Act 4 continued and Act 5

Claudius begins reasoning with Laertes, telling him he was his father's friends, and Laertes should only hurt the enemies of Polonius, to which Laertes agrees. Just then Ophelia enters in her mad state, and Laertes lets out a tragic wail, completely devastated by her madness. He believes Ophelia's sanity has died with his father, and it makes him even more bent on revenge, he promises to avenge Ophelia too. Ophelia begins giving out flowers, but surprisingly in her madness she seems to have realised the sins of Gertrude and Claudius. She gives Gertrude a flower to symbolise adultery, and she gives Claudius a flower to represent repentence. There is absolutely no evidence Ophelia knows of Claudius's great sin, but somehow in her madness she seems to have realised, perhaps there is a greater theme in the play linking madness to knowledge. Ophelia leaves, still singing a song about her dead father and Laertes is incredibly distressed. Claudius tells Laertes to go and find his wisest friends to question him, and should they find him guilty in being involved in the murder of Polonius he will give up his crown and life. Should they find him innocent Claudius will help Laertes gain revenge on the one who is really responsible (Hamlet.) Claudius knows he will be found innocent of having any involvement, however from a wider perspective the audience knows that Claudius was the one who caused Hamlet's madness, so very indirectly he is responsible for Polnius's death. Laertes says the way he was buried quickly with no state funeral made him think he was murdered, Claudius says he is right and the one who did it must die. This is foreshadowing the death of the guilty Hamlet and also the death of Claudius himself, who as i have said is indirectly responsible.

In scene 5 Horatio receives a letter from some sailors from Hamlet, who had been travelling to England. In the letter Hamlet tells Horatio that these men also have letters to the King. Hamlet then tells Horatio the story of his escape, telling him that their ship to England was pursued and caught by pirates. In the ensuing battle Hamlet escaped onto the pirate ship, who left with he as their sole prisoner. The pirates treated him well, mainly as they knew he could do favours for them. Hamlet tells Horatio he has some shocking stories to tell him, particulalry about Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, who have continued their journey to England. Horatio goes to show the messengers to the king so that Horatio may go and see Hamlet. Horatio by this point seems to be Hamlet's only true friend, the only one that really knows what Hamlet is doing why and the only one Hamlet trusts.

Between scene 5 and 7 Claudius seems to have been judged by Laertes's wise friends, and in scene 7 Laertes has accepted that it was Hamlet who killed Polonius, thinking it was Claudius. Laertes asks why Claudius didn't punish his nephew, and Claudius replies because of the devoution of Gertrude and the devotion of the public to Hamlet. Laertes still wants his revenge and Claudius is keen to help him, with his own safety threatended, he is about to tell Laertes of his play to have Hamlet killed in England when the messengers with the letters arrive. Hamlet's letter to Claudius says that Hamlet is coming back to look upon the King and ask forgiveness, and that he will tell the King the story of his sudden return when he gets to the palace. Claudius is alarmed, and believes it may be false, but he recognises the handwriting. Laertes wishes him to come, and to be able to accuse Hamlet to his face before killing him.

Claudius feels it is right for Laertes to feel this way, and offers to guide and direct him. Laertes agrees, as long as Claudius doesn’t lead him towards peace and as long as Laertes is the tool for Hamlet’s demise. Claudius tells him if Hamlet does not mean to continue to England then Claudius will set a trap which will kill him, and will do it so cunningly it will seem to everyone like an accident. Claudius tells Laertes that Hamlet is extremely jealous of Laertes’ skill with a sword, which was decribed by a Laertes’ Norman friend Lamond to Claudius as being the best he has ever seen (though we are unsure if this is a real story or merely one to flatter Laertes, Claudius already flattered him by saying “and that in my regard of the unworthiest siege.”) Claudius then rifles Laertes, asking if he’s sure he actually loved his father, egging him on for the next part of Claudius’s plan. He tells Laertes not to kill Hamlet immediately; instead Claudius and his men will praise Laertes’s talent so much that Hamlet will get angry and challenge Laertes to a duel. Then Claudius will have one of the swords sharpened, and Hamlet, who is so careless and unsuspecting, will not realise so Laertes can choose the sharp sword and run it through him. From Claudius’s point of view, I hardly think unsuspecting is the right word to use for Hamlet, but never mind. Laertes agrees, and also says he will dip his sword into some deadly poison, which will kill anyone who sustains as little as a scratch. Claudius then says they need a back-up plan, and says he will have a cup of drink for Hamlet, which he will ask for when he gets hot from the fight, which will also be filled with deadly poison. This cunning and dastardly plan really gets the audience excited for the finale, but the audience identifies that with so much poison about someone else could easily end up mistakenly taking some. Poison was also the method Claudius used to kill King Hamlet, and poison seems to be becoming a theme in the play, both literally and metaphorically.

Gertrude enters, and tells Laertes Ophelia has drowned. She recalls that Ophelia was making flower wreaths from the flowers by the willow tree that overhangs the brook. She climbed up the willow tree to hang her wreaths on the willow branches, then fell into the water. She seemed to be completely unaware of her danger, still singing while floating for a while, before she was pulled under and drowned. While it is not explicably said that Ophelia killed herself, it seems most likely she did, certainly the gravediggers in the next scene think so. Ophelia is perhaps the most tragic character in the play, simply a girl in love controlled by her father and manipulated and tortured by her troubled lover. The man she loved killed her father, and through no wrong or malice of her own she has lost all she has, including her very sanity. Ophelia is a fairly one-dimensional character, and in comparison has few lines in the play, but even so she provokes the most audience sympathy, and is one of the main reasons for disliking the character of Hamlet.

