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Complete |
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Complete |
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Complete except for incidental characters |
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Partial |
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Author: |
William Shakespeare | |
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Bevington, David. Introduction. Hamlet. By William Shakespeare. Ed. David Bevington. New York: Bantam, 1988. Frye, Northrop. Northrop Frye on Shakespeare. Ed. Robert Sandler. Ontario: Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 1986. Lowers, James K. Shakespeare's Hamlet. Ed. G. Carey. Lincoln: Cliffs Notes, 1971. Neill, Michael. Essay. "Hamlet: A Modern Perspective." Hamlet. By William Shakespeare. Eds. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York: Washington Square Press, 1992. Shakespeare,
William. Hamlet., 1603 (First Quatro); 1604,1605 (Second Quatro);
1623 (Folio). Eds. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New
York: Washington Square Press, 1992. |
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Genre: |
Tragedy | |
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Setting: |
Elsinore Castle, Denmark | |
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Period: |
Pre-1500 | |
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Analysis by: |
Katharine E. Monahan Huntley |
INFORMATION ABOUT THIS ANALYSIS:
The text used for this analysis is The Folger Shakespeare Library edition of The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark.
Comments:
A tragedy in the classic sense. Prince Hamlet's failure to revenge his father's murder causes the destruction of the entire royal family. To clarify, even though Hamlet eventually runs his uncle through with a sword (or rapier), it is to avenge his poisoning and the poisoning of his mother--not to specifically avenge his father's murder.
Brief Synopsis:
Bantam Book Synopsis:
"One of the greatest plays of all time, the compelling tragedy of the tormented young prince of Denmark continues to capture the imaginations of modern audiences worldwide. Confronted with evidence that his uncle murdered his father, and with his mother's infidelity, Hamlet must find a means of reconciling his longing for oblivion with his duty as avenger. The ghost, Hamlet's feigned madness, Ophelia's death and burial, the play within a play, the "closet scene' in which Hamlet accuses his mother of complicity in murder, and breathtaking swordplay are just some of the elements that make Hamlet an enduring masterpiece of the theater."
Overall Character Mini-Synopsis:
The Ghost--Specter in the form of the late King Hamlet.
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark--Son of the dead King Hamlet and nephew to the present ruler of Denmark; he has returned to Elsinore because of his father's death.
Claudius, King of Denmark--Hamlet's uncle who succeeded his brother to the throne and married his brother's wife.
Gertrude--Queen of Denmark and mother of Hamlet; married to Claudius.
Polonius--Elderly Lord Chamberlain and thus chief counselor to Claudius.
Horatio--Commoner who is a fellow student and loyal friend of Hamlet.
Laertes--Polonius' son, a student at the University of Paris who, like Hamlet, has returned to Elsinore because of King Hamlet's death.
Ophelia--Obedient daughter of Polonius and sister of Laertes; the young court lady who Gertrude hoped would be Hamlet's bride.
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern--One-time schoolfellows and friends of Hamlet.
Fortinbras--Prince of Norway, a valiant young man, who, like Hamlet, has lost a father.
Osric--Affected courtier who plays a minor role as the King's messenger and an umpire of the fencing match between Hamlet and Laertes.
Voltimand & Cornelius--Danish courtiers who are sent as ambassadors to the Court of Norway.
Marcellus & Bernardo--Danish officers on guard at the castle of Elsinore.
Francisco--Danish soldier on guard duty at the castle of Elsinore.
Reynaldo--Young man whom Polonius instructs and sends to Paris to observe and report on Laertes' conduct.
The Gravediggers--Two clowns who dig Ophelia's grave, the first of whom is engaged by Hamlet in grimly humorous conversation. (Lowers 13-14)
Name: Hamlet
ID: Main Character
Gender: Male
Description:
"Leading Romantic critics of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries saw Hamlet as a young man, attractive and gifted in many ways, but incapable of positive action" (Lowers 9).
Role: Prince of Denmark
Story Activities: Son of the deceased King Hamlet and nephew to the present ruler of Denmark; he has returned to Elsinore because of his father's death. "Hamlet, for his part, is so obsessed with the secret murder that he overreacts to those around him, rejecting overtures of friendship and becoming embittered, callous, brutal, and even violent. His antisocial behavior gives the others good reason to fear him as a menace to the state" (Bevington xx-xxi).
Affiliations & Beliefs: . . . The Prince is revealed as the disillusioned idealist (306-19). Here is a young intellectual who once embraced the Renaissance view of an ordered and moral universe in which man, endowed with reason, was the noblest creature . . . . But Hamlet has learned that mankind has a terrifying capacity to reject reason, to descend to the bestial level: subjects may murder kings, brother may kill brother; wives and mothers may hasten to incestuous sheets; boyhood friends may permit themselves to be used as spies, rejecting the sacred principles of friendship. Philosophy offers poor consolation under such conditions. (Lowers 41)
Skills & Occupations: "Clearly, this young prince and university student has a gift for irony, one which presupposes intellectuality and involves a kind of grim humor" (Lowers 20). To seek revenge for his father's death, Hamlet must use the skills of an actor: "Forced to master his opponent's [Claudius] craft of smiling villainy, he becomes not merely an actor, but also a dramatist, ingeniously using a troupe of traveling players, with their 'murder in jest,' to unmask the King's own hypocritical 'show'" (Neill 314).
Interests: "Hamlet, his mind attuned to philosophical matters, is keenly and poetically aware of humanity's fallen condition" (Bevington xx). "The theme of honesty--an obsession with him" (Lowers 52).
Background & Family History: "This Wittenberg student, devoted to his studies, nevertheless enjoyed the theater just as he treasured companionship" (Lowers 43).
Characteristics:
Motivation: Consider; Pursuit; Oppose
Evaluation: Proven
Purpose: Actuality; Thought; Aware
Name: The Ghost
ID: Impact Character
Gender: Male
Description:
Deceased; former King of Denmark, husband of Gertrude, brother of Claudius, and father of young Hamlet.
Role: The spirit of King Hamlet
Interests: "One of the prime concerns of the Ghost is that, as a mortal, it was denied the opportunity to be shriven (receive absolution for sins prior to death) and thus must endure spiritual purgation before it can admitted to heaven" (Lowers 29).
Background & Family History: But what of the "foul crimes" admitted to have been committed by King Hamlet, the man whom his son so much reveres? Obviously he was not perfect; no mortal is, according to church doctrine because mankind remains tainted as the result of original sin. The Ghost is only too aware of mortal imperfections; it has a conscience practically Calvinistic in its strictness. (Lowers 29)
Characteristics:
Motivation: Conscience
Evaluation: Effect; Unproven; Expectation; Ending
Purpose: Knowledge; Equity; Projection
Name: Claudius
Gender: Male
Description:
Claudius is described as a "satyr. . . . Claudius is a "serpent" and a "mildewed ear" (Bevington xix). "Some commentators . . . have argued that the King's intemperance [suggested in Act 1, Scene 2] . . . is strongly impressed in the play. If this be true, Claudius' appetite for strong drink, according to Renaissance moral philosophy, points to the rejection of reason, which is equated with virtue" (Lowers 19).
Role: King of Denmark
Story Activities: Claudius endeavors to hide the fact he has killed his brother--and his evil intentions towards Hamlet.
Skills & Occupations: Claudius is highly skilled in the art of politics: "He is fully aware that his marriage to Gertrude is incestuous according to canon law . . . . But this new ruler has taken care to obtain the approval of his Court" (Lowers 18). "He is Machiavellian not only in his ability to dissemble and his use of underhanded methods, but also in his capacity for prompt action" (Lowers 48).
Background & Family History: Claudius' soliloquy provides a second and far more detailed self-acknowledgment of guilt. . . . Claudius clearly is not a born villain; nor. . . does he seek to avoid moral and religious truth. He is orthodox and well schooled in Christian doctrine, fully aware that, so long as he holds on to what he has gained through acts of mortal sin, he cannot purge his soul of guilt. (Lowers 63)
Characteristics:
Motivation: Avoidance; Reconsider; Control
Methodology: Protection
Evaluation: Cause
Purpose: Perception; Ability; Inequity
Name: Fortinbras
Gender: Male
Description:
A valiant young man who, like Hamlet, has lost a father.
Role: Prince of Norway
Story Activities: Fortinbras is concerned with regaining the lands his father lost to King Hamlet. His uncle " . . . forbids Fortinbras to march against the Danes and rewards him for his restraint with a huge annual income and a commission to fight the Poles instead. . . . He pockets the money, marches against Poland, and waits for occasion to deliver Denmark as well into his hands. (Bevington xxvi)
Background & Family History: "He is a young man of 'unproved mettle,' one who has recently lost a royal father and who is not content to brood over his loss" (Lowers 17).
Characteristics:
Motivation: Logic
Name: Francisco;
Barnardo; Marcellus
Gender: Male
Description:
Loyal to the Court
NOTE: The name Barnardo is sometimes spelled as Bernardo.
Role: Danish Officers
Background & Family History: "Long live the king!" exclaims Bernardo, voicing the password when he is challenged by Francisco. "What king?" one asks; and as details relating to Denmark are provided, it seems to be evident that the changing of the guard is symbolic, "a re-enactment of those dynastic changes which frame the play" (H. Levin, p. 20, qtd. in Lowers 16).
Name: Gertrude
Gender: Female
Description:
"Hamlet's indictment of his mother may provide the key to her character--weakness manifested by sensual passion" (Lowers 20).
Role: Queen of Denmark
Story Activities: Hamlet compels his mother to compare Claudius to King Hamlet. "Only with reluctance can she move just a step toward moral awareness and self-criticism: O, speak to me no more/These words like daggers enter in mine ears" (Lowers 66).
Physical Traits & Mannerisms: Sensual
Background & Family History: "She willingly became a partner in an incestuous marriage" (Lowers 40). "The Queen has yielded to Claudius's importunity without ever knowing fully what awful price Claudius has paid for her and for the throne" (Bevington xxiii).
Characteristics:
Motivation: Feeling; Faith; Support; Temptation
Methodology: Inaction
Purpose: Desire
Name: Horatio
Gender: Male
Description:
Commoner who is a fellow student and loyal friend of Hamlet.
Role: Hamlet's Friend
Story Activities: "Hamlet asks Horatio to keep close watch on the King, just as he himself will do, and to note the King's reaction to one speech in particular. If Claudius does not reveal his guilt at that point, the Prince continues, both have seen "a damned ghost," not the honest spirit of the late King Hamlet. The faithful Horatio assures the Prince that he will follow the instructions carefully" (Lowers 54).
Physical Traits & Mannerisms: "Hamlet praises Horatio for his steady temperament" (Lowers 54).
Skills & Occupations: "Horatio properly is called upon to question it [the Ghost] because he is a scholar . . . trained in Latin and knowledgeable in arcane things. Among the mortals in this scene, only he is qualified to exorcise an evil spirit" (Lowers 16).
Characteristics:
Motivation: Disbelief; Help
Name: Laertes
Gender: Male
Description:
A student at the University of Paris and the brother of Ophelia. "He appears as the well-bred son of the Lord Chamberlain, observing the amenities appropriate to his station and the occasion" (Lowers 20).
