HAMLET STUDY QUESTIONS ACT 4
§Hamlet's murder of Polonius at the end of Act III is one of the most disturbing moments in the play. §A) Considering that Hamlet has just killed someone and hidden the body, does that make him no better than Claudius? §B) Do you consider Hamlet to be a hero at this point? §C) Do you think Hamlet is justified in his anger towards Rosencrantz and Guildenstern?
A) I think Hamlet is already so far down in this rabbit hole that he is going to do what it takes to get to his final objective which is to kill Claudius. B) I mean anybody who murders anybody should not be classified as a hero unless they were killing a monster who already committed evil crimes. Did he intentionally mean to kill polonius, no he was meaning to kill Claudius and he thought claudius was the one behind the curtain. so i would say no hes not a hero because he killed a bystander in his revenge storyline of killing Claudius C) Yes his anger is justified because his childhood friends are spying on him and then they go and tell the info to claudius, he is definitely justified in being angry at R and G
§How do you feel about the way that Hamlet talked about Polonius's dead body with Claudius? §The scene ends with Claudius delivering a soliloquy in lines 63 - 77. He is asking for the king of England to execute Hamlet. §A) Why does he think England will help him carry out his plan? §B) Why do you think Claudius wants Hamlet executed instead of just being banished? §C) Why would Claudius have Hamlet executed in England rather than Denmark?
It is a bit creepy because hes playing around with a dead body especially his ex lovers dads body, and then puts worms in the conversation and trying to relate it to the idea of death because he is in his emo phase, and then pretty much before he tells him where the body is, hamlet tells him to go to hell with the messenger conversation. A) "since you can still feel the damage that Denmark has done to you in the past and, so, fear and respect us—then you won't ignore my letters instructing you to kill Hamlet immediately." B) because he probably thinks hamlet will stop at nothing to kill Claudius so if he gets executed he wont be alive anymore to carry out his plan, but if he gets banished then he might not follow the banishment and make his way back to finish the revenge job C) the people in denmark love him, so if he gets killed in england it would cause bad PR for his reign
§How exactly does Ophelia die? Be SPECIFIC!!! Do you blame Hamlet? Why or why not?
Ophelia climbed a willow tree and the branch she was on broke, dropping her into a stream, where she drowned. Later in the play but before her funeral, a sexton proposes she committed suicide, but this is neither confirmed nor denied or Ophelia drowned because she fell into the water and did not have the will, in her grief, to save herself. I would say he is one of the reason to blame because he emotionally abused her also he cause her fathers death
§According to the Gentleman and Horatio, what is going on with Ophelia? §B) Why do you think the Queen does not wish to see Ophelia? §C) Gertrude says, "So full of artless jealousy is guilt, / It spills itself in fearing to be spilt." (lines 24 - 25). What is the queen trying to say about "guilt" and who might be guilty of something? §D) Why does the Queen finally agree to speak with her? §15)After Ophelia leaves, Claudius discusses Ophelia and other problems with Gertrude. §A) Is the death of Polonius the only reason for Ophelia's insanity, as Claudius believes in lines 80 - 81? To what extent do you think her betrayal of Hamlet weighs on her mind? §B) What are the problems Claudius lists in lines 82 - 103?
She has gone mad B) The main reason that Gertrude does not want to see Ophelia is because she (Gertrude) feels guilty over the fact that her son Hamlet killed Ophelia's father, Polonius, and because Polonius was buried quickly and without much formality. C) Guilt makes you so full of stupid suspicions that you give yourself away because you're trying so hard not to. D) She agrees to see her because Ophelia is spreading rumors about what happened to her dad and she again feels guilty that she doesn't know anything A)No. I think Hamlet plays a big part in it, because he can be seen as her support system and when he insults her it tears her down and lets her madness come out at full force B) 1. The death of Polonius 2. Hamlet's madness and exile 3. Popular unrest 4. Ophelia's madness 5. Laertes' return from France and attempt to take over the kingdom.
What information do we learn about Fortinbras from the conversation between the Norwegian caption and Hamlet? (lines 1 - 30) Hamlet's soliloquy at the end of this scene shows the effect this this conversation had on him in lines 33 - 69. A) What do you think was the point for Shakespeare to include this scene with Fortinbras at this point in the play? B) What does Hamlet believe has kept him from acting decisively against Claudius? C) Why does Hamlet admire Fortinbras? D) What is Hamlet's resolve at the end of this scene? Do you think Hamlet is serious this time?