Laertes says that Ophelia has suffered too much water, so will refrain from crying. But his emotion overcomes him, and he begins sobbing, cursing himself for acting like a woman. The death of Ophelia has made him even more bent on revenge, and he is angry again, but that emotion is currently overcome with pure, raw grief, and he leaves crying. Claudius follows him, annoyed that after so much effort in calming him down he may do something rash. Laertes sobbing is a very poignant moment in the play. Laertes has lost his father and his sister, and both deaths are down to Hamlet, and his temporary madness caused by his delay in avenging his father. Hamlet has proved to be incredibly destructive to all those around him, and this is perfectly epitomised in the sight of the brave and dashing Laertes reduced to sobbing for the losses Hamlet has caused.

In Act 5 Scene 1 there is a rare showing of comedy with the gravediggers scene. The two gravediggers are arguing over wether Ophelia should be given a Christian burial, when it is common knowledge she committed suicide. The second gravedigger is merely carrying out orders and digging a Christian grave while the first gravedigger questions the verdict, how it is possible for one to throw herself into the water and not be judged to have committed suicide, unless she acted in self defence. The second gravedigger relents and admits she only gets a Christian burial because she was rich. The first clown likens gravediggers to Adam, saying it is one of the oldest professions there is. He then asks the second “What is he that builds stronger than either the mason, the shipwright or the carpenter?” The second replies the man who makes gallows, as his building outlives thousands of tenants. The first laughs but says the correct answer is a gravedigger, as what he builds lasts till judgement day. He sends the second to fetch him some booze, and continues digging the grave while singing, just as Hamlet and Horatio enter. Hamlet finds it inappropriate that the gravedigger sings while digging a grave, and that he throws old bones and skulls up from the grave without any care or gentleness. Hamlet reflects who the skull once belonged too, and what he did in his life, returning to the thoughtful Hamlet of earlier in the play. The skulls and dead bodies are also foreshadowing the coming of death of almost all the main characters.  Hamlet asks the gravedigger who the grave belongs too, the gravedigger replies it belongs to him, and Hamlet must ask who is to be buried in it, a man or woman. The gravedigger replies neither, but someone who used to be a woman but is now dead. Hamlet comments that the peasants have almost become as clever as the nobles to Horatio. Hamlet himself appears in conversation, and in a moment of dramatic irony Hamlet asks the gravedigger for information about himself. The gravedigger reveals one of the skulls belonged to Yorick, the king’s jester. Hamlet remembers him from childhood, and is upset and disgusted by the decay that has happened. Hamlet seems to be extremely troubled by the concept of death, perhaps explaining why it has taken him so long to murder Claudius and risk execution for treason. Hamlet discusses how the ashes of Alexander the Great or someone else of such calibre can end up being used to plug up barrels, a concept he has already mentioned, earlier in the play he talked about how worms that eat noblemen are eaten by animals which are then eaten by peasants.

The Funeral procession enters, and Hamlet and Horatio wait out of sight and watch Claudius, Gertrude and Laertes enter with the coffin and some other lords and attendants. Hamlet wonders who is in the coffin, and comments that with so few guests the person must have killed themselves. With such noble guests the person must have also come from a wealthy family. The priest refuses to perform any more rites for Ophelia, as she had committed suicide, and the priest only let her be buried within the graveyard and hymns be sung for her because the king made it so. Laertes wants more rites, and wants violets to bloom on her grave. He says the pure Ophelia will be in heaven while the priest burns in hell for refusing to perform rites for his sister. At this point Hamlet realises it is Ophelia who is in the coffin. Gertrude scatters flower for her, saying how she had wished for Hamlet and Ophelia to marry, reinforcing the waste that has been caused and reinforcing the tragedy. Laertes curses Hamlet one again for robbing him of his sister, and suddenly jumps into the grave, overcome with emotion, wishing to hold her again and be buried with her. At this point Hamlet comes forward, and claims his grief is greatest of all, and he also jumps in the grave. Laertes tells Hamlet to go to hell and begins attacking him, putting his hands around Hamlet’s throat. Hamlet warns Laertes that he is dangerous, though not rash and quick to anger (though you could argue sometimes Hamlet is rash, jumping into the grave being an example.) Attendants separate the two men. Hamlet claims he loved Ophelia, and the love of forty thousand brothers can’t match his own love for her. He asks Laertes if he will cry, fight, stop eating or eat a crocodile out of grief, and Hamlet says he will do all of these things, and anything Laertes does will he will outdo. This seems to be an immature thing to do, instead of trying to comprehend the losses Laertes has suffered by his own hand and understanding how upset Laertes is, he wants to fight Laertes to prove who loved Ophelia the most, almost like a child-like game. The issue of wether Hamlet did love Ophelia as much as he says in Act 5 is left ambiguous, after all he did treat her with extreme cruelty and didn’t attempt to see her after the play was performed. But perhaps he was just caught up in his task, and didn’t want to see Ophelia after he had murdered her father. Gertrude dismisses Hamlet’s behaviour as insanity, and Hamlet leaves. Claudius sends Horatio and guards to keep an eye on Hamlet, and implores Laertes to be patient and implement the plan they had already discussed. He also promises to erect a monument for Ophelia, again acting in a slimy and over complimentary towards Laertes, thrilled he has someone else to do his dirty work for him.

