to violence against them.
He cares about both but does not trust either. He feels his mother, Gertrude, has let him down by
her ‘o’er hasty marriage’ to Claudius. To him, it means that she didn’t really love his father. In
the case of Ophelia, he is suspicious that she is part of the palace plot against him.
Both women die in this play. Ophelia is driven mad by the treatment she receives from the three
men – Claudius, Polonius and Hamlet – and takes her own life. Gertrude’s death is more
complex because it raises the question: how far is she responsible for the corruption that Hamlet
has to deal with?

Whilst the play features the meeting and falling in love of the two main protagonists, to say that
love is a theme of Romeo and Juliet is an oversimplification. Rather, Shakespeare structures
Romeo and Juliet around several contrasting ideas, with a number of themes expressed as
opposites. To say that the tension between love and hate is a major theme in Romeo and Juliet
gets us closer to what the play is about. These – and other – opposing ideas reverberate with each
other and are intertwined through the text.

Performance
Hamlet includes many references to performance of all kinds – both theatrical performance and
the way people perform in daily life. In his first appearance, Hamlet draws a distinction between
outward behavior— “actions that a man might play”— and real feelings: “that within which
passeth show” (I.ii.). However, the more time we spend with Hamlet, the harder it becomes to
tell what he is really feeling and what he is performing. He announces in Act One, scene five that
he is going to pretend to be mad (“put an antic disposition on”.) In Act Two, scene one, Ophelia
describes Hamlet’s mad behavior as a comical performance. However, when Hamlet tells
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern that “I have lost all my mirth,” he seems genuinely depressed.
Generations of readers have argued about whether Hamlet is really mad or just performing
madness. It’s impossible to know for sure – by the end of the play, even Hamlet himself doesn’t
seem to know the difference between performance and reality. Hamlet further explores the idea
of performance by regularly reminding the audience that we are watching a play. When Polonius
says that at university he “did enact Julius Caesar” (III.ii), contemporary audiences would have
thought of Shakespeare’s own Julius Caesar, which was written around the same time
as Hamlet. The actor who played Polonius may have played Julius Caesar as well. The device of
the play within the play gives Hamlet further opportunities to comment on the nature of theater.
By constantly reminding the audience that what we’re watching is a performance, Hamlet invites
us to think about the fact that something fake can feel real, and vice versa. Hamlet himself points
out that acting is powerful because it’s indistinguishable from reality: “The purpose of playing
[…] is to hold as ’twere the mirror up to Nature” (III.ii.). That’s why he believes that the Players
can “catch the conscience of the King” (II.ii.). By repeatedly showing us that performance can
feel real, Hamlet makes us question what “reality” actually is.
Doubt
In Hamlet, the main character’s doubt creates a world where very little is known for sure. Hamlet
thinks, but isn’t entirely sure, that his uncle killed his father. He believes he sees his father’s
Ghost, but he isn’t sure he should believe in the Ghost or listen to what the Ghost tells him: “I’ll
have grounds / More relative than this.” In his “to be or not to be” soliloquy, Hamlet suspects he
should probably just kill himself, but doubt about what lies beyond the grave prevents him from
acting. Hamlet is so wracked with doubt, he even works to infect other characters with his lack
of certainty, as when he tells Ophelia “you should not have believed me” when he told her he
loved her. As a result, the audience doubts Hamlet’s reliability as a protagonist. We are left with
many doubts about the action – whether Gertrude was having an affair with Claudius before he
killed Hamlet’s father; whether Hamlet is sane or mad; what Hamlet’s true feelings are for
Ophelia.
Hamlet Useful quotations