Role: Polonius' Son
Story Activities: Laertes thinks he has received an unambiguous mandate to revenge, since Hamlet has undoubtedly slain Polonius and helped to deprive Ophelia of her sanity. Accordingly Laertes comes back to Denmark a fury, stirring the rabble with his demagoguery . . . in his quest for vengeance. . . . Laertes has only superficially identified the murderer in the case. He is too easily deceived by Claudius because he has accepted easy and fallacious conclusions, and so is doomed to become a pawn in Claudius's sly maneuverings. (Bevington xxv)
Physical Traits & Mannerisms: ". . . in the total of fifty-three lines of blank verse which constitute Laertes' lecture on sisterly conduct, the note of artificiality and lack of spontaneity come through strongly. This is the contrived style of the young courtier, with a succession of metaphors, studied parallelisms, and antitheses" (Lowers 24).
Skills & Occupations: Student at the University of Paris; skilled in fencing
Characteristics:
Methodology: Proaction; Probability
Name: Ophelia
Gender: Female
Description:
Obedient daughter of Polonius and sister of Laertes; a court lady who Gertrude hopes will marry Hamlet.
Role: Daughter of Polonius
Story Activities: Ophelia is accustomed to doing what she is told, however, grief-stricken over the death of her father and Hamlet's abandonment, she loses her mind and ". . . is left with no language other than the disconnected fragments of her madness to express outrage at a murder which authority seems determined to conceal" (Neill 318).
Physical Traits & Mannerisms: Ophelia is a vulnerable, sweet beauty. "Ophelia metaphorically is the flower destroyed by 'Contagious blastments" (Lowers 93).
Background & Family History: "She [Ophelia] earns our sympathy because she is caught between the conflicting wills of the men who are supremely important to her--her lover, her father, her brother. Obedient by instinct and training to patriarchal instruction, she is unprepared to cope with divided authority and so takes refuge in passivity." (Bevington xxii)
Characteristics:
Motivation: Uncontrolled
Methodology: Reaction; Possibility
Evaluation: Trust
Purpose: Self Aware
Name: Osric
Gender: Male
Description:
Affected
Role: King's messenger
Physical Traits & Mannerisms: Osric, an emissary from the King, enters. Hamlet promptly recognizes him as the affected, overly polite courtier in the service of Claudius. Sardonically, the Prince adopts the same stilted style employed by this "water-fly" and, with a straight face, asks questions and makes comments intended to make Osric exhaust himself in artificial expression. (Lowers 96)
Name: Polonius
Gender: Male
Description:
Elderly Lord Chamberlain and thus chief counselor to Claudius.
Role: Lord Chamberlain
Story Activities: "Many ironies and misunderstandings of the play cannot be understood with a proper awareness of this gap between Hamlet's knowledge and most others' ignorance of the murder. For, according to their own lights, Polonius and the rest behave as couriers normally behave, obeying and flattering a king who, they acknowledge as their legitimate ruler" (Bevington xx).
Physical Traits & Mannerisms: "His lines reveal a vain and limited character" (Lowers 24)
Skills & Occupations: "Just as he [Polonius] had set himself up as an authority on word choice, so now he presents himself as one on drama (412.21). . . . As his advice to Laertes indicated, he is an educated individual; unfortunately, knowledge does not always lead to wisdom" (Lowers 42).
Interests: "Polonius is the perfect inhabitant of this court: busily policing his children's sexuality, he has no scruple about prostituting his daughter in the interests of state security" (Neill 313).
Background & Family History: . . . Polonius's complicity in jaded court politics is deeper than his fatuous parental sententiousness might lead one to suppose. His famous advice to his son . . . is in fact a worldly gospel of self-interest and concern for appearances. . . .Polonius may cut a ridiculous figure as a prattling busybody but he is wily and even menacing in his intent. He has actually helped Claudius to the throne and is an essential instrument of royal policy. (Bevington xxii)
Characteristics:
Motivation: Hinder
Evaluation: Test
Purpose: Speculation
Name: Reynaldo
Gender: Male
Description:
Loyal to Polonius
Role: Polonius' spy
Name: Rosencrantz
and Guildenstern
Gender: Male
Description:
Fair weather friends; none to swift and easily manipulated
Role: Friends of Hamlet
Story Activities: "Claudius engages Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to probe his nephew's threatening transformation (2.2.1-18). 'Madness in great ones,' the King insists, 'must not unwatched go' (3.1.203)" (Neill 314).
Affiliations & Beliefs: Although Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are former schoolmates of Hamlet's, and they profess their friendship to him, their allegiance is really to King Claudius and Queen Gertrude.
Skills & Occupations: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are unskilled in deception--they are easily manipulated by Claudius and deceived by Hamlet.
Name: The Gravediggers
Gender: Male
Description:
Darkly humorous
Role: Gravediggers
Story Activities: The Gravediggers prepare the ground for Ophelia's burial.
Skills & Occupations: Grave digging
Background & Family History: " . . . the Gravedigger asserts a more sinister kind of intimacy with his claim to have begun his work "That very day that young Hamlet was born" (5.1.152-53).
Name: The Players
Gender: Non-Gendered
Description:
Traveling band of actors known to Hamlet
Role: Actors
Background & Family History: Hamlet is informed why the players are traveling. "He is told that an acting company of children have engaged in an attack upon the 'common plays' and the theatrical performances by the adult companies have been suspended, popular fancy having turned to child actors" (Lowers 36). "But is there possible relevance in the rivalry between the Children's Company and the adult companies (343.ff)? Of course this is a topical allusion to the so-called "war of the theaters"--the rise of the companies of child actors which became serious rivals to the adult companies, including Shakespeare's, at the turn of the century. Having learned the details of this 'late innovation,' as Rosencrantz calls it, Hamlet moves from the particular to the general. His uncle, an object of ridicule when King Hamlet ruled Denmark, is now revered by the populace. The new popularity of both child actor and uncle-king, whom Hamlet sees as a shadow rather than the substance of royalty, illustrates the fickleness of public taste" (Lowers 42).
Name: Voltimand
and Cornelius
Gender: Male
Description:
Loyal
Role: Danish courtiers
Story Activities: Voltimand and Cornelius are sent "with a letter to the bedridden King of Norway, requesting him to restrain his nephew" (Lowers 17).
Skills & Occupations: Voltimand and Cornelius are skilled in wartime negotiation.
Character: Claudius
Claudius's Introduction in the story:
Act 1, Scene 2, commences with Claudius holding court. He quickly dispenses with the memory of King Hamlet, asserting his position as the new leader of Denmark with decisive authority.
Claudius's dismissal from the story:
Claudius dies at Hamlet's hand: "Here, thou incestuous, (murd'rous,) damned Dane, Drink off this potion. Is (thy union) here? (Forcing him to drink the poison.) Follow my mother. (King dies.) (5.2.356-58)
Claudius's relationship with Hamlet
Hamlet and Claudius have an antagonistic relationship. ". . . from the very beginning, his [Hamlet] struggle with Claudius has been conceived as a struggle for the control of language--a battle to determine what can and cannot be uttered" (Neill 316). "Obviously, Hamlet deeply resents Claudius referring to him as his son" (Lowers 20).
Claudius's relationship with Laertes
"Claudius and Laertes plot to rid themselves of young Hamlet" (Bevington xix).
Claudius's relationship with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern . . . are boyhood friends of Hamlet, but are now dependent on the favor of King Claudius. Despite their seeming concern for their one-time comrade, and Hamlet's initial pleasure in receiving them, they are faceless courtiers whose very names, like their personalities, are virtually interchangeable. "Thanks, Rosencrantz and gentle Guildenstern," says the King, and "Thanks, Guildenstern and gentle Rosencrantz," echoes the Queen (2.2.33-34) (Bevington xxi).
Claudius's relationship with The Ghost
The Ghost represents King Hamlet, the brother Claudius has slain. The Ghost will not rest until Claudius dies as well. Hamlet's father and Claudius typify what is best and worst in humanity; one is the sun-god Hyperion, the other a satyr. Claudius is a "serpent" and a "mildewed ear, / Blasting his wholesome brother" (1.5.40; 3.4.65-66).
Character: Fortinbras
Fortinbras's Introduction in the story:
Claudius introduces the character of Fortinbras in Act 1, Scene 2, when, holding court, he announces that the young Norwegian prince has "collected an army to win back by force the territory fairly won by the Danes . . ." (Bevington xxvi).
Fortinbras's dismissal from the story:
Fortinbras speaks last in the play, stating: "Let four captains/Bear Hamlet, like a soldier to the stage,/For he was likely, had he been put on,/To have proved most royal; . . . " (5.2.441-44).
Fortinbras's relationship with Hamlet
" . . . the young Norwegian Prince, who, like Hamlet, has lost a father and who, unlike Hamlet, has promptly taken positive action to avenge his father's death. But Fortinbras . . . has mastered passion; he will obey his royal uncle, rejecting the idea of revenge, and will expend his energy in an attack upon Poland. Fortinbras . . . is emerging as a foil to Hamlet" (Lowers 38).
Character: Francisco; Barnardo; Marcellus
Francisco; Barnardo; Marcellus's Introduction in the story:
"It is symbolically appropriate that the play should begin with a group of anxious watchers on the battlemented walls of the castle, for nothing and no one in Claudius's Denmark is allowed to go "unwatched" . . . (Neill 312). "The setting is the royal castle at Elsinore. On a platform before the castle, Francisco, a soldier on guard duty, challenges Bernardo, an officer who appears to relieve Francisco at midnight. . . .Horatio and Marcellus, who are to join Bernardo in the watch, arrive and identify themselves as loyal Danes" Lowers 15)
Francisco; Barnardo; Marcellus's dismissal from the story:
Francisco exits Act 1, Scene 1, when relieved from his watch; Barnardo exits Act 1, Scene 2, after, with Horatio and Marcellus, telling Hamlet about the Ghost; Marcellus exits Act 1, Scene 5, after, with Horatio, swearing to Hamlet he will not speak of the Ghost.
Character: Gertrude
Gertrude's Introduction in the story:
Gertrude stands loyally by Claudius' side in Act 1, Scene 2, as he holds court. Her first words are directed to Hamlet: "Good Hamlet, cast thy nighted color off/And let thine eye look like a friend on Denmark" (1.2.70-71)
Gertrude's dismissal from the story:
Gertrude inadvertently drinks the poison intended for Hamlet and dies: The drink, the drink! I am poisoned. (She dies.) (5.2.341).
Gertrude's relationship with Hamlet
"The appalling spectacle of Gertrude's "wicked speed, to post / With such dexterity to incestuous sheets" (1.2.156-157) overwhelms Hamlet with revulsion at carnal appetite and intensifies the emotional crisis any son would go through when forced to contemplate his father's death and his mother's remarriage" (Bevington xx).
Gertrude's relationship with Ophelia
Gertrude expresses sorrow over Ophelia's death: "I hoped thou shouldst have been my Hamlet's wife;/I thought thy bride-bed to have decked, sweet maid,/And not have strewed thy grave. (5.1.255-57)
Character: Hamlet
Hamlet's Introduction in the story:
In Act 1, Scene 2, Hamlet, in an aside to the audience, remarks "A little more than kin and less than kind" (1.2.67) to Claudius' introduction of him as ". . . my cousin Hamlet and my son-" (1.2.66). "He is introduced . . . as a mysteriously taciturn watcher and listener whose glowering silence calls into question the pomp and bustle of the King's wordy show, just as his mourning blacks cast suspicion of the showy costumes of the court" (Neill 313).