Act 5 Scene 2 begins with Hamlet recalling the rest of the tale of his escape to Horatio. He says that while on the ship he began to get a bad feeling about the intentions of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and acted rashly and impulsively. Interestingly Hamlet defends impulsiveness, saying sometimes it is great when well laid plans fail. Certainly it may have served Hamlet well at the beginning of the play, but he seems to only be realising this now. This fits with one of the conditions of classic Shakespeare tragedy, that the tragic hero realises his flaw at the end of the play when it is too late, Hamlet is now doomed, but at least he is realising the error of his ways. Hamlet tells Horatio he searched the bags of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern and found a letter from Claudius to the king of England, telling the English King to kill Hamlet as soon as he got there. Hamlet says he carefully re-wrote the letter, flattering the King of England and then asking him to kill the carriers of the letter without letting them go to a priest and confess. Hamlet luckily had his uncle’s signet ring with the emblem of Denmark, so could seal the letter and replace it in the bag. Hamlet says he feels no guilt for the demise of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, as they brought it upon themselves by allying with Claudius. Even so it seems harsh that he didn’t even let them go to a priest before they were killed, but Hamlet seems to have become hardened by events in the play. It is interesting that after suffering with the concept of murder so much, Hamlet has now murdered three individuals. (There is a question over why Rosencrantz and Guildenstern would deliver the letter to the King, when their quarry has escaped, if they have any sense they would have gone off on a jolly in England instead of delivering the letter.) Hamlet tells Horatio that now that Claudius has killed his father, whored his mother and tried to kill him, that Hamlet can now feel absolutely no guilt in killing him. Perhaps this was the reason Hamlet failed to kill his uncle, he was too worried about his own conscience. Hamlet tells Horatio he feels bad for his behaviour in front of Laertes, and he promises to be nice to him from now on, showing still a glimpse of humanity and sensitivity.

Unusually for this late stage of the play, a new character, Osric, is introduced. Hamlet has met him before, he is rich so is part of the court, but according to Hamlet he is an insect and very annoying. He is also very effeminate, choosing to take off his hat like a lady instead of keep it on, claiming it is very hot (It’s Denmark!?) Osric tells Hamlet that the King has placed a large bet on Hamlet, and also describes Laertes as the finest gentlemen there is, hinting he has a crush on him. Hamlet agrees that Laertes is a great man, and the only man equal to him is his own reflection. Hamlet toys with Oscric, using language he can’t understand. Osric claims Laertes is a fantastic fencer, and describes the size of the bets placed, and tells him Claudius has bet that Laertes won’t beat Hamlet by more than three hits. Osric asks Hamlet if he will accept the dual, and Hamlet does, falling into the trap lain for him. Horatio believes Hamlet will lose the bet, but Hamlet reveals he has been practising ever since Laertes went to France, so unsuspecting of his talent Laertes will be caught unawares and Hamlet may end up winning. Even so he has a sinking feeling, foreshadowing what it to come. Horatio thinks Hamlet shouldn’t fight, but Hamlet reveals he believes in destiny, and he must fight now.

Everyone comes to watch the dual, and at the handshake Hamlet apologises to Laertes, saying it was his madness that insulted him and caused his grief, not Hamlet himself. He almost tries to absolve himself of guilt, but he does show remorse. Laertes reveals that in his heart he forgives Hamlet, a very nice thing. But says he will still fight him to protect his honour and reputation. They begin duelling, with Osric as referee, and Hamlet hits Laertes. As a reward Claudius offers Hamlet a drink with a rich pearl in it (which is actually the poison.) But the men go on, and Hamlet hits Laertes again. By this point Hamlet has gotten hot and out of breath, and the queen goes to wipe his brow. She takes the wine meant for Hamlet and goes to drink it to his health. Claudius quickly tells her not to drink, but she does so anyway, and Claudius knows she has drunken the poison. The men duel on, with Laertes more fired up, as Hamlet bates him and Claudius doesn’t think he can win. Laertes expresses some guilt in what he is about to do, but still wounds Hamlet with the poisoned, sharpened tip. In more fighting the men end up swapping swords, and then Hamlet wounds Laertes with the same poisoned blade. Claudius wants them to be separated, but then Gertrude collapses. Horatio and Osric ask how the two fighters are, Laertes replies he feels like a mouse caught in its own trap, and collapses, saying he is “justly killed with mine own treachery.” Hamlet asks after the Queen, and Claudius replies she fainted from the blood, but Gertrude suddenly shouts to Hamlet that she has been poisoned from the wine, before dying. Hamlet demands to know who is responsible, and Laertes tells him everything. About the blade which is going to kill Laertes and Hamlet in a matter of minutes, the poison that killed the Queen, the fact that is was planned and Laertes then blames the King for the death of Gertrude. Hamlet realising he has the poisoned blade, turns around and wounds Claudius. The other noblemen cry treason, but Hamlet still grabs the cup and forces the rest of the poison down Claudius’s throat. Finally, after the longest play in Shakespeare, Claudius is finally killed by Hamlet. Phew. Laertes says Claudius got what he deserved and he absolves Hamlet of any guilt for his or Polonius’s death, also claiming it is not his fault for Hamlet’s oncoming death. In a way Laertes is right, as all action in the play can be attributed to Claudius’s original sin. Laertes dies. Hamlet then collapses, and begins to say goodbye to Horatio and the others, calling his mother a wretched queen. He tells Horatio to tell everyone the story of what really happened, as he no longer has the time. Horatio doesn’t wish to be left behind, and is about to drink the little poison left in the cup but Hamlet stops him, imploring Horatio to tell the story to the world, so they may know why Hamlet acted so strangely.