Quotation Who said it to whom Act / Scene What it tells the audience
King Hamlet was brave (left a great deal for his son
‘… valiant Hamlet’ Horatio about King Hamlet 1.1
to live up to). He was well respected by his people.
Horatio recalls omens that Sets up the idea that disasters lie ahead following
‘… the sheeted dead’ 1.1
preceded Caesar’s death the sight of the Ghost.
‘… the morn, in russet mantle clad’ Horatio as the sun rises 1.1 Beautiful personification / imagery of the sunrise.
‘…our dear brother’s death Irony of ‘dear’ – as he’s his brother’s killer.
Claudius to court 1.1
The memory be green…’ Acknowledges the death was recent.
Uses puns to show that he’s unhappy with Claudius
being so closely related now he’s wed Gertrude.
‘A little more than kin, and less than kind’ Hamlet aside about Claudius 1.1
First words from Hamlet – tells audience he’s
witty, clever and not a fan of Claudius!
A metaphor to show how miserable Hamlet is as he
‘… my inky cloak’ Hamlet about his sadness 1.1
grieves for his father.
Claudius suggests that Hamlet’s grieving is
‘… ’tis unmanly grief’ Claudius to Hamlet 1.1 excessive. Shows Claudius’ evil nature as it is he
who has caused Hamlet’s grief.
Considers suicide – won’t because it’s against
‘O, that this too too solid flesh would melt’ Hamlet’s first soliloquy 1.2 God’s law. Blank verse shows status and soliloquy
reveals honest emotions.
Describes father as sun God and Claudius as a satyr
‘Hyperion to a satyr’ ditto 1.2
(lecherous men / goat creatures).
Condemns all women for being weak – based on
‘… frailty, thy name is woman’ ditto 1.2 his mother’s too speedy marriage – first evidence of
misogynous tendencies?
Hamlet’s fury at how quickly his mother re-
‘O, most wicked speed’ ditto 1.2
married.
‘… incestuous sheets’ ditto 1.2 Sees the marriage as immoral – like incest.
Genuine grief – we feel sympathy for Hamlet –
‘But break, my heart, for I must hold my ditto 1.2
wants to try and contain his disapproval.
tongue’
He believes that his father’s ghost is a sign that his
‘… All is not well. / I doubt some foul play’ Hamlet on own 1.2
death was suspicious.

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Hamlet Useful quotations

About Hamlet’s affections – suggests they are a

‘Forward, not permanent, sweet, not lasting’ Laertes to Ophelia 1.3
passing fancy. Use of doubling here.
Wise words from a ‘fool’. Irony? Are any of the
‘… to thine own self be true’ Polonius to Laertes 1.3
characters true to themselves?
Warning her that Hamlet’s assertions of love are
‘Do not believe his vows’ Polonius to Ophelia 1.3
false - both Laertes & Polonius have said this.
An ominous warning after Hamlet follows the
‘Something is rotten in the state of Denmark’ Marcellus 1.4
Ghost – creates a sense of corruption.
‘Revenge his foul and most unnatural
The Ghost to Hamlet 1.5 The request which spurs the central plot.
murder’
‘… that incestuous, that adulterate beast’ Ghost about Claudius 1.5 Language which Hamlet will later echo.
‘… I have been so affrighted’ Ophelia to Polonius 2.1 Fearful of Hamlet’s strange behaviour.
Mistakenly takes Hamlet’s odd behaviour as being
‘This is the very ecstasy of love’ Polonius to Ophelia 2.1
due to an infatuation with Ophelia.
‘I did repel his letters’ Ophelia to Polonius 2.1 Shows she’s obedient to her father.
‘My too much changed son’ Ophelia to R & G 2.2 Recognises how Hamlet is behaving.
Shows how all are noticing Hamlet’s peculiar
‘Hamlet’s lunacy’ Polonius to Claudius 2.2
conduct.
Irony! Polonius always takes ages to say what
‘… brevity is the soul of wit’ Polonius to Claudius 2.2
needs to be said!
Playing with words but is this evidence that Hamlet
‘… never doubt I love’ Hamlet in letter to Ophelia 2.2
really did love her?
‘... the madness wherein now he raves’ Polonius to C & G 2.2 Convinced that Hamlet is mad.
‘Though this be madness, yet there is method He rightly guesses that Hamlet’s seeming madness
Polonius to Hamlet 2.2
in’t’ is carefully crafted for purpose.
‘Denmark’s a prison’ Hamlet to R & G 2.2 Shows how Hamlet feels trapped.
Self-reproach – Hamlet’s not convinced that he can
‘a coward… pigeon-livered’ Hamlet soliloquy about himself 2.2
carry out revenge.
‘Remorseless, treacherous, lecherous,
Hamlet soliloquy 2.2 His thoughts about Claudius.
kindless villain!’
‘… The play’s the thing/ Wherein I’ll catch Shows courage as he plots the first stage of his
Hamlet soliloquy 2.2
the conscience of the king.’ revenge through the play within the play.
‘To be, or not to be: that is the question:’ Hamlet soliloquy 3.1 Again, pondering thoughts of suicide.
‘The fair Ophelia!’ Hamlet to Ophelia 3.1 Kind words before he turns against her.
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Hamlet Useful quotations