Hamlet's dismissal from the story:
With his dying breath, Hamlet exhorts Horatio to ". . . tell him [Fortinbras], with th' occurents, more or less,/Which have solicited--the rest is silence. (Dies.) (5.2.394-95)
Hamlet's relationship with Claudius
Hamlet and Claudius have an antagonistic relationship. ". . . from the very beginning, his [Hamlet] struggle with Claudius has been conceived as a struggle for the control of language--a battle to determine what can and cannot be uttered" (Neill 316). "Obviously, Hamlet deeply resents Claudius referring to him as his son" (Lowers 20).
Hamlet's relationship with Fortinbras
" . . . the young Norwegian Prince, who, like Hamlet, has lost a father and who, unlike Hamlet, has promptly taken positive action to avenge his father's death. But Fortinbras . . . has mastered passion; he will obey his royal uncle, rejecting the idea of revenge, and will expend his energy in an attack upon Poland. Fortinbras . . . is emerging as a foil to Hamlet" (Lowers 38).
Hamlet's relationship with Gertrude
"The appalling spectacle of Gertrude's "wicked speed, to post / With such dexterity to incestuous sheets" (1.2.156-157) overwhelms Hamlet with revulsion at carnal appetite and intensifies the emotional crisis any son would go through when forced to contemplate his father's death and his mother's remarriage" (Bevington xx).
Hamlet's relationship with Horatio
Horatio is, as Hamlet praises him, immune to flattering or to opportunities for cheap self-advancement. . . . Hamlet can trust and love Horatio as he can no one else. (Bevington xxvii) " . . . Horatio [is] the norm character in relation to the tragic hero . . . the individual in the play who possesses the very qualities which Hamlet should have if he is to avoid tragic downfall . . . the true stoic . . . he maintains proper balance . . . between emotion and reason" (Lowers 56-57).
Hamlet's relationship with Laertes
After his conflict with Laertes at Ophelia's funeral, "he expresses regret that he had so "forgot" himself as to offend Laertes, stating that he sees the image of his own cause in that of Ophelia's brother. . . . they have both endured great losses" (Lowers 101).
Hamlet's relationship with Ophelia
"Ophelia is more innocent than her father and brother, and more truly affectionate toward Hamlet" (Bevington xxii) At Ophelia's funeral, Hamlet's declaration "I loved Ophelia" (5.1.285) puts into question his true feelings for the young court lady.
Hamlet's relationship with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
"Rosencrantz and Guildenstern . . . are boyhood friends of Hamlet but are now dependent on the favor of King Claudius" (Bevington xxi).
Hamlet's relationship with The Players
Hamlet knows of "the tragedians of the city" whose performances have previously pleased him" (Lowers 36).
Character: Horatio
Horatio's Introduction in the story:
Horatio skeptically waits on the guard's platform with Barnardo and Marcellus to see if what they have told him is true; a ghost in the form of King Hamlet is haunting Elsinore: "Horatio says 'tis but our fantasy/And will not let belief take hold of him/Touching this dreaded sight twice seen of us./Therefore I [Marcellus] have entreated him along/With us to watch the minutes of this night,/That, if again this apparition come,/He may approve our eyes and speak to it. (1.1.28-34)
Horatio's dismissal from the story:
Horatio "provides the best epitaph" (Lowers 104) for Hamlet: "Good night, sweet prince,/And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest" (5.2.283), then turns to greet Fortinbras and his army.
Horatio's relationship with Hamlet
Horatio is, as Hamlet praises him, immune to flattering or to opportunities for cheap self-advancement. . . . Hamlet can trust and love Horatio as he can no one else. (Bevington xxvii) " . . . Horatio [is] the norm character in relation to the tragic hero . . . the individual in the play who possesses the very qualities which Hamlet should have if he is to avoid tragic downfall . . . the true stoic . . . he maintains proper balance . . . between emotion and reason" (Lowers 56-57).
Character: Laertes
Laertes's Introduction in the story:
Laertes is introduced in Act 1, Scene 2, when he asks Claudius permission to return to France. Claudius grants the favor, which contrasts with his denial of Hamlet's request to return to the university in Wittenberg.
Laertes's dismissal from the story:
Laertes dies in the fencing contest by the poisoned rapier intended for Hamlet "I am justly killed with mine own treachery." (5.2.337)
Laertes's relationship with Claudius
"Claudius and Laertes plot to rid themselves of young Hamlet" (Bevington xix).
Laertes's relationship with Hamlet
After his conflict with Laertes at Ophelia's funeral, "he expresses regret that he had so "forgot" himself as to offend Laertes, stating that he sees the image of his own cause in that of Ophelia's brother. . . . they have both endured great losses" (Lowers 101).
Laertes's relationship with Ophelia
Laertes is Ophelia's older brother and only sibling. As he prepares to return to France, he advises Ophelia "not to take seriously Hamlet's attentions and, above all, must be wary to protect her virtue" (Lowers 23-24).
Character: Ophelia
Ophelia's Introduction in the story:
Ophelia is introduced in Act 1, Scene 3. She is listening to Laertes' brotherly warnings against Hamlet's flirtation as he prepares to leave for France. Immediately afterwards, she must listen to the same admonishment about Hamlet from her father "Do not believe his vows . . . " (1.3.136).
Ophelia's dismissal from the story:
Ophelia is dismissed at her funeral: "Sweets to the sweet, farewell!" (5.1.254)
Ophelia's relationship with Gertrude
Gertrude expresses sorrow over Ophelia's death: "I hoped thou shouldst have been my Hamlet's wife;/I thought thy bride-bed to have decked, sweet maid,/And not have strewed thy grave. (5.1.255-57)
Ophelia's relationship with Hamlet
"Ophelia is more innocent than her father and brother, and more truly affectionate toward Hamlet" (Bevington xxii) At Ophelia's funeral, Hamlet's declaration "I loved Ophelia" (5.1.285) puts into question his true feelings for the young court lady.
Ophelia's relationship with Laertes
Laertes is Ophelia's older brother and only sibling. As he prepares to return to France, he advises Ophelia "not to take seriously Hamlet's attentions and, above all, must be wary to protect her virtue" (Lowers 23-24).
Ophelia's relationship with Polonius
Polonius is Ophelia's only parent. When she speaks to him of Hamlet's attentions, "He scoffs at the very thought . . . and he warns her to conduct herself so as not to make him appear a fool. . . . Polonius appears to be much more concerned about his public image than about the welfare of his daughter. And his emphasis is also upon how one should play a role, how one should act, show, seem" (Lowers 24-25).
Character: Osric
Osric's Introduction in the story:
In Act 5, Scene 2 "Osric, an emissary from the King, enters. Hamlet promptly recognizes him as the affected, overly polite courtier in the service of Claudius" (Lowers 96).
Osric's dismissal from the story:
Osric announces the approach of Fortinbras as Hamlet is dying.
Character: Polonius
Polonius's Introduction in the story:
Polonius is introduced in Act 1, Scene 2, when Claudius consults Polonius about Laertes' request to return to France.
Polonius's dismissal from the story:
Hamlet kills Polonius (thinking him to be Claudius) and hides the body. Afterward, he engages in wordplay with those looking for the corpse, finally admitting: ". . . you shall nose him as you go up the stairs into the lobby." (4.3.197)
Polonius's relationship with Ophelia
Polonius is Ophelia's only parent. When she speaks to him of Hamlet's attentions, "He scoffs at the very thought . . . and he warns her to conduct herself so as not to make him appear a fool. . . . Polonius appears to be much more concerned about his public image than about the welfare of his daughter. And his emphasis is also upon how one should play a role, how one should act, show, seem" (Lowers 24-25).
Character: Reynaldo
Reynaldo's Introduction in the story:
Polonius instructs "his man" to go to France to give Laertes ". . . this money and these notes . . . . Before you visit him . . . inquire of his behavior. (2.1.1,4-5)
Reynaldo's dismissal from the story:
Reynaldo receives his instructions from Polonius and is off to France:
Polonius: Observe his [Laertes] inclination in yourself [instead of reports].
Reynaldo: I shall, my lord.
Polonius: And let him ply his music.
Reynaldo: Well, my lord.
Polonius: Farewell.
Reynaldo exits. (2.1.79-83)
Character: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern's Introduction in the story:
Claudius and Gertrude send for Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, friends of Hamlet's, to discover what is the cause of his strange behavior:
King: Welcome, dear Rosencrantz and Guildenstern./Moreover that we much did long to see you,/The need we have to use you did provoke/Our hasty sending. . . . I entreat you both/. . . To draw him on to pleasures, and to gather/So much as from occasion you may glean,/Whether aught to us unknown afflicts him thus . . . (2.2.1-4,10,15-17).
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern's dismissal from the story:
Hamlet tells Horatio of Claudius' thwarted plan to have him killed, and how he arranged for Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to take his place: "Immediately Hamlet devised new instructions in the official style requesting that Claudius' servants [Rosencrantz and Guildenstern] who brought the communication to the King of England be put to death" (Lowers 95-95). Horatio: So Guildenstern and Rosencrantz go to 't. (5.2.63)
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern's relationship with Claudius
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern . . . are boyhood friends of Hamlet, but are now dependent on the favor of King Claudius. Despite their seeming concern for their one-time comrade, and Hamlet's initial pleasure in receiving them, they are faceless courtiers whose very names, like their personalities, are virtually interchangeable. "Thanks, Rosencrantz and gentle Guildenstern," says the King, and "Thanks, Guildenstern and gentle Rosencrantz," echoes the Queen (2.2.33-34) (Bevington xxi).
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern's relationship with Hamlet
"Rosencrantz and Guildenstern . . . are boyhood friends of Hamlet but are now dependent on the favor of King Claudius" (Bevington xxi).
Character: The Ghost
The Ghost's Introduction in the story:
The Ghost is introduced in Act 1, Scene, 1, when Marcellus describes the specter to skeptical Horatio. The Ghost reveals himself to Hamlet as the prince's late father, King Hamlet, in Act 1, Scene 5, "I am they father's spirit . . . " (1.5.14)
The Ghost's dismissal from the story:
Hamlet asks his mother if she sees The Ghost: "Why, look you there, look how it steals away!" (3.4.153), and that is the last time Ghost appears, however, his impact is felt throughout the rest of the story.
The Ghost's relationship with Claudius
The Ghost represents King Hamlet, the brother Claudius has slain. The Ghost will not rest until Claudius dies as well. Hamlet's father and Claudius typify what is best and worst in humanity; one is the sun-god Hyperion, the other a satyr. Claudius is a "serpent" and a "mildewed ear, / Blasting his wholesome brother" (1.5.40; 3.4.65-66).
Character: The Gravediggers
The Gravediggers's Introduction in the story:
The Gravedigger and his companion prepare the ground for Ophelia's burial in Act 5, Scene 1.
"Enter Gravedigger and Another: In Q2 and Folio Hamlet, this stage direction reads "Enter two clowns," thus indicating that the Gravedigger and his companion were played by actors who did comic roles" (Mowat and Werstine 238).