Outside a military march and cannons are sounding, and Osric announces it is the young Fortinbras, returned victorious from Poland, now looking to avenge his father and conquer Denmark. Hamlet does not live to see Fortinbras appear, but says he is sure Fortinbras will get the Danish throne by popular choice, and says he is happy for him to take over. The poison overcomes Hamlet, and he dies-satisfying the main condition of a tragedy – the end death of the main character. Horatio mourns Hamlet, but doesn’t have much time to do it before Fortinbras enters the palace with an English Ambassador. Fortinbras is shocked by the sight of all the dead bodies, and Horatio comments that if he wanted to see a tragedy, he has come to the right place. Fortinbras thinks it unnecessary that so many deaths have come at once, especially when the ambassador announces Guildenstern and Rosencrantz have been put to death supposedly on the orders of the King. This could be argued against Shakespeare, that perhaps the deaths of so many main characters in the space of a few lines is dramatic overload, though it could also be said it makes Hamlet a truly great tragedy, with complete destruction and loss of life, and in this case kingdom. Horatio tells Fortinbras to display the bodies, so he may tell the story of all that happened. Fortinbras agrees, but also considers his rights to the kingdom, now the entire royal family of Denmark has been wiped out. Horatio and Fortinbras go to sort out the mess that has been left, and Fortinbras orders Hamlet’s body to be carried like a soldier onto the platform where they are all to be displayed, and orders military music and military rites to be peformed in his honour and a cannon fired again in his honour. The reason for this, as Fortinbras explains, is that Hamlet was the most noble and would have “proved most royally had he been put on.” Fortinbras doesn’t realise yet that Hamlet blessed his acquisition of power, as Horatio hasn’t told him, so this can be judged purely to be Fortinbras’s own opinion. One of the hallmarks of a tragedy is that at the end the other characters realise the greatness of the tragic hero and really feel the loss of that individual. Horatio is grieving for Hamlet, while Fortinbras, who did not know Hamlet very well, seems to have thought him very noble, so this certainly fits with the general outline of Shakespearean tragedy. Another hallmark of tragedy is the new hope right at the end, and this is represented by Fortinbras’s new rule of Denmark, and the purging of the rottenness and poison within Denmark, as now all the characters involved at all with the plotting and bad actions in the story are dead.

Is Fortinbras right?

Fortinbras says that Hamlet "was likely, had he been put on, to have proved most royal." Fortinbras is saying Hamlet, was the most kingly out of himself, Claudius and Laertes, and would have made the best king. So does Hamlet have the right qualities for a king? He is certainly a clever, learned scholar, and is at least at the beginning, a good character. However during the play his emotion and madness directly causes the death of Polonius, the madness of Ophelia, the deaths of Rosencrants and Guildenstern (though these men were planning to kill him, and Hamlet's escape of their clutches and changing the letter so Rosencrantz and Guildenstern would instead be killed shows great cunning, a good attribute for a king.) Indirectly he has also caused the death of Laertes and his own mother Gertrude as well as himself. This is not a good quality of a king, Hamlet has desamated everything around him, and it is thanks to his actions in the play that Denmark is easily conquered by Norway. Hamlet is perhaps too emotional to be King, showing great emotion throughout the entire play, particularly jumping into Ophelia's grave, hardly something a respectable king should do. Hamlet has also shown himself to be rather cowardly, waiting and waiting to to avenge his father and murder Claudius, who deserves to die. This is in great contrast to Fortinbras and Laertes, who assemble armies and march on the royal house of Denmark as soon as their own fathers have been killed, showing bravery and qualites of a knight and war leader. Hamlet is in fact a good swordsmen, showed by his fight with Laertes, but instead of using his sword to kill Claudius he delays and delays, and could never be the war hero like his father You could say in his favour that Hamlet is more controlled than Fortinbras and Laertes, but infact the killing of Polonius is rash and uncontrolled, so Hamlet doesn't seem to be able to use his emotion when the time is right, something that would not make him a good king. Hamlet has also shown himself to be misogynist, calling his mother every name under the sun and being incredibly cruel towards Ophelia. A royal king should show restraint, but in Act three Hamlet disregards his former restraint he had in Act 1 by openly showing his disgust at the marriage of Gertrude and Claudius during the play and later in the conversation with Gertrude herself. Hamlet shows only slight remorse for his murder of Polonius, and seems to accept no punishment, which is in contrast to Laertes, who repents for poisoning his sword and killing Hamlet even though Hamlet murdered his father in cold blood. Laertes shows underhand tactics by poisoning his sword to kill Hamlet, something Hamlet wouldn't do, however i do not think Fortinbras is right and Hamlet does not act very royal and king-like in the play. He is more King-like than the murdering Claudius, but i perhaps think Laertes would be a better king, showing bravery and remorse.

