Hamlet Act I

Hamlet Act I The first time that we are introduced to Hamlet is in Act I Scene II. It is apparent that the predominant thought in the atmosphere is the death of King Hamlet, Hamlet's father. Claudius says; "Though yet of Hamlet our dear brother's death the memory be green". This first introduces the Hamlet as mourning for his father's death, setting the scene for Hamlet's mood. The first time that that hamlet speaks is just after Claudius has called him his cousin and son, where Hamlet replies; "A little more than kin, and less than kind". Here he is making a pun on the words kin and kind, saying how feels now too closely related to Claudius. He also says; "Not so my lord, I am too much I'th'sun". Here he is saying that he feels too much like Claudius's 'son'. Both of these show that Hamlet is quite witty, and also that he is a good listener, and picks up on other things that maybe other people don't. Hamlet feels that the wedding of his mother and Claudius is too soon after the death of his father, and he planned to go back to school, however when his mother asks him not to he says; "I shall in all my best obey you madam". This shows that although he does not want to stay he will to please his mother. His displeasure at the wedding is also shown in his soliloquy at the end of the scene, where he says; "She married. Oh most wicked speed, to post with such dexterity to

  • Word count: 1022
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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Hamlet Act 5 scene 2

The most dramatic scene in Hamlet for me was definitely Act 5 scene 2, which is also the last scene in the play. There is a lot that happens in this scene and it ties up all the loose ends at once in a very well written and exciting fashion. Shakespeare brings everything to an end in a way where you can't help but want more. Six out seven of the deaths that occur in Hamlet (if you include Guildenstern and Rosencrantz) happen within less than four hundred lines of each other so it is a very action packed scene as well. The scene opens with Hamlet confessing his plans to Horatio about how he escapesd death in England and returned and how he has left a letter that will cause the death of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern but he does not show remorse, as they were more than happy to bring him to his death because the king told him to."They are not near my conscience. Their defeat does by their own insinutation grow" The idea that Hamlet would cunningly switch the letters so that they would die would make this scene exciting enough on its own but this is only the beginning and in comparison to the other things that happen this is nothing. Hamlet does, however, ask if he is justified in killing his uncle considering all the things he has done and tried to do. "Is't not perfect conscience to quit him with this arm?" Hamlet causes a scene when he makes Osric (a courtier) remove and

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  • Word count: 1044
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Hamlet Act 3 Scene 4.

English course work - Hamlet Act 3 Scene 4 The scene begins with Hamlet instructing the players how to act out the scene that Hamlet has altered to look similar to the death of his father, the scene then goes on to Hamlet telling Horatio to observe his uncle Claudius whilst the play is being acted out so they may then determine whether the ghost seen by Hamlet is lying or telling the truth. Once the play is about to start Hamlet initiates his act of derangement whilst he is before Claudius and Gertrude he also acts vulgarly around Ophelia. The actors of the play enter and Hamlet expresses his animosity for his mother due to her hurried remarriage, also his cynicism is taken out on Ophelia. The players act and when the scene close to his father's death comes Claudius shows his guilt by rising in fear and suspicion of Hamlet's wisdom. Horatio also believes in Claudius' guilt. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern both now try to make Hamlet go to his mother by endeavouring to cause him concern for his mother's well being, Polonius then enters and is mocked by Hamlet, they all leave he states his intentions for his mother and then the scene ends. This scene also reveals that Hamlet is a man of learning and is already very intelligent, we see this in the fact of Hamlet instructing the players how to perform the play. This can also be seen as Shakespeare's way to state his views on

  • Word count: 1823
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Hamlet: Act Two, scene two

Hamlet: Act Two, scene two The second soliloquy is divided into three parts: * Hamlet's feelings of cowardice and worthlessness for not fulfilling his own promise after witnessing a scene from the Player that is filled with passion and emotions ( 560-587). * Hamlet then comes to realize that he must take action upon Claudius and with an explosion of anger, plans to do so (588-594). * Hamlet plans to test Claudius to see if he is really guilty by adding a scene like the murder of his father into the play (595-617). Section 1 1. In his soliloquy, Hamlet conveys a tone of worthlessness. He is feeling useless and inept, because the Player has performed a scene with such passion and emotion. Seeing this, Hamlet finds it "monstrous (562)" that he has not yet fulfilled his commitment of avenging his father's murder. The Player is engorged with emotions over a fictitious character, and Hamlet compares this to his own struggle to find the strength and courage to murder Claudius. This is seen in the lines " but in a fiction, in a dream of passion, could force his soul to his own conceit...visage wanned, tears in his eyes...(563-566)" and "And all for nothing! For Hecuba!(568-569)". Hamlet uses diction to compare himself with the Player, and portrays himself as a pitiful, weak, and miserable fool who "lacks gall(589)" to fulfill his commitment. This is shown in the line "a dull