The Gravediggers's dismissal from the story:
The Gravedigger tells Hamlet the skull he has uncovered is that of Yorick, the King's jester and a childhood favorite of Hamlet's. Neither he nor his companion have any more lines; it can be assumed they leave before the burial service.
Character: The Players
The Players's Introduction in the story:
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern inform Hamlet in Act 2, Scene 2, that the travelling actors are on their way to Elsinore. "Ultimately the actors will serve the Prince in his first positive move against Claudius--reason enough for the announcement of their arrival and for the talk relating to them" (Lowers 42).
The Players's dismissal from the story:
The players are dismissed in Act 3, Scene 2: "Shakespeare achieves a dramatic master stroke . . . when the King rises in fright and cries out: 'Give me some light. Away!' (3.2.280). The Mousetrap has been sprung; Hamlet has caught the conscience of the King" (Lowers 59).
The Players's relationship with Hamlet
Hamlet knows of "the tragedians of the city" whose performances have previously pleased him" (Lowers 36).
Character: Voltimand and Cornelius
Voltimand and Cornelius's Introduction in the story:
In Act 1, Scene 2, Voltimand and Cornelius are dispatched to Norway by King Claudius to "halt a threatened attack from Fortinbras" (Mowat and Werstine 20). Cornelius/Voltimand: "In that and in all things will we show our duty" (1.2.39).
Voltimand and Cornelius's dismissal from the story:
Voltimand and Cornelius accomplish their mission and are welcomed home by Claudius: "Go to your rest. At night we'll feast together" (2.2.90).
Nature as it relates to Apparent Dilemma:
The efforts by Hamlet to satisfactorily avenge his father's death meet with failure. Whereas he once would not have considered being King Claudius' "champion," even momentarily, his doing so leads to the extinction of his bloodline. Had he continued his steadfast efforts against the King, it is likely he would have succeeded without all the unnecessary bloodshed.
Essence as it relates to Positive Feel:
Everyone's efforts are to get the kingdom back on track even though their approaches often differ and they are frequently at odds.
Tendency as it relates to Unwilling:
Hamlet is extremely uncomfortable with the task he has been given. He is divided against himself--one part is eager to avenge his father's murder and punish his mother for not sufficiently grieving, while another part of him anguishes over the correctness of his plot and the pain it causes the innocents caught up in the web of deceit.
Reach as it relates to Both:
Men will tend to empathize with Hamlet's struggle to understand (and overcome) his emotional turmoil, in particular the turmoil that is inherent in being a son, while women will tend to empathize with his compassion for Ophelia and the angst he suffers in deceiving her.
Main Character Resolve as it relates to Change:
Hamlet stops contemplating Claudius' lies and treacheries and accepts the knowledge that Claudius is responsible for his father and mother's (and his own) deaths.
Impact Character Resolve as it relates to Steadfast:
The Ghost remains steadfast in his desire to have his death avenged.
Main Character Growth as it relates to Stop:
Hamlet must stop mulling over the information given to him by his father's ghost. Only then may he begin to accept the knowledge as truth and act accordingly.
Main Character Approach as it relates to Be-er:
Hamlet is a gifted thinker that is incapable of positive action--"the native hue of resolution/Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought" (3.1.92-93).
Main Character Problem-Solving Style as it relates to Logical:
Hamlet tends to use male mental sex problem solving techniques as illustrated in his attempts to gather evidence that "there is something more deeply amiss than his mother's overhasty marriage to her deceased husband's brother. . ." (Bevington xx).
Story Driver as it relates to Action:
Claudius' murder of the king drives Hamlet to despair; The Ghost's appearance drives Hamlet to seek revenge; Hamlet's killing of Polonius drives Claudius to plot Hamlet's death; Ophelia's accidental drowning (and Polonius' murder) drives Laertes to seek Hamlet's death; and so forth.
Story Limit as it relates to Optionlock:
Though the Ghost is impatient for revenge, there is plenty of time to murder Claudius. There are, however, only so many ways to bring about the downfall of Claudius without bringing down the rest of the royal family and friends.
Story Outcome as it relates to Failure:
In the effort to bring down Claudius and restore balance in the kingdom, many lives are lost--including all those of the royal family.
Story Judgment as it relates to Bad:
Hamlet finally perceives that "if it be not now, yet it will come," and that "The readiness is all" (5.2.219-220). This discovery, this revelation of necessity and meaning in Hamlet's great reversal of fortune, enables him to confront the tragic circumstance of his life with understanding and heroism, and to demonstrate the triumph of the human spirit even in the moment of his catastrophe. Such an assertion of the individual will does not lessen the tragic waste with which "Hamlet" ends. Hamlet is dead, the great promise of his life forever lost. (Bevington xxxi)
Overall Story Name: "Betrayal"
Throughline Synopsis:
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, returns from his studies abroad to attend the funeral of his father, King Hamlet, and the subsequent wedding of his mother, Queen Gertrude, to his uncle, King Claudius. Hamlet is quite perturbed by his mother's second marriage, in view of its haste and incestuous implications. He soon meets with a specter claiming to be the ghost of his father. The Ghost tells him he was murdered by his brother, King Claudius, and commands Hamlet to seek revenge. Hamlet agrees to do so, but conflicted by his own nature, he does not act immediately. King Claudius and his councillor, Polonius, have their suspicions about the young man and keep close watch. Falsehood and playacting occur on all sides creating mayhem and madness. Revenge is eventually exacted, but at a cost far too dear; all the primary objective characters, with the exception of Horatio, suffer a tragic death.
Backstory:
. . . According to canonical law which informs Shakespeare's play, such a marriage (between a man and his dead brother's wife) is strictly forbidden. That law is based upon the sacramental view of a mystical bond formed in marriage which creates a relationship between man and wife as close as that which exists between blood relations. From a religious point of view, which cannot be ignored if one is to do justice to Shakespeare's intentions, the marriage of Claudius and Gertrude is, to use official language of the period, "incestuous and unlawful and altogether null and void." To be sure, one wonders why the subjects of the King and Queen voiced no protest or expressed no feeling of shock. But for the poet-dramatist's purpose, it is enough that the young, idealistic Christian Prince should believe that the honor of the Danish royal family has been stained. . . .Traditionally, incest was considered to be an offense against the whole of society. If that view is applicable in Shakespeare's play, then Hamlet has a public duty to oppose Claudius, and that the issue is not merely a personal or domestic, one. (Lowers 21)
Throughline as it relates to Fixed Attitude:
Hamlet's bad attitude threatens the stability of the royal family and court. His sustained grief for his father's death is seen to be unmanly and evidence of "impious stubbornness." (1.2.98) This is contrasted by King Claudius' explanation that "discretion" prohibits excessive grief. Claudius has married his brother's widow and has done so with the concurrence of the members of the council.
Concern as it relates to Memories:
Everyone wants to be comfortable with the memory of King Hamlet. Most wish to accomplish this by erasing the memory entirely, but Hamlet wants to keep it alive and painful; Hamlet is truly appalled at how easily his mother seems to forget her first husband, King Hamlet; Ophelia promises to remember her brother's advice "Tis in my memory locked" (1.3.92).
Issue as it relates to Truth :
Truth is given very little value in "Hamlet."
Counterpoint as it relates to Falsehood :
Bevington explicates how "falsehood' is explored in the objective story:
Something is indeed rotten in the state of Denmark. The monarch on whom the health and safety of the kingdom depend is a murderer. Yet few persons know his secret: Hamlet, Horatio only belatedly, Claudius himself, and ourselves as audience. Many ironies and misunderstandings of the play cannot be understood without a proper awareness of this gap between Hamlet's knowledge and most other's ignorance of the murder. For, according to their own lights, Polonius and the rest behave as courtiers normally behave, obeying and flattering a king whom they acknowledge as their legitimate ruler. Hamlet, for his part, is so obsessed with the secret murder that he overreacts to those around him, rejecting overtures of friendship and becoming embittered, callous, brutal, and even violent. His antisocial behavior gives the others good reason to fear him as a menace to the state. Nevertheless, we share with Hamlet a knowledge of the truth and know that he is right, whereas the others are at best unhappily deceived by their own blind complicity in evil. (xx-xxi)
Thematic Conflict as it relates to Truth vs. Falsehood:
The thematic conflict of truth and falsehood is scattered throughout "Hamlet." For example, King Claudius' duplicity regarding his brother's murder; Hamlet's duplicity in his "crazy" behavior; The play-within-a-play itself is designed to present truth to contrast the falsehood of the real life players; The true purpose of Hamlet's trip to England (to have him killed) contrasted with the purported purpose (Hamlet's education); The purpose of the duel between Hamlet and Laertes; and so forth.
Problem as it relates to Thought:
When people in Hamlet act on what they "think" (versus what they know), it creates problems. King Claudius thinks he can get away with murder; Queen Gertrude thinks her new husband is noble and honest and that her son is a basket case; Polonius thinks he can fool Hamlet; Ophelia thinks that Hamlet is being honest with her; Laertes thinks he knows what is going on in the castle; and so forth.
Solution as it relates to Knowledge:
The knowledge of King Claudius' duplicitous nature gets him his just rewards (albeit too late); The knowledge of the contents of the letter saves Hamlet from death; and so forth.
Symptom as it relates to Perception:
The royal family (including Polonius' family) are constantly trying to find out how Hamlet "seems" to be by getting second hand information from people who have interacted with him.
Response as it relates to Actuality:
Hamlet is constantly trying to expose the true nature of people and events, for example, are Rosencrantz and Guildenstern really his friends or agents of the King?
Catalyst as it relates to Evidence:
Each time Hamlet discovers more evidence of his Uncle Claudius' wrongdoing he takes a step closer to killing him; King Claudius uses evidence of Hamlet's "insanity" as reason to dispose of him--permanently; and so forth.
Inhibitor as it relates to Interdiction:
Polonius' attempt to intercede on King Claudius' behalf gets him killed and postpones Hamlet's direct confrontation with King Claudius; Another example of how "interdiction" impedes the objective story's progress is the pirates' capture of Hamlet's ship and his subsequent time spent with them; and so forth.
Benchmark as it relates to Innermost Desires:
The means by which progress is measured in the objective story are basic human drives and desires: Claudius' growing anger and exasperation; Gertrude's growing desperation; Ophelia's loss of touch with reality; Laertes' blood lust; and so forth.
Goal as it relates to Memories:
Hamlet's dwelling on the memory of his father--who seems to have been a significantly superior king than Claudius--comes into conflict with everybody else's concerted effort to forget King Hamlet: "Claudius' call for celebration with festive drink is, in effect, an order that Hamlet especially, and all others, forget the past and accept the new order" (Lowers 19.
Consequence as it relates to The Past:
If the memory of King Hamlet is not allowed to rest, a repetition of the past murder will (and does) occur.
Cost as it relates to Understanding:
In "Hamlet," understanding is seen as a high price to pay--sometimes too high. King Claudius comes to the understanding that Hamlet is on to him and won't stop until his father's death is avenged; Ophelia comes to the understanding that Hamlet does not love her and is responsible for her father's death, and so she loses her mind; Queen Gertrude comes to the understanding her son he is probably insane and her new husband is a murderer; and so forth.