Hamlet Reading Journal Notes Act 3 Scene 4 and Act 4

Act three scene four starts with Polonius hiding behind Gertrude’s curtain, so that he might hear the conversation between Gertrude and Hamlet. Gertrude promises to be blunt with Hamlet, and as soon as he enters he tells him that “thou hast thy father much offended.” This refers to Claudius being the father of Hamlet, something which absolutely rifles Hamlet, as the audience understands. Hamlet says to Gertrude he wishes she wasn’t his mother, while referring again to her new marriage, calling her “your husband’s brother’s wife.” This is the first time Hamlet has lambasted Gertrude openly to her face, prior to this he had been speaking to other people or criticising through his play. At the beginning of the play Hamlet said that he had to “hold his tongue,” but tonight he is filled with emotion, having just proven Claudius’s guilty, filling him both with victory and dread. This comment seems to deeply hurt Gertrude, and she wishes to call in others to talk to him, but in a dramatic moment Hamlet seems to attack his mother, forcing a mirror to her face so that she may seem what she has become. Gertrude is alarmed, and believes Hamlet may be trying to kill her, though I doubt Hamlet has any intention of killing her he certainly seems to attack her with some force. She calls out for help, and Polonius also calls out for help. Hamlet, hearing him, goes over to the curtain and stabs it with his sword, killing Polonius in the climax of Act three. After so much thought and debate over death from Hamlet previously in the play, and so much procrastination over killing Claudius, who undoubtedly deserves it, Hamlet has in the blink of en eye become a cold blooded murderer of an innocent victim. There is nothing evil about Polonius, though Hamlet, associating him with Claudius and Ophelia, feels resentment towards him. There is a very real question over why Hamlet kills Polonius, and how he can kill him so easily having previously struggled so much with the act of killing. After killing Polonius, Hamlet asks if it is the King, which would provide an explanation for the killing, if Hamlet mistook Polonius for Claudius. It’s also possible that Hamlet was filled with so much emotion and hatred towards Claudius and Gertrude after proving the ghost’s story that Polonius was the merely the unfortunate victim of Hamlets release of anger. While Hamlet isn’t fond of Polonius, it seems unlikely that Hamlet would have killed him did he know exactly who it was, as there is no real reason to kill Polonius. The murder of Polonius signifies Hamlet’s downfall, which all tragic hero’s must experience. In this case the downfall has strangely resulted from a quality that Hamlet could have used at the end of Act 3, rash hot-blooded killing. Either Hamlet has killed Polonius mistaking him for Claudius, in which case this would have avoided had Hamlet killed him earlier, or from a build-up of angry emotions, that have increased the longer Hamlet has waited to kill the king. Though the murder of Polonius seems to have been caused by rash, hot-bloodedness, the audience is aware it has really been caused by Hamlet’s procrastination over killing Polonius, which is his great flaw.

Hamlet doesn’t seem to show any remorse for the killing of Polonius, saying that he mistook him for Claudius but Polonius deserves it for eavesdropping on their conversation. Though a tragic hero is supposed to maintain audience sympathy for the whole of the play, I think I lost quite a bit of sympathy for Hamlet here, when he refuses to show remorse, his excuse being that murdering Polonius isn’t as bad as the sin Claudius and Gertrude have committed “almost as bad as kill a king and marry with his brother.” Claudius killing his brother doesn’t justify Hamlet killing someone else, but Hamlet seems to have become completely obsessed with his uncle’s sin and mother’s betrayal, blocking all else out. Straight after killing Polonius, Hamlet again begins laying into her mother about her marriage, while she is still shocked and bewildered by her son’s bloody act. He says he wishes to wring her heart, if it has not become too hard and stone-like by her deeds “If damned custom have not brassed it so.” It does seem as if the sin of Claudius and Gertrude has become so large in Hamlet’s mind that he is blind to all else, in which case he could be accused of being mad and frenzied with bitterness. Hamlet asks his mother how she could stoop so low as Claudius after being married to his great father. And says “Proclaim no shame when the compulsive ardor gives the charge” meaning acting on impulse seems to be ok now the older generation are doing it, perhaps trying to justify his murder of Polonius. Gertrude seems to acknowledge her sins, begging Hamlet to stop, “thou turnest mine eyes into my very soul, and there I see such black and grained spots.”

Just then the Ghost appears, but surprisingly it is only visible to Hamlet, Gertrude is not able to see it. As Hamlet speaks to what appears to be thin ear Gertrude believes even more that Hamlet has gone insane. Hamlet asks if the ghost has come to scold him for not completing his mission, and while the ghost confirms this is one of the reasons, to make him remember what he must do, he also has come to protect Gertrude, and wishes Hamlet not to lambast her anymore and stop her from going mad, having just witnessed a bloody murder. Hamlet asks how she is, but all she can ask is who Hamlet is talking too. Hamlet insists there is a ghost, which then promptly exits. Hamlet insists he is not mad but it is Gertrude’s sin that is the problem, again her sin has blocked out any sin of his own in his mind. Hamlet demands Gertrude repent her sins to stop evil spreading, and Gertrude exclaims Hamlet has broken her heart. Hamlet suggests she lives life with the better half of her heart, and prepares to leave, but first demands his father not sleep with Claudius tonight, and begin to stop going to bed with him at all. Hamlet then acknowledges Polonius, and finally shows remorse “For this same lord, I do repent.” But blames heaven for punishing him by making him commit this murder “but heaven hath pleased it so, to punish me with this.” The word punish suggests Hamlet is in fact suffering for Polonius’s death, but is still not blaming himself entirely for the murder, looking to blame others. Hamlet mentions his trip to England, before dragging Polonius away with him, there is not definite reason for this, though perhaps Hamlet feels he should bury him now he has killed him.