Repeated phrase suggesting she’s a whore –

‘Get thee to a nunnery:’ Hamlet to Ophelia 3.1
nunnery also meant a brothel.
Misogynistic again? Suggesting all women are two
‘God hath given you one face and you make
Hamlet to Ophelia 3.1 faced. He’s right though – Ophelia had spied on
yourselves another.’
him for Claudius & Polonius.
‘… cousin Hamlet,’ Claudius to Hamlet 3.2 Suggests a family affection – though false.
‘… the chameleon’s dish’ Hamlet in reply 3.2 Hints that Claudius is not what he seems.
During the play, Hamlet uses crude and offensive
‘Do you think I meant country matters?’ Hamlet to Ophelia 3.2 language to Ophelia – suggesting he’s thinking of
sex.
‘… look you how cheerfully my mother Shows anger at the happiness of his widowed
Hamlet to Ophelia 3.2
looks, and my father died within two hours’ mother.
Gertrude seems unaware of the reason for Hamlet’s
‘The lady doth protest too much methinks’ Gertrude to Hamlet 3.2
questioning during the play.
He makes it clear that the play king is poisoned,
‘A poisons him i’th’garden for’s estate’ Hamlet to court 3.2
hoping to prick Claudius’ conscience.
He makes an excuse to leave the hall – a sign of
‘Give me some light: away!’ Claudius to Lords 3.2
guilt in Hamlet’s eyes.
Hamlet suggests that his usual flair with words is
‘… my wit’s diseased’ Hamlet to Rosencrantz 3.2
failing him.
He tells the audience how he intends to speak to his
‘I will speak daggers to her but use none’ Hamlet soliloquy 3.2
mother.
Claudius’ real feelings towards Hamlet are made
‘I like him not’ Claudius to Guildenstern 3.3
clear.
‘Oh, my offence is rank’ Claudius soliloquy 3.3 Claudius’ confession.
Hoping that by prayer, his sins are forgiven –
‘All may be well’ Claudius soliloquy 3.3 dramatic irony – the audience know of Hamlet’s
intentions.
‘My words fly up, my thoughts remain Telling the audience that he doesn’t intend his
Claudius soliloquy 3.3
below’ confession to be known beyond God.
Shows her lack of understanding by suggesting that
‘Hamlet, thou hast thy father much offended’ Gertrude to Hamlet 3.4
Hamlet should care about Claudius.