Dividend as it relates to Developing a Plan:
"Conceptualizing" as a dividend is illustrated in the satisfaction Polonius finds in visualizing a way to implement a plan to send Reynaldo to spy on his son's activities in Paris:
. . . Lord Chamberlain . . . [is] concerned that Laertes' conduct in Paris does not make him look bad. In his worldliness and cynicism, he is absolutely sure that he knows how young men behave when away from parental control--drinking, fencing, quarreling, and wenching. Reynaldo, Polonius says, is to let Laertes "ply his music" (2.1.73); that is, keep a close eye on him and let him reveal his secrets. Not only is Polonius ready to believe the worst about his son, but also he seems to be incapable of honesty in his methods. His outlook and conduct suggest the kind of world in which Hamlet is now living. Indirection--espionage--becomes an elaborate game very soon in the play; this episode prepares the way for it. (Lowers 33); Hamlet is satisfied that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern deserve what they get for betraying his friendship when he formulates a plan to send them, instead of himself, to their deaths.
Requirements as it relates to Innermost Desires:
Hamlet must get Claudius to expose his true nature, his lust for power and lust for Gertrude, before anyone will believe his accusations.
Prerequisites as it relates to The Future:
Barnardo's response to Francisco's command to "Stand and unfold yourself" (1.1.2) is to declare his allegiance to the king: "Long live the King [Claudius]!" (1.1.3). In order for Hamlet to make a powerful impact in exposing Claudius as a murderer, Claudius must still enjoy a future as ruler of Denmark.
Preconditions as it relates to Obtaining:
Hamlet needs hard evidence of his uncle's murderous actions--he cannot allow himself to go on the word of the Ghost alone.
Forewarnings as it relates to Changing One's Nature:
Hamlet starts becoming the crazy person he is pretending to be. This alerts everyone, including King Claudius, who plots against Hamlet.
Main vs. Impact Story Name: "Remember Me"
Throughline Synopsis:
The Ghost tells Hamlet that it is the spirit of his father, doomed for a time to walk on earth during the nights and to endure purgatorial fires during daytime in expiation for sins committed during life. The Ghost calls upon him to prove his love for his father: "Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder." Hamlet is told that although King Hamlet's death was attributed to the sting of a serpent, it was Claudius . . . who murdered his brother. The Prince receives this startling news as if it were confirmation of his suspicions. . . . Hamlet is called upon to kill his uncle. But the Ghost adds a word of caution: the son is not to contaminate himself by seeking to punish his mother; he is to leave her punishment to heaven and to her own conscience. "Hamlet, remember me," the Ghost intones as it departs. The Prince solemnly vows to wipe all else from his memory except that which the Ghost has told him. (Lowers 28-29)
Backstory:
The two major issues basic to Hamlet's tragedy are . . . the murder of a king and father, and the marriage of Claudius and Gertrude. . . .The Ghost denounces Claudius as "that incestuous, that adulterate beast" (1.5.41) and speaks of Gertrude as that "seeming-virtuous queen" (1.5.46). Hamlet is implored not to let "the royal bed of Denmark be/A couch for luxury [sensuality] and damned incest" (1.5.82-83). The adultery and incest, which concern the Ghost quite as much as does the murder by means of "leperous distilment,' may simply refer to the marriage. Whether or not Gertrude was unfaithful prior to the death of King Hamlet remains a disputed point. But one thing is clear: Prince Hamlet is not alone in his revulsion, unless this Ghost is indeed a 'goblin damn'd," intent upon leading the young Prince to destruction . . . (Lowers 30)
Throughline as it relates to Situation:
King Hamlet has been murdered by his brother Claudius. King Hamlet's Ghost has charged his son, also named Hamlet, to "Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder."
Concern as it relates to The Past:
The Ghost wants his murder avenged and charges Hamlet to take care of it, but Hamlet has doubts about the nature of the Ghost which draws into question his familial duty to avenge him.
Issue as it relates to Fate :
Despite his friends attempts to prevent Hamlet from going off with the Ghost, he believes he must, as it is his fate:
Hamlet: My fate cries out/And make each petty arture in this body/As hard as the Nemean lion's nerve. Still am I called. Unhand me, gentlemen. By heaven, I'll make a ghost of him that lets me!/I say, away--Go on. I'll follow thee. (Ghost and Hamlet exit.) (1.5.91-96)
Counterpoint as it relates to Destiny :
Despite the Ghost's command for immediate vengeance, Hamlet hesitates to effect immediate action. He eventually allows destiny to take its course, believing: "There's a divinity that shapes our ends/Rough-hew them how we will [no matter how roughly we ourselves shape them] (5.2.11-12).
Thematic Conflict as it relates to Fate vs. Destiny:
In his charge on Hamlet to avenge the murder, the Ghost warns him not to contaminate himself by seeking to punish Gertrude, Hamlet's mother. The story then illustrates the tug of war between Hamlet's handling of his own destiny and its impact on his mother, and how fate warps his efforts to destroy Claudius.
Problem as it relates to Thought:
The Ghost wants revenge, but Hamlet obsessively mulls over the type, meaning, and need for revenge without just killing Claudius.
Solution as it relates to Knowledge:
Once Hamlet accepts the story told to him by the Ghost as "knowledge" will he be able to act decisively and kill Claudius.
Symptom as it relates to Chaos:
The Ghost and Hamlet see Claudius' usurpation of the throne and marriage to Gertrude as a direct effect of the chaos that is created by King Hamlet's unavenged death. More (and worse) chaos will be introduced into the kingdom until Claudius is undone. This chaos is also evidenced by the rumblings of Fortinbras and his interests in regaining lands lost to Denmark under his father's reign.
Response as it relates to Order:
By setting the royal family (and court) back in order--without Claudius--Hamlet hopes (and the Ghost expects) all to be well again.
Catalyst as it relates to Prediction:
As an example of how "prediction" accelerates the subjective story, after closely questioning Horatio, Hamlet anticipates he will be meeting the ghost of his father in the dead of the night.
Inhibitor as it relates to Suspicion:
Hamlet's suspicions that the Ghost is more (or less) than it seems impedes their relationship. Is the Ghost truly his late father? It is an evil specter from hell? Is it Hamlet's own imagination?
Benchmark as it relates to The Future:
The Ghost wants to re-establish his line (via Hamlet) on the throne of Denmark. The shakier that future seems, the greater the strain is between Hamlet and the Ghost of his father.
Role: Prince of Denmark
Description:
"Leading Romantic critics of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries saw Hamlet as a young man, attractive and gifted in many ways, but incapable of positive action" (Lowers 9).
Throughline Synopsis:
"Hamlet's role as hero at once sets him apart from this prison-house world and yet leads him to become increasingly entangled in its web of surveillance" (Neill 313).
Backstory:
"His (Hamlet's) tragedy is already in progress when he first appears. . . .Hamlet does not move from a state of well-being or happiness to adversity and suffering. Nor is his state of unhappiness attributed to the death of a beloved and honored father; rather, it is the marriage of his mother to his uncle, who now is King of Denmark" (Lowers 20).
Throughline as it relates to Manipulation:
Hamlet is a seriously introspective man, tending to bouts of melancholy and mind games. Certain critics [notably A.C. Bradley] subscribe to the theory that Hamlet was a victim of the "Elizabethan malady" know as melancholy. "It was recognized as a disease and was the subject of treatises published in England and on the Continent. . . . In an age when the proper study of mankind was man, it seems improbable that a writer like Shakespeare, with his manifest intellectual curiosity and acquisitive mind, was unfamiliar with contemporary ideas regarding the causes, symptoms, and results of melancholy. . . . When Hamlet speaks of "my weakness and my melancholy" (2.2.630) for example; when he speaks "wild and whirling words" (1.5.133); when his mood shifts from deep depression to elation, he is following the pattern of behavior peculiar to the melancholic . . ." (Lowers 11).
Concern as it relates to Developing a Plan:
Hamlet's immediate concern is to imagine a plan for tricking or coercing his uncle/stepfather Claudius into revealing his involvement in the king's murder. Lowers remarks on Hamlet's larger concern: "Hamlet's concept of honor, implicit from the beginning, is something far above that held by Laertes and Polonius. He wishes to be remembered as the worthy son of the superior King Hamlet, as minister called upon to execute public justice, not as scourge." (Lowers 104)
Issue as it relates to State of Being :
Hamlet's essential nature is revealed in his first soliloquy: "It has been argued that here Shakespeare develops the theme of appearance versus reality and that he intends to stress Hamlet's dedication to truth in contrast to appearances which serve others, notably Claudius. Certainly he is presented as a discordant figure in this assembly, and his "inky cloak" and "suit of "solemn black" provide a telling criticism of Claudius and Gertrude. Others may act a part, making use of "Windy suspiration of forc'd breath" (sighing) and "fruitful river in the eye" (weeping); Hamlet is incapable of such posturing" (Lowers 21)
Counterpoint as it relates to Sense of Self :
Throughout a good deal of the play, Hamlet's negative perception of himself is directly linked to his failure to immediately seek revenge for his father's Ghost. In his mother's chamber, he addresses the Ghost: "Do you not come your tardy son to chide,/That, laps'd in time and passion, lets go by/Th' important acting of your dread command?" (3.4.122-24)
Thematic Conflict as it relates to State of Being vs. Sense of Self:
"To be, or not to be--that is the question." Hamlet is constantly exploring the difference between who he truly is compared to his sense of self. Is he sane, or does he just think he is?
Problem as it relates to Thought:
Coleridge's [a leading English Romantic scholar] well-known remarks on the character of Hamlet have been most influential. For him, the Prince of Denmark suffers from an "Overbalance of contemplative faculty" and, like any man, "thereby becomes the creature of mere meditation and loses power to action (Notes and Lectures on Shakespeare, 1808). And William Hazlitt continues: At other times, when he is most bound to act, he remains puzzled, undecided, and skeptical, dallies with his purposes, till the occasion is lost, and finds out some pretense to relapse into indolence and thoughtfulness again" (Characters in Shakespeare's Plays, 1818). . . . A.C. Bradley refers to Hamlet's "otiose thinking which hardly deserves the name of thought, an unconscious weaving of pretexts for inaction" (Lowers 10-11). Or as Hamlet say of himself, "the native hue of resolution/Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought" (3.1.84-85).
Solution as it relates to Knowledge:
Once he can accept as true the knowledge of Claudius' "evil" nature, he will be able to act.
Symptom as it relates to Change:
Hamlet focuses on the changes that have occurred around him and sees them as the source of his troubles: his father has died (been murdered), his uncle (the murderer) has been crowned king; his mother (Gertrude, the queen) has married his uncle--all within two months.
Response as it relates to Inertia:
Hamlet would like things to go back to the way they were before his father died--sans Claudius, of course.
Unique Ability as it relates to Situation:
Hamlet is the Prince of Denmark, second only in power to the king. He has complete access to the castle, to finances, to his mother the queen, and most importantly to the king and his private chambers.
Critical Flaw as it relates to Interpretation:
Combined with his penchant for thought, Hamlet is constantly finding multitudes of meaning in things--many of which are completely misconstrued and undermine his efforts. The most notable instances are his mistaking the person behind the tapestry (Polonius) for Claudius and stabbing through it--"Is it the King?" (3.4.32)--and mistaking the purpose of the duel with Laertes as an attempt by Claudius to reconcile their differences, whereas the real reason is for Hamlet to be killed.