We learn that hamlet doesnt like war with him saying this, "Even two thousand men and twenty-thousand ducats are just the beginning of what it will cost to settle this pointless matter. This is what happens when countries have too much money and peace. This quarrel is like an abcess that grows inside someone until it bursts and kills them, and no one knows why. (to the CAPTAIN) Thank you very much for the information, sir." A) To allow him to reflect on why he has not done his revenge yet if a whole army is about to die for a worthless piece of land. B) "tells me to hurry up and get on with my revenge. What is a human being if he just eats and sleeps? Nothing more than a beast. God didn't create us with such a huge power of thought and a divine capacity for reason in order for us not to use them. Now, whether it's animal-like mindlessness, or the cowardly hesitation that comes from thinking too much (thinking thoughts that are one part wisdom, three parts cowardice), I don't know why I'm still alive to say "I have to do this deed" rather than having done it already. I have the motivation, the willpower, the ability, and the means to do it. It's as plain as the ground beneath my feet that I must do it. . . . From now on, if my thoughts aren't violent I'll consider them worthless." C) 'Look at this massive army led by a delicate and tender prince who's so puffed up with divine ambition that he puts his fragile life at risk, exposing it to danger and death, for a reason as thin as an eggshell. To be truly great doesn't mean you'd only fight for a good reason. It means you'd fight over nothing if your honor was at stake." D)"From now on, if my thoughts aren't violent I'll consider them worthless." He is serious this time because he is now going to act on it and not waste time with pondering the what ifs, he is going to act on the violent thoughts
§Do you believe Horatio in his assumption that Hamlet is saved and not damned? Why or why not?
hamlet is to be saved, due to the death of his father only making him become like this. he had to seek revenge in order to remove his madness
§After taking care of Polonius's body, Hamlet runs into Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. §A) Why does he call Rosencrantz a "sponge?" What does he mean? (line 12) §B) What does Hamlet warn Rosencrantz of in lines 16 - 21?
soak up all information about Hamlet , what he says for Claudius get too much information/ know too much thrown out to die When Hamlet first calls Rosencrantz a sponge, Rosencrantz assumes that it is only part of Hamlet's madness and that Hamlet literally thinks Rosencrantz, his friend, is a sponge. Hamlet goes on to point out that Rosencrantz is a sponge in the metaphorical sense because he soaks up Claudius's favor. While Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are (or were) friends with Hamlet, their treatment of him at Elsinore is exploiting that friendship in order to curry favor with Claudius. By treating the king's mad nephew, they hope to gain privileges that they would not otherwise have been afforded. Hamlet, however, tells them that while they may be enjoying Claudius's favor now, the king will stop bestowing privileges as soon as he has what he wants. Like a monkey who stores food in its mouth, he will eventually swallow them.
§Claudius asks Hamlet what he has done with Polonius' body. (lines 19 - 41) §A) Hamlet says that Polonius is "at supper." Then he goes on to explain that Polonius is "Not where he eats, but where he is eaten. A / certain convocation of politic worms are e'en at him. Your worm is your only emperor for diet. We / fat all creatures else to fat us, and we fat ourselves / for maggots. Your fat king and your lean beggar is / but variable service—two dishes, but to one table" (lines 21 - 27). What does he mean here? §B) When Claudius again asks Hamlet where Polonius is, Hamlet then says, "In heaven. Send hither to see. If your messenger / find him not there, seek him i' th' other / place yourself. But if indeed you find him not / within this month, you shall nose him as you go up / the stairs into the lobby" (lines 37 - 41). What does he mean?
A) Not where he's eating, but where he's being eaten. A certain conference of worms is chowing down on him. Worms are the emperor of all diets. We fatten up all creatures to feed ourselves, and we fatten ourselves for the worms to eat when we're dead. A fat king and a skinny beggar are just two dishes at the same meal. B) In heaven. Send a messager there if you want to be sure. If your messenger can't find him, you can check hell yourself. But seriously, if you don't find him within the next month, you'll be sure to smell him as you go upstairs into the main hall.
§The fear of Polonius and Laertes has prevented Ophelia from sharing her true feelings throughout the play; however, in her insanity, she speaks freely through song in lines 26 - 71. §A) What do Ophelia's songs seem to mean? §B) Do Ophelia's explicit songs give us a better sense of her relationship with Hamlet?
