Hamlet Quote test

Hamlet says this in a soliloquy while describing Denmark. Claudius is the weed, Denmark is the garden, and under his rule, Denmark is an “unweeded garden”. If you keep the negative things out of your life, you’ll be happier and more fulfilled. “Tis an unweeded garden that grow to seed”
Hamlet says this in a soliloquy while he is recalling times of his father and the Queen together. To Hamlet’s mind, women represent frailty. His mother is weak for incestuously marrying his uncle so soon after his father’s death. “Frailty thy name is woman”
Polonius tells this to Laertes before he leaves for Paris. He is saying that talking a lot isn’t always the smart thing to do, but listening all the time is always a good idea. This applies to today because you can learn a lot just by listening to others. “Give every man thine ear, but few thy voice”
Polonius to Laertes before he leaves for Paris. Polonius is saying by this that lending and borrowing aren’t ever very smart things to do because friends can be easily lost that way. This quote is true today because many arguments could be prevented if we never borrowed or lent things. “Neither a borrower nor a lender be”
This is another things Polonius tells Laertes before he leaves for Paris. This applies to us today because we should all be ourselves no matter what the situation is. We make better decisions when we are true to ourselves. “To thine own self be true”
The guardsmen Marcellus says this after seeing the ghost of the King. He is saying that Denmark is festering with moral and political corruption. With the queens incestuous marriage to Claudius, and Claudius’s rule, Denmark is immoral. This quote is applicable today for any type of corruption that goes on at home, in politics, or even in love. “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark”
The ghost of King Hamlet is saying this to Prince Hamlet during their encounter. He is telling his son that his uncle is the one who murdered him. Today, snakes are often used to denote a person who has acted in an immoral or in an unrighteous way. “The serpent that did sting thy father’s life now wears his crown”
Polonius says this to the king and queen as he is telling them that Hamlet is mad. This phrase is ironic because Polonius is one of the least wittiest characters of the play and tends to mindlessly ramble on and on. It is now used as a standard English proverb, though today it’s context is neglected. “Brevity is soul of wit”
Polonius says this about Hamlet who had just gotten mad at Ophelia for no apparent reason.When Polonius says this he means that even when Hamlet looks completely insane he does have a reason behind why he’s doing what he is. This applies to the world today because there is always a meaning to everything a person says and does even if you don’t quite understand what it is at first. “Though this be madness, yet there is method in’t”
Hamlet says this to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern during their first meeting. He is speaking of how to him, Denmark is a prison. This applies to today because no matter how hard we try, people always label something as good or bad in their minds and stick to that label. If we stopped judging people and things then life would be much easier. “For there is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so”
Hamlet says this in get another one of his soliloquies where he decides to have the players act out a play that is very similar to the way the murder of his father was. He wants to make sure Claudius is guilty before he takes actions against him. This applies to today because people often use trickery to get what they want when they should really just let things be. “The play’s the thing wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the King”
Hamlet says this to himself in a soliloquy as he is looking into his father’s grave. He is asking himself whether it is worth it to live or not. This relates to the world today because even when life looks like it’ll never get better, it will, and we have so much to live for. “To be or not to be; that is the question”
Hamlet says this to Ophelia while Polonius and Claudius are spying on them. He believes that a nunnery is where a woman has the best chance of being faithful and it is where she will cause the least amount of damage (alluding to his mother possibly?). “Get thee to a nunnery”
Queen Gertrude says this to Hamlet when he asks her how she is liking the play they are watching. In Shakespeare’s day, “protest” meant “vow” or “declare solemnly”, so Gertrude was saying that the vows made by the woman playing the queen are too elaborate and insistent. Today, we use this phrase to say that women “object” too much as to lose credibility. “The lady doth protest too much, methinks”
King Claudius says this as he is in the chapel praying about his murdering of King Hamlet. He is basically revealing that he knows his prayer is invalid because he feels no actual remorse for what he has done. This applies to is today because we often do bad things without remorse. If we are not truly sorry for the bad things we have done, we will not be forgiven for them. “My words fly up, my thoughts remain below. Words without thoughts never to heaven go”
Hamlet says this to his mother after killing Polonius. He is telling her that he must go to England with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and he knows they carry the letter that demands his execution. This phrase he uses means “to be harmed by one’s own plan to harm someone else” or “to fall into one’s own trap”, implying that one could be foiled by one’s own plan. This is exactly what happens to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern as Hamlet switched his execution letter with theirs. This applies to today because people obsess over planning for something so much that they end up ruining it themselves. We should just go with the flow and let things play out themselves. “Hoist with his own petar”
Laertes says this when he finds out Ophelia has drowned. He associates his watery tears with the “too much water” Ophelia has inside her. And then proceeds to say in the next few lines that once his tears stop, “the woman will be dried up” because tears were not considered manly back then. This applies to today because men don’t like to show emotions like sadness because of their pride. “Too much water hast thou, poor Ophelia, And luck therefore I forbid my tears”
Horatio says this about Hamlet after he dies. He is the only one that knows that Hamlet was not actually crazy and was only trying to avenge his father’s death. He is implying that Hamlet’s actions are justifiable and he deserves to be sent to heaven. This is his final goodbye to his friend. “Good night, sweet Prince, And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest”
September 11, 2019