Benchmark as it relates to Changing One's Nature:
First of all, there is there the issue of, "To be, or not to be . . . " But as an even more important standard to measure the degree of Hamlet's concern, there is the issue of his sanity. Publicly, he appears to grow crazier and crazier. Privately, however, he appears to become more and more heartsick and accepting of the death he feared so much in the beginning.
Role: The spirit of King Hamlet
Description:
Deceased; former King of Denmark, husband of Gertrude, brother of Claudius, and father of young Hamlet.
Throughline Synopsis:
It is from this pressure ["forbidden utterance"] that the first three acts of the play derive most of their extraordinary energy; and the energy is given a concrete dramatic presence in the form of the Ghost. . . . The strikingly unconventional thing about Shakespeare's Ghost is its melancholy preoccupation with the silenced past and its plangent cry of "Remember me" . . . which makes remembrance seem more important than revenge. "The struggle of humanity against power," the Czech novelist Milan Kundera has written, " . . . is the struggle of memory against forgetfulness"; and this Ghost, which stands for all that has been erased by the bland narratives of King Claudius, is consumed by the longing to speak that which power has rendered unspeakable. (Neill 318-319)
Backstory:
One of the prime concerns of the Ghost is that, as a mortal, it was denied the opportunity to be shriven (receive absolution for sins prior to death) and thus must endure spiritual purgation before it can be admitted to heaven. But what of the "foul crimes" admitted to have been committed by King Hamlet, the man whom his son so much reveres? Obviously he was not perfect; no mortal is, according to church doctrine because mankind remains tainted as the result of original sin. The Ghost is only too aware of mortal imperfections; it has a conscience practically Calvinistic in its strictness. (Lowers 29)
Throughline as it relates to Activity:
The Ghost is the spirit of King Hamlet who is doomed to walk the earth during the nights and endure purgatorial fires during the daytime in expiation of sins committed during life.
Concern as it relates to Understanding:
The Ghost wants everybody, particularly Hamlet, to understand what happened to him--the manner of his death, and so forth.
Issue as it relates to Instinct :
The Ghost's involuntary drive to disappear when "The glowworm shows the matin [morning] to be near" (1.5.96) creates suspicion as to the true nature of the apparition:
What of the Ghost, "this thing . . . this dreaded sight," as Marcellus calls it, which fills Horatio with "fear and wonder"? . . .The prevailing theories were that a ghost may be (1) a hallucination, (2) a spirit returned to perform some deed left undone in life, (3) a specter seen as a portent, (4) a spirit returned from the grave from purgatory by divine permission, or (5) a devil disguised as a dead person. (Lowers 16)
Counterpoint as it relates to Conditioning :
The prevailing theories were that a ghost may be (1) a hallucination, (2) a spirit returned to perform some deed left undone in life, (3) a specter seen as a portent, (4) a spirit returned from the grave from purgatory by divine permission, or (5) a devil disguised as a dead person. In the course of the play each of these theories is put to the test. Immediately the first is rejected, but much later in the play it will arise again. The educated, skeptical Horatio proves to his own satisfaction that this particular ghost is a real one, not an illusion. Appearing in "warlike form" and as the image of the late King Hamlet, the second may be applicable or, more probably the third, since Denmark expects an attack led by the young Norwegian Prince, Fortinbras. . . .Horatio properly is called upon to question it [the Ghost] because he is a scholar, trained in Latin and knowledgeable in arcane things. (Lowers 16)
Thematic Conflict as it relates to Instinct vs. Conditioning:
Because of conditioning in life, the Ghost of the late King appears in the same armor he was known to wear and on familiar territory, the royal castle at Elsinore. However, his instincts to flee the coming of the morning--even when he desires to stick around--illustrates the conflict of instinct vs. conditioning.
Problem as it relates to Self Aware:
The Ghost's knowledge of who he was and what happened to him is the source of his drive to seek revenge.
Solution as it relates to Aware:
As he becomes less focused on himself and more aware of what is transpiring in the castle, the Ghost begins to lose its vehemence, particularly when it comes to his antagonism toward the queen. For example, the Ghost asks Hamlet to speak with Gertrude: "But look, amazement on thy mother sits.\O, step between her and her fighting soul!" (3.4.128-29)
Symptom as it relates to Perception:
Other than the swiftness of the coronation and marriage, the Ghost's claims are not apparent from Claudius or Gertrude's behavior. This throws doubt into Hamlet's mind as to the "reality" of the Ghost and its accusations.
Response as it relates to Actuality:
Claudius truly murdered King Hamlet, and the impact of its revelation on Hamlet is tremendous.
Unique Ability as it relates to Senses:
Sometimes other people cannot see the Ghost which makes it difficult for Hamlet to deal with the seeming reality of the Ghost and the demands it has made upon him.
Critical Flaw as it relates to Circumstances:
All but the Ghost (and Hamlet) seem to be comfortable with the new arrangements at Elsinore which undermines the Ghost's ability to impact Hamlet.
Benchmark as it relates to Obtaining:
King Claudius has everything King Hamlet had in life. The loss of the hold that Claudius has on these things indicate the degree to which the Ghost's concerns are being satisfied.
The Overall Throughline Act Order:
Overall Story Signpost 1 as it relates to Impulsive Responses:
The Ghost ". . . was about to speak when the cock crew/And then it started like a guilty thing" (1.1.162-163); Horatio is startled when Hamlet remarks he thinks he has seen his father "In my mind's eye, Horatio" (1.2.193) thus "the transition to Horatio's report of what he and the guard have seen is thus skillfully achieved" (Lowers 23).
Overall Story Journey 1 from Impulsive Responses to Innermost Desires:
The objective story progresses from the characters' instinctive responses to the atmosphere that suffocates Elsinore, to an exploration of the basic drives and desires of its occupants.
Overall Story Signpost 2 as it relates to Innermost Desires:
Frightened, Ophelia runs to her father to tell him of Hamlet's strange behaviour. Polonius is certain Hamlet is driven mad by his love for his daughter:
This is the very ecstasy of love,/Whose violent property fordoes [destroys] itself/And leads the will to desperate undertakings/As oft as any passions under heaven/That does afflict our natures. I am sorry./What, have you given him any hard words of late?
Ophelia: No, my good lord, but as you did command/I did repel his letters and denied/His access to me.
Polonius: That hath made him mad. (2.2.114-123)
Overall Story Journey 2 from Innermost Desires to Memories:
Sickened by what he perceives as Gertrude's base nature, Hamlet rudely confronts his mother, prompting her to ask: "Have you forgot me?" (3.4.18)
Overall Story Signpost 3 as it relates to Memories:
Ophelia tells Hamlet she has ". . . remembrances of yours/That I have long longed to deliver" (3.1.102). Hamlet denies he had ever bestowed gifts upon her, despite her recalling that he had with "words so sweet" (3.1.107).
Overall Story Journey 3 from Memories to Contemplation:
The memory of King Hamlet can no longer be quashed by Claudius, as all consider his evil deeds.
Overall Story Signpost 4 as it relates to Contemplation:
In the midst of Hamlet and Laertes' duel, Claudius, sensible of the fact that if the Queen drinks Hamlet's poisoned wine she will die, only makes a half-hearted effort to stop her:
King: Gertrude, do not drink.
Queen: I will, my lord; I pray you pardon me.
King: (aside) It is the poisoned cup. It is too late. (5.2.317-319)
Later, all become conscious of Claudius' evil deeds:
Laertes: It is here, Hamlet. (Hamlet), thou art slain./No med'cine in the world can do thee good./In thee there is not half an hour's life./The treacherous instrument is in (thy) hand,/Unbated and envenomed. The foul practice/Hath turned itself on me. Lo here I lie,/Never to rise again. Thy mother's poisoned./I can no more. The King, the King's to blame. (5.2.344-351)
The Main vs. Impact Throughline Act Order:
Main vs. Impact Story Signpost 1 as it relates to How Things are Changing:
Hamlet and the Ghost's relationship moves forward as Hamlet promises to carry out the Ghost's command to avenge his father's murder.
Main vs. Impact Story Journey 1 from How Things are Changing to The Past:
Determined to revenge his father's murder, Hamlet nevertheless moves forward slowly. After berating himself for his procrastination, he decides to ask the actors to perform what the Ghost had told him had happened for an audience that will include his uncle. By doing so, Hamlet hopes his uncle will be startled into revealing his guilt--then he will proceed to take revenge for the life of King Hamlet.
Main vs. Impact Story Signpost 2 as it relates to The Past:
To carry out the Ghost's orders, Hamlet decides to direct the performers to act out what had really happened to his father: ". . . I'll have these players/Play something like the murder of my father/Before mine uncle. I'll observe his looks;/I'll tent him to the quick. If he do blench,/I know my course. (2.2.623-627)
Main vs. Impact Story Journey 2 from The Past to The Future:
Lowers comments on "three memorable lines" (50) in Hamlet's "To be, or not to be" soliloquy (3.1.56-89):
But that the dread of something after death/The undiscover'd country from whose bourn/No traveller returns, puzzles the will. . . . (3.1.78-80) poses the question "Does Hamlet not reject the possibility that the Ghost was the spirit of his father? Earlier in the play he spoke of his soul as immortal (1.5.66-67). Why now should it be that the thought of death "puzzles the will"? The Ghost described its condition of afterlife, not as an "undiscover'd country" but as the Catholic purgatory necessary for the soul's purification before translation to heaven. (50) Northrop Frye argues: "The Ghost insists that Hamlet mustn't die before he's killed Claudius, and the one thing that prevents Hamlet from voluntary death is the fear that he might become just another such ghost. (99)
Main vs. Impact Story Signpost 3 as it relates to The Future:
The Ghost "urges [Hamlet] to 'step between [Gertrude] and her fighting soul" (3.4.113).
Main vs. Impact Story Journey 3 from The Future to The Present:
The Ghost in fact does not appear to speak for providence. His message is of revenge, a pagan concept basic to all primitive societies but at odds with Christian teaching. His wish that Claudius be sent to hell and that Gertrude be more gently treated is not the judgment of an impartial deity but the emotional reaction of a murdered man's restless spirit. That is not to say that Hamlet is being tempted to perform a damnable act, as he fears is possible, but that the Ghost's command cannot readily be reconciled with a complex and balanced view of justice. If Hamlet were to spring on Claudius in the fullness of his vice and cut his throat, we would pronounce Hamlet a murderer. What Hamlet believes he has learned instead is that he must become the instrument of providence according to its plans, not his own. (Bevington xxviii-xxix)
Main vs. Impact Story Signpost 4 as it relates to The Present:
Bevington interprets the current situation and circumstances as Hamlet has reconciled the Ghost's command to kill Claudius, with his own Christian beliefs:
After his return from England, he senses triumphantly that all will be for the best if he allows an unseen power to decide the time and place for his final act. Under these conditions, rash action will be right. "Rashly,/And praises be rashness for it--let us know/Our indiscretion sometimes serves us well/When our deep plots do pall, and that should learn us/there's a divinity that shapes our ends,/Rough-hew them how we will" (5.2.6-11). Passivity, too, is now a proper course, for Hamlet puts himself wholly at the disposal of providence. What had seemed so impossible when Hamlet tried to formulate his own design now proves elementary once he trusts to heaven's justice. Rashness and passivity are perfectly fused. Hamlet is revenged without having to commit premeditated murder and is relieved of his painful existence without having to commit suicide. (xxix)
The Main Character Throughline Act Order:
Main Character Signpost 1 as it relates to Developing a Plan:
Hamlet envisions how to put into effect his plan to determine the identity of the Ghost:
Hamlet: I will watch tonight.