At the beginning of Act 4 Gertrude tells Claudius of what Hamlet has done. Claudius, in a show for Gertrude, exhibits guilt for letting Hamlet’s madness get out of control, but claims he loved him too much to take measures to restrain him. He never mentions punishing Hamlet to Gertrude, saying he will use his power as King to pardon him. Gertrude claims Hamlet shows remorse, and weeps for what he has done. In the brief scene 2 Rosencrantz and Guildenstern find Hamlet and ask where the body is. Hamlet says he has buried it, but will not tell them where as they are sponges that follow the kings orders. He then goes to see the King. In scene three Claudius tells his attendants that the reason they can’t properly punish Hamlet is he is too loved by the people, who will be blind to his crime, and as such a more subtle punishment is needed. Claudius asks Hamlet where Polonius’s body is, and Hamlet is remarkably unhelpful and lippy towards the King, not showing the remorse Gertrude claimed, or perhaps this is a show for the Kings sake. Claudius tells Hamlet he is to be sent England, and Hamlet seems very happy and enthusiastic about it, going off to start his trip. When Hamlet leaves Claudius writes a letter to the King of England, calling in a favour and asking him to kill Hamlet as soon as he arrives in England. After Claudius’s show of guilt in Act 3 he has again become a villain, now planning to use others to kill his nephew, worrying purely over his own safety and the truth of his murder being kept secret. Suddenly audience sympathy shifts back to Hamlet, as the audience is rooting for him to escape Claudius’s plan.

 In scene 4 Hamlet encounters the Norwegian army, and is told they have only been assembled to fight over a small patch of Polish land (though the audience realizes it is to takeover Denmark.) Hamlet is amazed at how so many men are willing to give up their lives to fight merely over a patch of infertile land in Poland, and in comparison Hamlet sees himself as a coward for not yet killing Claudius. These men are prepared to fight and die over nothing but their honour, but Hamlet, with grave crimes committed against his family, has still to kill Claudius. Hamlet mentions he shouldn’t be alive to say he has yet to commit the deed, suggesting that Hamlet thought he would himself be killed for murdering Claudius, suggesting why it has taken him so long to do it, fearing for his own life. Now Hamlet, inspired by the Norwegian soldiers says that from now he must concentrate on his revenge and nothing else, really deciding to finally do the deed.
In scene 5 the audience sees Ophelia's madness. Madness is a great theme in the play, and Ophelia's madness is completely genuine, her beloved father has just been killed by the man she loves, so she has understanably gone a bit loopy. She sings a song about a death (her father) then goes onto to sing about a young man who seduced a young virgin, and refused to marry her because she was no longer a virgin (referring to Hamlet, though we're not sure if this story actually happened between them.) Claudius and Gertrude are alarmed at her madness, and Claudius regrets burying Polonius so quickly as rumours have begin spreading that it was Claudius who killed him. More news comes that Laertes, having been told of his father's death, has come straight to Denmark from France and has whipped up a frenzy, he now has a mob of supporters who wish him to be king instead of Claudius. This means that the people of Denmark are unhappy with the leadership of Claudius. This is the third son seeking revenge for his fathers death, along with Hamlet and Fortinbras. Fortinbras has assemblied an army and marched on Denmark, and Laertes has also assemblied an army of sorts and marched on the royal house immediately, both hungry for blood and revenge. Both of these in contrast to Hamlet, who instead pretended to be mad while procrastinating and thinking. Hamlet's procrastination and build-up of emotion has resulted in the death of Polonius, which has caused the madness of Ophelia and the wrath of Laertes. Hamlet's own downfall has caused the downfall of this whole family. Laertes smashes in and completely disregards his oath of allegiance to the King, asking who killed his father and preparing to kill the one who did it, who he believes is Claudius.

Reading journal notes on Hamlet Act 2 and Act 3 scenes 1-3

The time that has passed between act 1 and act 2 is unspecified, but it seems to have been a few weeks or even months. Hamlet, despite promising to avenge his father, has yet to kill Claudius, a delay that has been greatly bothering him. The Act starts with Polonius sending his servant Reynaldo to Paris to spy on his son Laertes, and make sure he has not been drinking, gambling, fighting or visiting prostitutes. Reynaldo leaves and Ophelia enters, in a flap. She tells her father that last night Hamlet came into her room while she was sewing, he wasn't wearing a hat, his shirt was unbuttoned and his stockings were dirty and down around his ankles, he held Ophelia by the wrist and stood staring at her for a long time, then shook her arm and jerked his head up and down before leaving without taking his eyes from Ophelia. Ophelia mentions he looked as pale as his shirt and "as if he had loosed out of hell to speak of horrors" (this is a reference to the old King Hamlets ghost, which had come from hell to speak of horrors.) Polonious believes Hamlet is mad with love, "This is the very ecstasy of love, whose violent property forbodes itself and leads the will to desperate undertakings," having made Ophelia spurn his advances, and goes to tell the King of the incident. This is the first known incidence of Hamlet's madness, which he said he would put on at the end of Act 1. The audience is aware that if Hamlet is actually mad, it will have been because of the secret he keeps, and not because of Ophelia. There is a question of why he has chosen Ophelia as a vessel to show his feigned madness, and the answer is probably because he knew Ophelia would tell her father, who would then tell Claudius. Through using Ophelia it also looks like Hamlet really is mad with love, and acts as a smokescreen for the real cause of his prentended madness.

