| 1. Review Hamlet’s “To be or not to be” soliloquy (Act III) & “What is a man?” soliloquy (Act IV) & have a general understanding of why these are included in the play. What is the main point of each soliloquy? | If you want to live or die |
| 2. Review all main characters. Know who they are and how they relate to one another. (I.e., Polonius is a nobleman who serves King Claudius, but he is also Ophelia and Laertes’s father). List the major characters in the play. | Osric= the ref for sword fight (Robin Williams)Marcellus- he says “Something is Rotten in the State of Denmark”Queen named GertrudeWho is Prince of NORWAY?= FortinbrasWho is Prince of Denmark? = Hamlet |
| 3. Why doesn’t Hamlet put his thoughts into action? What is his fatal flaw? Why does he struggle on his path to revenge? | He is doubtful. He thinks too much. He DOES NOT ACT. “Lack of action” |
| 4. What are Hamlet’s plots to determine Claudius’s guilt and then murder him? Why do they change? How does he determine that Claudius IS guilty? | 1. Just kill Claudius (but what if ghost evil spirit?)2. Kill Claudius in confession (Claudius is praying= go to heaven)3. The Play-within-a- play (King reacts so Hamlet knows he guilty….still doesn’t act and gets sent to England!)4. “My Thoughts Be Bloody”… action=sword fight with Laertes |
| 5. Why doesn’t Claudius repent when he’s in the confessional? Why doesn’t Hamlet kill Claudius while he’s praying? | Claudius isn’t sorry for his sins because he wants to keep “what he won”= the power: the crown and the queen. |
| 6. Why does Hamlet pretend to be crazy by putting on his “antic” disposition? Do his “antic” remarks make sense? | Acts crazy to hide revenge plotsYes the remarks are sometimes full of subtle meaning (like “there is method in the madness) |
| 7. How is Ophelia perceived throughout the play by different characters? (Her dad Polonius, brother Laertes, lover Hamlet, the king & queen?) | to Dad & bro= she is obedientfor the King & Queen= she is used as a spyfor Hamlet= mistreated and used to practice his “antic disposition” on herShe’s a pawn. |
| 8. What advice does Polonius give to Laertes & Ophelia? Is he considered a wise or foolish character? | to Laertes= “to thine own self be true” good worldy/fatherly adviceto Ophelia= break up with Hamlet and refuse to be with him (says Hamlet doesn’t love her; he’s just using her)He is FOOLISH. |
| 10. When in the play does Claudius realize Hamlet is a threat? | When the actors actually act the murder exactly as it happened (poison in the ear) |
| 11. What is the function of the play-within-a-play? Why did Hamlet choose The Murder of Gonzago? Who is supposed to watch the reaction of King Claudius? NOTE: The Murder of Gonzago is also referred to as The Mouse-trap play because he’s trying to catch King Claudius. KNOW BOTH TITLES for the test.) | function= reveal Claudius’s guilt or innocenceWhy that play? Similar plot (there’s a murder)Who watching: HoratioMousetrap title= to “trap” the King |
| 12. In Act IV, during his “What is a Man?” soliloquy, what does Hamlet determine after seeing 20,000 men in Fortinbras’s army ready to die over a useless piece of land? | He determines that HE MUST ACT |
| 13. What does King Claudius mean on page 121 when he says “By letters congruing to that effect/ The present death of Hamlet. Do it, England” (4.3.65-66). Why is he sending Hamlet to England so suddenly? What does he expect England to do? | Claudius wants the King of England to execute HamletClaudius realizes that Hamlet is a personal threat to his safety |
| 14. What are the 3 elements that are part of King Claudius and Laertes’s plan to kill Hamlet? | 1. Poison drink2. points sword (FOIL= sword)3. unbated sword for Hamlet |
| 15. How is Ophelia’s death perceived by the church? Why does it matter? | Church thinks it’s suicide so they don’t want to give her a Christian funeral OR bury her in the Christian Church graveyardIt matters because the King and Queen ORDERS the church to give her a Christian burial |
| 16. How are both Ophelia and Laertes foil characters to Hamlet? (IE, madness and action) | Ophelia foil to Hamlet because she is crazy & Hamlet is just pretending to be crazy Laertes foil to Hamlet because Laertes immediately ACTS to kill his father’s murderer whereas Hamlet DOES NOT ACT and makes excuses |
| 17. Why does Hamlet struggle so much on his path of revenge? (IE what is his fatal flaw)? | Fatal flaw= failure to actstruggle= he overthinks everything |
| 18. Exactly how does each character die? | King Hamlet/The Ghost= murdered by his brother Claudius with poison in the earPolonius= stabbed by Hamlet through curtainOphelia= drowns in riverLaertes= cut by his own poisoned sword (“I am justly killed by mine own treachery”)Queen Gertrude = drinks poison drinkHamlet= cut by poison swordKing Claudius= hit by poison sword AND forced to drink poison drinkRosencrantz & Guilderstern- executed in England |
| 19. Why does Hamlet leap into Ophelia’s grave? | He wants to prove he loves her more than Laertes (“more than 40,000 brothers”) |
| 20. What is Laertes’s dying request? | He asks Hamlet for forgiveness for the role he played in Hamlet’s death |
| 21. What will happen after Hamlet is dead? Who will rule Denmark? Will he be a good King? | Fortinbras will lead Denmark decisively and with confidence. He is a man of action. The scales of justice are now equal |
| 22. Why does Horatio have to remain alive at the end of the play? | To tell Hamlet’s tragic tale |
| 23. What is the reason for the humor during the gravediggers scene in Act V, Scene 1? | comic relief |
| What is the role of King Hamlet’s Ghost in the play? | to reveal the treachery of King Claudius and spur Hamlet to seek revenge |
| Who does Hamlet refer to when he says, “Frailty, thy name is woman!” | his mom: Queen Gertrude |
| 26. At the beginning of the play, why does Hamlet return from the University of Wittenberg? | He returns because his father died and he is extremely disturbed by his mother’s “hasty marriage” (calls it incest) |
| 2. “…Speak no more, thou turn’st mine eyes into my soul, and there I see black and grained spots.” | Queen Gertrude |
| 9. Theme of spying throughout the play: | a. King & Polonius spy on ____Ophelia and Hamlet_______b. Polonius spies on ____Hamlet_____ in the Queen’s chamberc. Polonius sends someone to France to spy on ____Laertes______d. King & Queen use Hamlet’s “fake friends” Rosencrantz & Guilderstern to spy on _____Hamlet____ |
Hamlet Study Guide- 1st Semester Final Exam
November 23, 2019