Perchance 'twill walk again?
Horatio: I warrant it will.
Hamlet: If it assume my noble father's person,
I'll speak to it, though hell itself should gape
And bid me hold my peace. (1.2.262-267)
Main Character Journey 1 from Developing a Plan to Playing a Role:
Hamlet visualizes how to begin implementing his plan to avenge his father's death. One way is to act foolish and deranged: "To put an antic disposition on" (1.5.192).
Main Character Signpost 2 as it relates to Playing a Role:
Hamlet begins play acting the role of a madman for Polonius' benefit:
Polonius: Do you know me, my lord?
Hamlet: Excellent well. You are a fishmonger.
Polonius: (Aside) . . . He is far gone. (2.2.189-190, 206)
Main Character Journey 2 from Playing a Role to Changing One's Nature:
Hamlet journeys from playacting the madman to becoming a murderer when he slays Polonius: "Even if Polonius deserved what he got, Hamlet has made himself into a cruel "scourge of providence who must himself suffer retribution as well as deal it out" (Bevington xxviii).
Main Character Signpost 3 as it relates to Changing One's Nature:
Ophelia believes Hamlet has become quite mad "O, what a noble mind is here o'erthrown!" (3.1.163)
Main Character Journey 3 from Changing One's Nature to Conceiving an Idea:
As Hamlet becomes more melancholic with his inability to revenge his father, he is uncertain as to his own sanity. It is not until he devises a way to calm his troubled mind, that he has a small measure of peace.
Main Character Signpost 4 as it relates to Conceiving an Idea:
Hamlet comes up with the idea that providence determines everyone's fate.
The Impact Character Throughline Act Order:
Impact Character Signpost 1 as it relates to Doing:
The Ghost appears before the sentinels with no apparent purpose: "Thus twice before, and jump at this dead hour/With martial stalk hath he gone by our watch" (1.1.76-77).
Impact Character Journey 1 from Doing to Obtaining:
The Ghost stalks Elsinore castle for reasons unknown, refusing to speak. Once Hamlet stands watch, the Ghost beckons him on alone, and recounts the story of the murder of King Hamlet. Until revenge is exacted, King Hamlet's ghost is "Doomed for a certain term to walk the night/and for the day confined to fast in fires/Till the foul crimes done in my days of nature/Are burnt and purged away. (1.5.15-18)
Impact Character Signpost 2 as it relates to Obtaining:
The question of the Ghost possessing evil powers comes in to play:
Hamlet: The spirit I have seen/May be a (devil,) and the (devil) hath power/To assume a pleasing shape; yea, and perhaps, Out of my weakness and my melancholy,/As he is very potent with such spirits,/Abuses me to damn me. (2.2.627-632)
Impact Character Journey 2 from Obtaining to Gathering Information:
The Ghost desires vengeance against Claudius, and has compelled Hamlet to carry out the deed. Hamlet instructs a band of traveling players to act out the murder scene, in hopes of catching Claudius' guilty conscience. "The "Mousetrap" play is at once a fulfillment and an escape from that compulsion [revenge]. It gives, in a sense, a public voice to the Ghost's silenced story" (Neill 320). That Claudius does react in a guilty manner, resolves Hamlet's doubts about the Ghost. The Ghost's influence on Hamlet begins to have an impact on Claudius as he learns he is suspected of the murder of King Hamlet.
Impact Character Signpost 3 as it relates to Gathering Information:
The Ghost's impact as it relates to "learning" is illustrated when Claudius, watching the player's performance, learns Hamlet suspects him of murdering King Hamlet.
Impact Character Journey 3 from Gathering Information to Understanding:
The Ghost's tale of treachery makes further impact as Horatio learns the extent Claudius will go to in order to keep the late dead King Hamlet's throne--and that would be ordering to have Hamlet beheaded.
Impact Character Signpost 4 as it relates to Understanding:
How "understanding" describes The Ghost's impact is illustrated in the final scene as Horatio begins to explain to the horrified Fortinbras of: "How these things came about. So shall you hear/Of carnal, bloody, and unnatural acts,/Of accidental judgments, casual slaughters,/Of deaths put on by cunning and (forced) cause,/And, in this upshot, purposes mistook/Fall'n on th' inventors' heads. (5.2.422-427)
Miscellaneous Other Storytelling Items:
All Concerns:
The Ghost, murdered by his brother Claudius, cannot rest until all understand what really happened to him. He whispers in Hamlet's ear what really had transpired, and admonishes Hamlet to remember him, which is in direct conflict with King Claudius' intention of his subjects to forget the late King Hamlet. Hamlet spends a considerable amount of time conceptualizing the best way to exact revenge on Claudius for his father's demise.
Master Plot Synopsis:
As the play opens, Hamlet is mourning his father, who has been killed, and lamenting the behavior of his mother, Gertrude, who married his uncle Claudius within a month of his father's death. The ghost of his father appears to Hamlet, informs him that he was poisoned by Claudius, and asks Hamlet to avenge his death. Hamlet hesitates, desiring further evidence of foul play. His uncertainty and inability to act make him increasingly melancholy, and to everyone around him he seems to be going mad. To the pompous old courtier Polonius, it appears that Hamlet is lovesick over Polonius' daughter Ophelia. Despite the apparent guilt of Claudius, Hamlet still cannot bring himself to avenge his father's wrongful murder. He nevertheless terrorizes his mother and kills the eavesdropping Polonius. Justly fearing for his own life, Claudius sends Hamlet to England with Hamlet's friends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, who carry orders to have Hamlet killed. Hamlet discovers the orders, however, and alters them to make his two friends the victims instead. Hamlet returns to Denmark. There he hears that Ophelia has killed herself and that her brother Laertes seeks to avenge Polonius' murder. Claudius is only too eager to arrange the duel. Carnage ensues. Both Hamlet and Laertes are struck by the sword that Claudius has had dipped in poison. Gertrude, also present at the duel, mistakenly drinks from the cup of poison that Claudius has had placed near Hamlet to insure his death. Before Hamlet dies, he manages to kill Claudius. (Merriam Webster 511)
Master Theme Synopsis:
A recurring motif in Hamlet is of a seemingly healthy exterior concealing an interior sickness. Mere pretense of virtue as Hamlet warns his mother, "will but skin and film, the ulcerous place, / Whiles rank corruption, mining all within, / Infects unseen" (3.4.154-156). . . .This motif of concealed evil and disease continually reminds us that, in both a specific and a broader sense, "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark" (1.4.90). The specific source of contamination is a poison: the poison with which Claudius has killed Hamlet's father, the poison in the player's version of this same murder, and the two poisons (envenomed sword and poisoned drink) with which Claudious and Laertes plot to rid themselves of young Hamlet. More generally, the poison is an evil nature seeking to destroy humanity's better nature, as in the archetypal murder of Abel by Cain. "O, my offense is rank, it smells to heaven," laments Claudius, "It hath the primal eldest curse upon 't / A brother's murder" (3.3.36-38). Hamlet's father and Claudius typify what is best and worst in humanity; one is the sun-god Hyperion, the other a satyr. . . . Many a person, in Hamlet's view, is tragically destined to behold his or her better qualities corrupted by "some vicious mole of nature" over which the individual seems to have no control. "His virtues else, be they as pure as grace, / As infinite as man may undergo, / Shall in the general censure tale corruption / From that particular fault." The "dram of evil" pollutes "all the noble substance" (1.4.24-37). Thus poison spreads outward to infect individual men, just as bad individuals can infect an entire court or nation. (Bevington xix-xx)
Main vs. Impact Character Synopsis:
The effect of the Ghost's narrative upon Hamlet is to infuse him with the same desire ["the longing to speak"]; indeed, once he has formally inscribed its watchword--"Remember me"--on the tables of his memory, he is as if possessed by the Ghost, seeming to mime its speechless torment when he appears to Ophelia, looking "As if he had been loosed out of hell / To speak of horrors" (2.1.93-94). For all its pathos of silenced longing, the Ghost remains profoundly ambivalent . . . . If Claudius's propaganda has abused "the whole ear of Denmark" like a second poisoning, the Ghost's own story enters Hamlet's "ears of flesh and blood" like yet another corrosive. The fact that it is a story that demands telling, and that its narrator is "an honest ghost," cannot alter the fact that it will work away in Hamlet's being like secret venom until he in turn can vent in revenge. (Neill 319-320)
Master Character Synopsis:
Hamlet's father and Claudius typify what is best and worst in humanity; one is the sun-god Hyperion, the other a satyr. Claudius is a "serpent" and a "mildewed ear, / Blasting his wholesome brother" (1.5.40; 3.4.65-66). . . Hamlet, his mind attuned to philosophical matters, is keenly aware and poetically aware of humanity's fallen condition. He is, moreover, a shrewd observer of the Danish court, one [sic] familiar with its ways and at the same time newly returned from abroad, looking at Denmark with a stranger's eyes. What particularly darkens his view of humanity, however, is not the general fact of corrupted human nature but is rather Hamlet's knowledge of a dreadful secret. Even before he learns of his father's murder, Hamlet senses that there is something more deeply amiss than his mother's overhasty marriage to her deceased husband's brother. (Bevington xix)
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern . . . are boyhood friends of Hamlet, but are now dependent on the favor of King Claudius. Despite their seeming concern for their one-time comrade, and Hamlet's initial pleasure in receiving them, they are faceless courtiers whose very names, like their personalities, are virtually interchangeable. "Thanks, Rosencrantz and gentle Guildenstern," says the King, and "Thanks, Guildenstern and gentle Rosencrantz," echoes the Queen (2.2.33-34) (Bevington xxi).
. . . Polonius's complicity in jaded court politics is deeper than his fatuous parental sententiousness might lead one to suppose. His famous advice to his son . . . is in fact a worldly gospel of self-interest and concern for appearances. . . .Polonius may cut a ridiculous figure as a prattling busybody but he is wily and even menacing in his intent. He has actually helped Claudius to the throne and is an essential instrument of royal policy. (Bevington xxii)
Ophelia is more innocent than her father and brother, and more truly affectionate toward Hamlet. She earns our sympathy because she is caught between the conflicting wills of the men who are supremely important to her--her lover, her father, her brother. Obedient by instinct and training to patriarchal instruction, she is unprepared to cope with divided authority, and so takes refuge in passivity. . . .Ophelia becomes an instrument through which Claudius attempts to spy on Hamlet. She is much like Gertrude, for the Queen has yielded to Claudius's importunity without ever knowing fully what awful price Claudius has paid for her and for the throne. The resemblance between Ophelia and Gertrude confirms Hamlet's tendency to generalize about feminine weakness--"frailty, thy name is woman" (1.2.146) (Bevington xxiii).