A) Ophelia's songs are first and foremost a way of illustrating the extent of her descent into madness—and not just because she is breaking into song at socially inappropriate moments. A well-bred noblewoman like Ophelia would never in her right mind discuss the topics that Ophelia sings about, particularly in the terms that she does: it was simply not acceptable for young, unmarried women to talk so openly and even graphically (e.g., "by cock") about sex (4.5.66). The content of Ophelia's songs is important in another respect too, though. Certain lines suggest a connection to her father Polonius's recent death; she says, for instance, that an unspecified "he" is "dead and gone" (4.5.34). On the other hand, the sexual references call to mind her relationship with Hamlet—particularly because they revolve around the betrayal of a woman by her lover. In the song, the man promises to marry his lover only to discard her once she has slept with him. While we can't say with certainty that Ophelia and Hamlet ever slept with one another, it's not hard to see why she might feel betrayed by him. He toys with her emotions throughout the play (e.g., saying he loves her and then immediately denying it in act 3, scene 1) and ultimately kills her father. Polonius, of course, also treats Ophelia badly, using her as a tool to test his theories about Hamlet's madness. In fact, there are moments when Ophelia seems to conflate the two men in her songs; the lines "Which bewept to the ground did not go / With true-love showers" could refer just as easily to her ill-fated romance with Hamlet as they do to her father (4.5.44-45). All in all, then, Ophelia's songs point to the role that male manipulation and abuse has played in her decline. B) Yes and shows how abusive he was to her
§In lines 1 - 11 Claudius speaks to a few of his men about Hamlet. Claudius remarks, "How dangerous is it that this man goes loose! / Yet must not we put the strong law on him." §A) What does he mean? §B) Claudius says, "He's loved of the distracted multitude, / Who like not in their judgment, but their eyes. / And where 'tis so, th' offender's scourge is weighed, / But never the offense" (lines 4 - 7). What does he mean here? §C) What does Claudius decide to do with Hamlet given the circumstances?
A) Since Hamlet killed polonius, he knows that Hamlet is actually out to get him now and for him to not be able to punish him via law because of the killing of polonius because the people of denmark love him and his own mother love him B)The people love him, because they judge based on appearance rather than reason. They'll pay attention to the severity of the punishment, not the severity of the crime. C) he tells hamlet he needs to leave for England, Claudius states his hope that England will obey the sealed orders he has sent with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. The orders call for Prince Hamlet to be put to death.
§Horatio receives a letter from Hamlet (lines 13 - 31). §A) What happened to Hamlet during his voyage to England? (lines 13 - 22) §B) What does he ask Horatio to do? (lines 22 - 26) §C) What does Hamlet say about Rosencrantz and Guildenstern?
A)Hamlet tells Horatio what happened while he was out of Denmark: he was on the ship to England, when he got the idea to check out Claudius' letter in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern's pack. Surprise! It tells the king to have Hamlet killed—for the good of the country and all. But Hamlet has some tricks up his own sleeve, so he alters the letter to tell the king that the bearers of the letter (i.e. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern) should be killed. Hamlet even sealed the new letter with his father's own signet (a stamp-like object with a design relating to one's title or authority, often on a ring, used to seal official letters) which he conveniently had in his purse. As luck would have it, the next day was the great sea fight where Hamlet ran off with the pirates. Horatio and the audience know the rest. Horatio gives Hamlet a chance to be like, "Sorry I killed our friends in a manner that will damn them to eternal Hell," but instead Hamlet just basically shrugs. They're collateral damage, which is to be expected in a battle between two great forces (Hamlet and Claudius, presumably). B) C) They're collateral damage, which is to be expected in a battle between two great forces (Hamlet and Claudius, presumably).
§How does the King react to hearing that Hamlet killed Polonius? (lines 13 - 24 & 29 - 33) §Does he show any grief over the death of Polonius? §How does this scene end? What have we learned about Claudius' character in this scene?
Claudius is saddened by the death of Polonius, but above all he is convinced that Hamlet represents a threat to his life. He gets the news from Gertrude, who, having witnessed the murder of Polonius, informs the King that Hamlet is "mad as the sea and wind when both fight over which is the mightier." She does not mention the substance of the rest of their conversation, nor does she say that Hamlet killed Polonius hoping that it was, in fact, Claudius behind the arras. But after getting the news, Claudius resolves that Hamlet's behavior (which he still seems to believe is madness) has made him unsafe to all around him. "His liberty," the King says, "is full of threats to all." By the end of the scene, we learn, if we did not know it already, that the King intends for Hamlet to be executed in England. So for Claudius, the murder of Polonius is the last straw. He resolves on hearing the news to rid himself of Hamlet discretely and permanently.
When Gertrude speaks with Claudius for the first time since her encounter with Hamlet, she tells Claudius that Hamlet is "mad as the sea and wind when both contend / Which is mightier" and killed Polonius (lines 7 & 8). §A) Did she betray Hamlet? §B) Do you think that she really believes that Hamlet is mad or is she trying to protect his secret?
Gertrude doesnt tell Claudius about Hamlet's antic disposition after he asks her to(Hamlet instructs her to stop screwing Claudius, don't kill herself, dont tell about false face) B) after the ghost thing I do think she thinks he is mad