In Act II Scene II the King and Queen, concerned at the change in Hamlet have sent for two of his dearest friends, Rosencratz and Guildenstern, and appeal to them to find out what has caused Hamlet's madness (other than the death of his father and quick marriage of Claudius and Gertrude) and to try and cheer him up. They agree and go to find him. The royal couple have sent for these two friends even before Polonius tells them of the incident with Ophelia, so Hamlet has been acting mad presumably ever since his encounter with the ghost. The minister who was sent to Norway returns and tells them that the King of Norway, unaware of his nephew Fortinbras's preparations for war, has put a stop to it, and Fortinbras has promised never to attack Denmark but wishes to go through it in order to attack Poland. Immediately the audience thinks that Fortinbras, more of a passionate being than Hamlet, is still wishing to avenge the death of his father and is going to betray his promise to Denmark as soon as he is in the country, however the audience must wait to see if this is so, as Claudius and Polonius accept this promise and move on to the subject of Hamlet. Polonius shows Claudius and Gertrude the love letters from Hamlet to Ophelia, and Gertrude agrees this may well be the cause of his madness. Polonius insists it is, and suggests the next time Hamlet is wandering around he will get Ophelia to meet him while he and the King hide behind the Arras to hear the conversation. Next Hamlet appears and begins to talk to Polonius in a babble "For if the sun breed maggots in a dead dog, being a good kissing carrion." Hamlet tells Polonius to never let Ophelia walk in the sun incase she gets pregnant, and Polonius reflects this is again referring to Hamlet's madness over his love. Polonius leaves and point Guildenstern and Rosencratz in the right direction. Hamlet and his two friends greet each other warmly. Hamlet describes Denmark to them as a prison, and describes lady luck as a slut. Hamlet, realising they have been sent for, asks why they are visiting and says he knows that the king and queen sent for them, Rosencratz hesitates in telling them, but Guildenstern crumbles and admits it. Hamlet now seems to have a mistrust of Rosencratz "Nay then, i have an eye of you." Hamlet explains that the reason they have been sent for is because Hamlet has become very depressed for no reason "i have of late- but wherefore i know not- lost all my mirth" And says he is not interested in men nor women, to which Rosencratz laughs, saying he will thereofore be bored with the actors that are coming to Elsinore. The three discuss the modern theatre, and how it has taken a turn for the worse, and Hamlet tells his friends his mother and uncle are wrong, he is only crazy sometimes. Hamlet is introduced to the actors, and begins to recite a speech he once heard the actors recite. Polonius is impressed with Hamlet's acting ability, though knows very little about acting, something which is ridiculed by Hamlet. Hamlet asks the first player to perform "the murder of gonzago" the next night, including a speech written by Hamlet himself. Hamlet is left alone, and reveals how angry he is with himself for not killing Claudius yet, he calls himself a coward "but i am pidgeon livered." He is angry that all he has been doing is mope around, while a braver man would have taken action by now. He not only considers himself a coward but perhaps a little bit of a villain, for letting Claudius continue to be happy while his father suffers in purgatory. He wishes someone would hit him or pull off his beard, to punish him for his delay and spur him into action. Hamlet still detests Claudius, and compares himself to a whore for only swearing instead of taking action. Later in the sololloquiy Hamlet decides that he will get the actors to perform something like his fathers death, and then watch for Claudius's reaction, as proof of wether the ghost's story was true. Hamlet convinces himself the ghost may have been the devil sent to tempt him to hell, and that he needs proof to act.

I think he is only convincing himself he needs furthur proof to make him feel better about his delay, and really he knows Claudius is guilty and that he must be murdered. This soliloqy is important as it is when Hamlet realises his main flaw. According to the usual prototype of a tragedy the tragic hero should posess a fatal flaw which is the cause of their downfall, but before their final doom they should realise this flaw. Hamlet's fatal flaw is the procrastination caused by his weak personality, which he realises, thinking himself a coward. Hamlet perhaps is a coward for not exacting revenge, but hot-blooded impulsiveness is not a part of his personality, unlike his warrior father. Perhaps why Hamlet is so angry is he realises he is closer in personality to Claudius than he is to his father. Claudius maticulously planned the murder of his brother, and i assume Claudius was always jealous of his brother's wife and crown, in which case Claudius waited years to exact the murder, reminding me of Hamlet's waiting and deep thinking. Hamlet the elder, you expect, would have rushed straight into Claudius's room and beheaded him had he been in his son's position, making Hamlet's cowardice all the more serious to himself.