Laertes thinks he has received an unambiguous mandate to revenge, since Hamlet has undoubtedly slain Polonius and helped to deprive Ophelia of her sanity. Accordingly Laertes comes back to Denmark a fury, stirring the rabble with his demagoguery . . . in his quest for vengeance. . . .Laertes has only superficially identified the murderer in the case. He is too easily deceived by Claudius because he has accepted easy and fallacious conclusions, and so is doomed to become a pawn in Claudius's sly maneuverings. (Bevington xxv)
Fortinbras of Norway, as his name implies ("strong in arms"), is one who believes in decisive action. At the beginning of the play we learn that his father has been slain in battle by old Hamlet, and that Fortinbras has collected an army to win back by force the territory fairly won by the Danes in that encounter. Like Hamlet, young Fortinbras does not succeed his father to the throne, but must now contend with an uncle-king. When this uncle, at Claudius's instigation, forbids Fortinbras to march against the Danes, and rewards him for his restraint with a huge annual income and a commission to fight the Poles instead, . . . .he pockets the money, marches against Poland, and waits for occasion to deliver Denmark as well into his hands. (Bevington xxvi)
Horatio is, as Hamlet praises him, immune to flattering or to opportunities for cheap self-advancement. . . .Hamlet can trust and love Horatio as he can no one else. (Bevington xxvii)
#1 - "Prologue to the Omen Coming On"
Act 1, Scene 1
"On the guards' platform at Elsinore, Horatio waits with Barnardo and Marcellus to question a ghost that has twice before appeared. The Ghost, in the form of the late King Hamlet of Denmark, appears but will not speak. Horatio decides to tell his fellow student, Prince Hamlet, about the Ghost's appearance" (Mowat and Werstine 6).
#2 - "In My Mind's Eye"
Act 1, Scene 2
In an audience chamber in Elsinore, Claudius, the new king of Denmark, holds court. After thanking his subjects for their recent support, he dispatches ambassadors to Norway to halt a threatened attack from Fortinbras. He gives Laertes permission to return to France but denies Hamlet's request to return to the university in Wittenberg. Hamlet, mourning for his father's death, is left alone to vent his despair at what he regards as his mother's all too hasty marriage to his uncle, Claudius. The audience learns that the marriage took place "within a month" of the former king's death. Horatio, Barnardo, and Marcellus arrive and tell Hamlet about the Ghost. Hamlet, aroused by the news, agrees to join them that night. (Mowat and Werstine 20)
#3 - "The Primrose Path of Dalliance"
Act 1, Scene 3
In Polonius's chambers, Laertes says good-bye to his sister, Ophelia, and tells her not to trust Hamlet's promises of love. Polonius joins them, sends Laertes off, then echoes Laertes's warnings to Ophelia, finally ordering her not to see Hamlet again. (Mowat and Werstine 38)
#4 - "Something is Rotten in the State of Denmark"
Act 1, Scene 4
While Claudius drinks away the night, Hamlet, Horatio, and Marcellus are visited by the Ghost. It signals to Hamlet, Hamlet's friends try to stop him from following the Ghost, but Hamlet will not be held back. (Mowat and Werstine 48)
#5 - "The Time is Out of Joint"
Act 1, Scene 5
The Ghost tells Hamlet a tale of horror. Saying that he is the spirit of Hamlet's father, he demands that Hamlet avenge King Hamlet's murder at the hands of Claudius. Hamlet, horrified, vows to "remember" and swears his friends to secrecy about what they have seen. (Mowat and Werstine 54)
#6 - "More Grief to Hide Than Hate to Utter Love"
Act 2, Scene 1
Polonius sends his servant Reynaldo to Paris to question Laertes acquaintances. Ophelia enters, deeply disturbed about a visit she has just had from an apparently mad Hamlet. Polonius decides that Hamlet has become insane because Ophelia is refusing to see him. Polonius rushes off to tell the king. (Mowat and Werstine 72)
#7 - "The Play's the Thing"
Act 2, Scene 2
Claudius and Gertrude set Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two boyhood friends of Hamlet, to spy on him to discover the cause of his apparent madness. After the returned ambassadors announce their success in stopping Fortinbras' planned invasion of Denmark, Polonius reports his "discovery" that Hamlet is mad for love. Claudius is unpersuaded but agrees to join Polonius in spying on Hamlet. When Hamlet himself enters, he is confronted first by Polonius and then by Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, whom he quickly identifies as Claudius's spies. As they talk, a company of touring actors enters. Hamlet persuades one of them to deliver a speech, and recognizes, to his shame, that he has shown less intensity in avenging his father's murder than the actor has done in performance. Hamlet hopes that, when the players stage The Murder of Gonzago for the court, he can determine whether Claudius is guilty of King Hamlet's death. (Mowat and Werstine 80)
#8 - "To Be or Not To Be"
Act 3, Scene 1
After Rosencrantz and Guildenstern report their failure to find the cause of Hamlet's madness, Polonius places Ophelia where he and Claudius may secretly observe a meeting between her and Hamlet. Hamlet is at first courteous to Ophelia, but suddenly he turns on her: he denies having loved her, asks where her father is, attacks womankind, and tells her she should enter a nunnery. After Hamlet exits, Claudius decides that Hamlet's erratic behavior is not caused by love and announces a plan to send Hamlet on an embassy to England. Polonius persuades Claudius to take no action until Gertrude talks with Hamlet after the play, which is scheduled for that evening. (Mowat and Werstine 122)
NOTE: In this scene, just prior to Hamlet meeting Ophelia, is when the famous "To be or not to be" soliloquy takes place.
#9 - "The Lady Doth Protest Too Much"
Act 3, Scene 2
Hamlet gives direction to the actors and asks Horatio to help him observe Claudius's reaction to the play. When the court arrive, Hamlet makes bawdy and bitter comments to Ophelia. The traveling actors perform, in dumb show and then with dialogue, a story that includes many elements of Claudius's alleged seduction of Gertrude and murder of King Hamlet. At the moment that the Player King is murdered in his garden by his nephew, Claudius stops the play and rushes out. Hamlet is exuberant that the Ghost's word has been proved true. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern return to tell Hamlet that Claudius is furious and that Gertrude wishes to see Hamlet at once in her sitting room. Hamlet promises himself that he will not harm her, though he will "speak daggers." (Mowat and Werstine 134)
#10 - "A Brother's Murder"
Act 3, Scene 3
Claudius orders Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to take Hamlet to England immediately. Polonius arrives to tell Claudius of his plans to spy on Hamlet's conversation with Gertrude. Left alone, Claudius reveals to the audience his remorse for killing his brother, and he tries to pray. Hamlet comes upon him kneeling and draws his sword, but then stop to think that if he kills Claudius at prayer, Claudius will go to heaven. Hamlet decides to kill Claudius when the king is committing a sin so that Claudius will instead go to hell. After Hamlet leaves, Claudius rises, saying that he has been unable to pray. (Mowat and Werstine 162)
#11 - "A King of Shreds and Patches"
Act 3, Scene 4
In Gertrude's room, Polonius hides behind a tapestry. Hamlet's entrance so alarms Gertrude that she cries out for help. Polonius echoes her cry, and Hamlet, thinking Polonius to be Claudius, stabs him to death. Hamlet then verbally attacks his mother for marrying Claudius. In the middle of Hamlet's attack, the Ghost returns to remind Hamlet that his real purpose is to avenge his father's death. Gertrude cannot see the Ghost and pities Hamlet's apparent madness. After the Ghost exits, Hamlet urges Gertrude to abandon Claudius's bed. He then tells her about Claudius's plan to send him to England and reveals his suspicions that the journey is a plot against him, which he resolves to counter violently. He exits dragging out Polonius's body. (Mowat and Werstine 168)
#12 - "Hamlet in Madness Hath Polonius Slain"
Act 4, Scene 1
Gertrude reports Polonius's death to Claudius, who sends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to find Hamlet and recover the body. (Mowat and Werstine 188)
#13 - "A Knavish Speech Sleeps in a Foolish Ear"
Act 4, Scene 2
Hamlet refuses to tell Rosencrantz and Guildenstern where he has put Polonius's body. (Mowat and Werstine 192)
#14 - "Come, For England"
Act 4, Scene 3
Hamlet is brought to Claudius, who tells him that he is to leave immediately for England. Alone, at the end of this scene, Claudius discloses to the audience that he is sending Hamlet to his death. (Mowat and Werstine 194)
#15 - "How All Occasions Do Inform Against Me"
Act 4, Scene 4
Fortinbras and his army march across Hamlet's path on their way to Poland. Hamlet finds in Fortinbras's vigorous activity a model for himself in avenging his father's murder; Hamlet resolves upon bloody action. (Mowat and Werstine 198)
#16 - "There's Such Divinity Doth Hedge a King"
Act 4, Scene 5
Reports reach Gertrude that Ophelia is mad. Ophelia enters singing about death and betrayal. After Ophelia has gone, Claudius agonizes over her madness and over the stir created by the return of an angry Laertes. When Laertes breaks in on Claudius and Gertrude, Claudius asserts his innocence with regard to Polonius's death. The reappearance of the mad Ophelia is devastating to Laertes. (Mowat and Werstine 204)
#17 - "I Have Words to Speak in Thine Ear"
Act 4, Scene 6
Horatio is given a letter from Hamlet telling of the prince's boarding of a pirate ship and his subsequent return to Denmark. (Mowat and Werstine 220)
#18 - "Too Much of Water Hast Thou, Poor Ophelia"
Act 4, Scene 7
Claudius, in conversation with Laertes also gets a letter from Hamlet announcing the prince's return. Claudius enlists Laertes's willing help in devising another plot against Hamlet's life. Laertes agrees to kill Hamlet with a poisoned rapier in a fencing match. If he fails, Claudius will give Hamlet a poisoned cup of wine. Gertrude interrupts their plotting to announce that Ophelia has drowned. (Mowat and Werstine 222)
#19 - "Sweets to the Sweet"
Act 5, Scene 1
Hamlet, returned from his journey, enters a graveyard with Horatio where a gravedigger is singing as he digs. Hamlet tries to find out who the grave is for and meditates on the skulls that are being dug up. A funeral procession approaches. Hamlet soon realizes that the corpse is Ophelia's. When Laertes in his grief leaps into her grave and curses Hamlet as the cause of Ophelia's death, Hamlet comes forward. He and Laertes struggle, with Hamlet protesting his own love and grief for Ophelia. (Mowat and Werstine 238)
#20 - "There's a Divinity That Shapes Our Ends"
Act 5, Scene 2
In the hall of the castle, Hamlet tells Horatio how he discovered the king's plot against him and how he turned the tables on Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Osric enters to ask, on Claudius's behalf, that Hamlet fence with Laertes. Hamlet agrees to the contest, despite his misgivings. Hamlet is winning the match when Gertrude drinks from the poisoned cup that Claudius has prepared for Hamlet. Laertes then wounds Hamlet with the poisoned rapier. In the scuffle that follows, Hamlet forces an exchange of rapiers, and Hamlet wounds Laertes. As Gertrude dies, Laertes, himself dying, discloses his and Claudius's plot against Hamlet. Hamlet kills Claudius. Before Hamlet dies, he asks Horatio to tell the full story that has led to these deaths and names Fortinbras heir to the Danish throne, After Hamlet's death, Fortinbras arrives, claims the crown, and orders a military funeral for Hamlet. (Mowat and Werstine 258)
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