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Hamlet Useful quotations

Uses her phrasing to play on the words – reminds

‘Mother, you have my father much offended’ Hamlet to Gertrude in reply 3.4 her that her hasty marriage is an offence to King
Hamlet.
‘A bloody deed. Almost as bad, good mother, A couplet in which he tells her what he knows
Hamlet to Gertrude 3.4
As kill a king and marry with his brother.’ about Claudius’ involvement in his father’s death.
Suggests that as Gertrude doesn’t show
‘O shame, where is thy blush?’ Hamlet to Gertrude 3.4
embarrassment, she’s party to the murder.
She can’t see the Ghost and suggests that it’s all in
‘This is the very coinage of your brain’ Gertrude to Hamlet 3.4 Hamlet’s imagination – casting doubt for the
audience.
A sane comment implying fondness for his mother
‘I must be cruel only to be kind’ Hamlet to Gertrude 3.4
and, perhaps, Ophelia?
‘… I essentially am not in madness/ But mad Echoing Polonius’ earlier observation that Hamlet’s
Hamlet to Gertrude 3.4
in craft.’ madness is a pretence for a purpose.
‘Mad as the sea and wind’ Gertrude to Claudius 4.1 A simile to describe Hamlet’s mental state.
‘… if indeed you find him not within this
A gross and cold joke from Hamlet about the
month, you shall nose him as you go up the Hamlet to Claudius 4.3
whereabouts of Polonius’ body.
stairs...’
‘The present death of Hamlet. Do it, Makes it clear to the audience that Hamlet is being
Claudius soliloquy 4.3
England’ sent to his death.
‘… The queen his mother/ Lives almost by An excuse as to why he hasn’t arrested Hamlet
Claudius to Laertes 4.7
his looks,’ after the murder of Polonius.
An ominous declaration, suggesting impending
‘… my revenge will come’ Laertes to Claudius 4.7
tragedy.
‘… are you like the painting of a sorrow, A simile of emotional blackmail – suggesting that if
Claudius to Laertes 4.7
A face without a heart?’ Laertes loved his father, he’d seek revenge.
An ironic statement – the finale of the play shows
‘Revenge should have no bounds’ Claudius to Laertes 4.7
‘no bounds’ but ends in tragedy.
‘Fell in the weeping brook…
Gertrude to Laertes 4.7 Telling of Ophelia’s fate.
Drowned, drowned’
Hamlet famously musing about physical and moral
‘Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio’ Hamlet to Horatio 5.1
corruption.

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Hamlet Useful quotations

‘I loved Ophelia; forty thousand brothers

Could not with all their quantity of love Hamlet to Claudius 5.1 A declaration of love by the graveside. Genuine?
Make up my sum.’
‘He that hath killed my king and whored my A lucid and blunt analysis being revealed to his
Hamlet to Horatio 5.2
mother’ friend – the madness seems to have gone?
A metaphor describing Claudius as a disease of
‘… this canker of our nature’ Hamlet to Horatio 5.2
humanity.
‘… I will gain nothing but my shame and the Dramatic irony in this prose. The audience know
Hamlet to Osric 5.2
odd hits.’ that Hamlet is bound to be killed.
A knowing prophesy contrasting with Hamlet’s
‘You will lose, my lord’ Horatio to Hamlet 5.2
belief that the fight will be a minor event.
‘Give me your pardon, sir, I’ve done you He confesses his guilt to Laertes and asks for
Hamlet to Laertes 5.2
wrong’ forgiveness – gaining sympathy from the audience.
‘… I here proclaim was madness’ Hamlet to Laertes 5.2 Trying to excuse his actions.
‘I do receive your offered love like love, A pretence at accepting Hamlet’s apology –
Laertes to Hamlet 5.2
And will not wrong it’ however, the audience know his intentions.
Ironically suggesting that he cares about Hamlet,
‘Our son shall win’ Claudius to Gertrude 5.2
although he has planned his murder.
A feeble attempt by a husband to prevent his wife
‘Gertrude, do not drink!’ Claudius to Gertrude 5.2
being poisoned.
A dying Laertes acknowledges that he was morally
‘I am justly killed with mine own treachery.’ Laertes to Osric 5.2
wrong.
Her dying words of affection and warning (?) are to
‘… O my dear Hamlet! … I am poisoned’ Gertrude to Hamlet 5.2 Hamlet – only now perhaps does she believe in
Claudius’ guilt.
‘… the King’s to blame’ Laertes to Court 5.2 Ensures that all know of his guilt.
‘… thou incestuous, murderous, damned
Hamlet to Claudius 5.2 The climax of Hamlet’s wrath against Claudius.
Dane / Drink off this potion.’
‘… the rest is silence.’ Hamlet to Horatio 5.2 Hamlet’s final words. Ambiguity.
‘… Good night sweet prince, A suitably poignant farewell from Hamlet’s closest
Horatio about Hamlet 5.2
And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest’ friend. Sure to elicit tears from an audience.
He insists that Hamlet is carried with due
‘Bear Hamlet like a soldier to the stage’ Fortinbras to Horatio 5.2
ceremony.

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