Act three begins with Guildenstern and Rosencrantz reporting to the King and Queen, and Polonius inviting the King and Queen to the play which is to be performed that night. Claudius tells Gertrude to leave, as he and Polonius have arranged for Ophelia to stay in the room so that she may bump into Hamlet, while Claudius and Polonius hide to hear their conversation and gage if Ophelia is the reason for Hamlet's madness. The two men hide, and soon Hamlet appears, and says the most famous soliloqy in shakespeare "to be or not to be." Hamlet considers whether it is better to be alive or dead, and considers that because of all he difficulties and horrors of life everyone would just commit suicide if it wasn't for the fear and unknown of what is coming after death. "thus conscience does make cowards of us all; and thus the native hue of resolution is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought." Hamlet in these lines is speaking of how thinking about the afterlife makes men not kill themselves out of fear. He is of course speaking about how his own task, and how thinking about the consequences of killing Claudius has made him delay and thus has made a coward of him. Hamlet sees Ophelia, Ophelia offers Hamlet his gifts and love letters back, as she no longer wants them now Hamlet has changed. Hamlet gets angry with her, and begins ranting, about how beauty in a woman is a great sin that turns women into whores, and goodness in a woman is not enough to cure her sluttiness. He tells Ophelia he did love her once, then retracts this statement, saying he should not believe him as he, like all humans, is a sinner. He commands her to "get thee to a nunnery" so she won't give birth to anymore sinners. Hamlet at this point seems to have completely lost his faith in humanity, and in partiular his home country. Ophelia is shocked and upset at Hamlet's outburst, but Hamlet goes on to say that if she does marry it should be to a fool, as wise men know what monsters are made of them by women. He goes on to say how he is fed up of women's manipulative and two-faced ways, and that he will ban marriage to anyone not already married. He also makes a reference to the coming murder of Claudius "those that are married already -all but one- shall live." Hamlet leaves. Hamlet seems to have become a misogynist, openly hating women, probably because of his anger at his mother's quick marriage to Claudius. He now considers Gertrude a slut, and resents her for the murder of his father, of which she was certainly one of the motivations for. This opinion of his mother has now extended to all women-kind. Perhaps Hamlet is also frustrated that Ophelia is trying to give him back his letters and distract him when he has a much bigger problem to deal with, he sees her an innocent and insignificant, and Hamlet has already proven he has no time for fools. Ophelia despairs for Hamlet's change. Claudius comments that Hamlet's madness is not out of love, and has realised that Hamlet is not actually mad, but feigning madness in order to cover-up the hatching of a plan. Claudius comments that this may be dangerous, and plans to send Hamlet to England to reclaim some debts owed to Denmark, which he says is to distract him. I think it is at this point that Claudius has become to get suspicious of Hamlet's knowledge and plan, and it could be argued that this is the point that Claudius does realise that Hamlet knows what he did, even before the play. Sending Hamlet to England is purely to protect himself, and i'm sure Claudius would send him straight apart from it would raise suspision if Claudius acted too quickly. Polonius, in less knowledge than Claudius, still believes Hamlet's madness was caused out of unrequited love, and suggests that Gertrude spend time alone with him to find out his true feelings, while Polonius hides and listens. Claudius agrees.

In Act II Scene II the play is performed, and Hamlet enlists Horatio to help him watch his uncle and gage his reaction. Everyone sits down to watch the play, and Hamlet decides to sit next to Ophelia, and begins flirting and teasing with her. I think this is cruel and unnesscary of Hamlet, and is again an example of misogny. The play is performed, with first the women saying about how she will never take another husband should her husband die, a jibe at Gertrude, to which she replies "the lady doth protest too much me thinks." When it comes to the scene of the murder Claudius stands up and demands the play is halted at once, confirming his guilt. The King retires to his chamber, angry and upset, Gertrude is also upset and astonished at Hamlet's behaviour. Hamlet revels in his victory with Horatio, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern tell Hamlet of the kings anger, and beseech him to share his problems with them. Hamlet demands Guildenstern plays one of the actors flute, when Guildenstern insists he can not Hamlet likens himself to the flute, saying that neither Guildenstern nor Rosencrantz can play opon him. Polonius enters and tells Hamlet that Gertrude wishes to see him. Hamlet agrees to go. Hamlet says to himself that he is ready to murder Claudius, but will go to see his mother first, and despite the fact he almost wishes to kill her as well, he will not harm her, "I will speak daggers to her, but use none. My tongue and soul in this be hypocrites."

Claudius decides to send Hamlet to England accompanied by Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, wary of Hamlet's increasing insanity. Polonius goes to hide so that he may overhear the conversation between Gertrude and Hamlet. Claudius is left alone, and expresses huge guilt over his brother's murder, he wishes to pray, so that he may be forgiven for his sin, but he realises heaven can not forgive him while he is still reaping the rewards of the murder, like his crown and wife. Eventually he forces himself to kneel and try to pray. Hamlet stumbles across him, and prepares to kill him, but realising he is praying Hamlet thinks Claudius will go straight to heaven, a thought he can't bear seeing as his father remains in purgatory, and was killed before he could confess his sins. Hamlet decides to wait for a better oppurtunity. The irony is Hamlet could have killed Claudius then, as when Hamlet goes Claudius says that while his words went to heaven his thoughts stayed on earth, meaning Claudius is not forgiven as his prayers have not gone to heaven.

My opinion of Hamlet so far

Hamlet seems to have been a procrastinator and overly scared and cautious. It's been several weeks since Hamlet saw the ghost of his father, and as of yet he still has yet to inquire if what the ghost told him was true, he is finally now putting a plan into place, feeling guilty over his lack of action and calling himself a coward. I doubt Hamlet does have doubts over whether Claudius is guilty, he is using this excuse to put off his murder of Claudius, Hamlet knows he must kill his uncle to avenge his father and clear his own consceince, but he is not built to be a killer and hates the idea of murdering another human being.

Hamlet seems to be fairly introverted, cautius and thoughtful, a man of words rather that action. His feined madness seems to have absolutely no use in finding the truth of the murder or in avenging his father, but it gives Hamlet something to focus on, rather than his ominous task in hand, and is a way to cover up his own emotional turmoil. However i do not think the appearance of the ghost has actually made Hamlet go mad, when speaking to the main actor and to Rosencratz and Guildensternz he seems fairly fluent and sharp, perhaps this madness is a way of not showing his hatred towards Claudius, to a lesser extent his mother and also the state of Denmark and world, his outward appearance of madness covers up his real feelings and emotions which could reveal themselves outwardly should Hamlet not put on a act.

Hamlet's feelings towards Ophelia are not clear. While Polonius reveals a letter from Hamlet to Ophelia showing his affection for her Hamlet may just