Hamlet Act 3

What do Rosencrantz and Guildenstern report to the king and queen about their success with Hamlet? they have failed to find the reason for his madness
What plan do the king and Polonius devise to test whether or not the cause of Hamlet’s conduct is love for Ophelia? polonius places Ophelia where he and Claudius can observe a meeting between her and Hamlet
Explain the contents of Polonius’ lines “We are oft to blame in this – Tis too much proved, –that with devotion’s visage / and pious action we do sugar o’er / The devil himself.” people who appear religious are often hiding bad things
What effect does this comment have on the king? he agrees and implies his guilt”lash… give my conscience”
In the famous “To be or not to be…” soliloquy what is it that Hamlet concludes? he’s a coward and its his fear of the unknown that is stopping him from suicide
Why does Hamlet assume madness in his interview with Ophelia and speak so harshly to her? -she’s spying on him-he’s trying to act crazy-he’s trying to not get her tangled up in this mess; trying to protect her
What advice does Hamlet give Ophelia? to go to a nunnery or brothel; get away from here
Explain lines beginning “I say, we will have no more marriages…” No one who is single can get married. Everyone who is already married can stay married except one person (probably Gertrude and Claudius)
What is the tone of Ophelia’s soliloquy? upset; a mix of anger and sadness
What does the king infer from Hamlet’s soliloquy and his words to Ophelia? he isn’t in love with Ophelia and is not mad
Why does the king fear Hamlet? he thinks hamlet’s sadness is incubating something that could be dangerous
What suggestion does Polonius make? have the queen ask hamlet to share his feelings with her and if she can’t find out his secret then send him to England or do whatever you want
What does Hamlet say the mission of the drama is? to convey an important message
Why does Hamlet speak to Horatio in the manner in which he does? he wants Horatio to observe Claudiushe compliments Horatio’s stability- mixing emotion with reason
What is the dramatic purpose of his speech? present/set up his planrising action
What does Hamlet say to Horatio about the play and his purpose in presenting it? There is a scene that mimics the circumstances of his father’s deathasks Horatio to watch his uncle’s reaction
What change is there in Hamlet after the king, queen, Polonius and Ophelia have entered? he acts crazy
What puns does Hamlet make in speaking to Polonius? “it was a brute part”Polonius had played Caesar and Brutis killed him
What is the plot of the play which is presented before the king and queen? a murder done in vienna
What is meant by “dumb-show”? mime/ silent show
What effect does the play have upon the king? the king rises & leaves; the play is stopped
What point in the ‘play within a play’ has been reached when Claudius reacts? when the player king is murdered in his garden by his nephew
When all have left except Hamlet and Horatio, how does the former act? excited/ satisfied
Do Hamlet and Horatio now accept entirely without any reservations the message of the ghost? yes
What request from the queen does Rosencrantz bring? She wants to have a word with him in her bedroom before he goes to bed
What metaphorical comparison does Hamlet make between Guildenstern and a player’s pipe? he can’t play hamlet; he’s been trying to play hamlet when he can’t even play a pipe; playing a pipe is as easy as lying
Of what does Hamlet charge Guildenstern? lying and trying to manipulate him
What is the emphasis of Hamlet’s soliloquy at the close of this scene? he hopes he won’t be so angered as to kill his mother, only speak harshly
What has been accomplished dramatically in this scene? set up the climax
In his soliloquy, what does the king reveal of the murder; what of his mental, moral condition? he is plagued by guilt and shows remorse
What are Hamlet’s reasons for not killing the king when he finds him alone, praying? Why is this terribly ironic? if he kills him while praying he will go to heaven and Hamlet wants him to go to hellhamlets father wasn’t allowed to confess his sins
Whom does Hamlet kill? Who did he think it was at first? poloniusclaudius
Why does Shakespeare cause Hamlet to kill at this time? there is no going backhe knows that he can murder
How does Hamlet chide his mother? harshly for her part in the murder
What description does he give her of her first husband? a god
Why does the ghost come? to remind Hamlet that his real purpose is to avenge his father’s death
Why does Gertrude think Hamlet’s words and conduct indicate insanity? she can’t see the ghost that he is talking to
What appeal does Hamlet make to his mother to reform? don’t sleep with Claudius anymore
What does Hamlet say to his mother concerning himself and his words to her? don’t tell Claudius that he is plotting against him
What does Hamlet say about his journey to England? it is a plot against him; he will use their own plot against them
What does he say about his purpose to circumvent the plot of the king? he will counter violently
To be, or not to be, that is the question who spoke: hamletto whom: himselfsituation: hamlet is debating killing himself; right before he meets opheliameaning: is it better to be alive or dead?
The glass of fashion and the mould of form, The observed of all observers who spoke: Opheliato whom: herselfsituation: hamlet just spoke his cruel words to hermeaning: hamlet use to be a perfect figure that everyone admired and tried to imitate
It out-herods Herod who spoke: hamletto whom: the playerssituation: hamlet is telling the players how to behave; not to shout out their lines with unhumanlike emotionmeaning: making a tyrant sound too tyrannical is as bad as the plays in which king Herod ranted
Suit the action to the word, the word to the action who spoke: hamletto whom: the playerssituation:hamlet is telling the players how to behave; not to shout out their lines with unhumanlike emotionmeaning: act natural; don’t exaggerate
The lady doth protest too much, methinks who spoke: Gertrudeto whom: hamletsituation: they are watching the play and the woman is saying that she will never remarry after becoming a widow meaning: the lady is overdoing it/ being overly dramatical
A king of shreds and patches! who spoke: hamletto whom: his mothersituation: he is comparing Claudius to his fathermeaning: a ragtag/makeshift king
…tis the sport to have the engineer Hoist with his own petard who spoke: hamletto whom: the queensituation: hamlet is telling the queen that he will have to go to englandmeaning: it is fun to have someone’s plan backfire on them
August 14, 2019