  • Word count: 1459
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Hamlet Act 1 Soliloquy commentary

Good morning teachers and students, Today my speech is on a small excerpt from Hamlet from the second scene of the first act. Hamlet is a tragedy play by the famous playwright William Shakespeare. This play is set in the Kingdom of Denmark and revolves around two different countries; Norway and Denmark, where both kings are being replaced by their successors as they have recently passed away. In the first act, Hamlet and his men find out that there is a ghost that seems to be Hamlet's deceased father and seems to be telling the truth above his death rather than the version that was revealed to the public. This sets the scene for the excerpt that is in focus. It provides a background to the story that allows the tragedy to be built upon. Hamlet finds out that his father did not die of natural causes but instead is killed by Claudius. This adds to his rage, as he associates his father with all things good, while associating Claudius with all things evil. This along with Claudius becoming King has made Hamlet feel that his world has been turned upside down and has been taken over by evil. This scene begins at the court of Claudius and Gertrude, the King and Queen of Denmark. They have just been married. This marriage has followed quickly after the death of the former King of Denmark, Old Hamlet, Claudius' brother. Claudius addresses the quickness of the marriage,

  • Word count: 896
  • Level: International Baccalaureate
  • Subject: World Literature
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Hamlet Scene 1 Act 1

HOW EFFECTIVE IS ACT I SCENE I AS THE OPENING TO THE TRAGEDY? Thomas Kyd is the author of the 16th Century play A Spanish Tragedy which was highly influential and introduced a new variant of tragedy that includes a ghost and a mad hero. Many subsequent works followed that developed Kyd's original idea into the sub-genre known as revenge tragedy. A piece of literature that falls under this genre is Shakespeare's Hamlet and in order to meet the specification to become an effective tragedy it is heavily based upon Aristotle's criteria used to measure tragedies and Ancient works of literature such as Virgil's Aenied. In Hamlet dialogue accomplishes a variety of things. It develops relationships but most importantly displays the hostility of the characters towards the "strange" and "gross" ghost. Shakespeare uses dialogue to describe the setting including the "cold" weather and the time so that a contemporary audience in an Elizabethan theatre would be able to imagine the scene. The description is able to evoke a mood and create and sinister atmosphere. The language used in Hamlet is dramatically intense and unfamiliar due to the use of heavily-charged words such as "harbingers" which are uncommon in both contemporary and modern vocabularies. The diction and syntax of these words are not problematic during a performance of Hamlet but can cause difficulties when studying the

  • Word count: 1172
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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Hamlet Act 3 scene 1

ACT III SCENE I - HAMLET AND OPHELIA Hamlet is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It recounts how Prince Hamlet of Denmark goes about taking revenge for his father by killing his murderer, Claudius. In act 3, scene 1 Rosencrantz and Guildenstern fail to report the reason for Hamlets 'madness', so Ophelia, Hamlet's lover, is instructed by Claudius to see if his 'madness' is caused by her. I chose to perform this scene because it shows key elements of Hamlets character, his contemplative yet cynical side, shown fully in his famous "to be, or not to be" soliloquy and Hamlet's rash and impulsive side, showing his anger at Ophelia as well as his unpredictability. The area that I focused on was from the start of his soliloquy to where he leaves Ophelia before her "oh what a noble mind" speech. I started the scene in silence, keeping a neutral body posture, and slowly began with "to be, or not to be", instead of making it a huge dramatic statement, I chose to make it more hesitant, with a lengthened pause at the comma, this was done to make it look like it was a statement that had just come to Hamlet. Hamlet is a scholar and a philosopher and I was trying to portray this by making it seem as if he had discovered this notion of the 'point of existence', a key recurring theme throughout the whole of the play. Hamlet is not talking about a wish to commit suicide, in fact he does not

  • Word count: 1260
  • Level: International Baccalaureate
  • Subject: Drama
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Hamlet Act 1 Scene 1

Hamlet Act 1 Scene 1 Aniela Baseley 13FO On the battlements of Castle Elsinore, Bernardo arrives to relieve Francisco of his watch. Horatio and Marcellus arrive and greet Francisco. They talk of the ghost they have seen 'this apparition'. Marcellus has invited Horatio to come and see the ghost for himself. Shakespeare immediately sets the scene, which will be prevalent throughout the whole play, which is concerned with what is truth and what is illusion. Horatio doubts the men's reports, but before Bernardo can reaffirm what he has seen, the ghost appears. Horatio admits that he can see the ghost himself and he recognizes it as the recently deceased King Hamlet. The guards are anticipating this haunting and we can tell this from the line, "Who's there?" This sentence is short and snappy which creates a sense of expectation and tension, which continues into the act. On a symbolic level there is a sense that something is not right and w feeling of unease, especially portrayed through the character of Fransisco. We later find out that the 'divine right of kings' has gone adrift as Hamlet should be the king not Claudius and this therefore will confirm Fransisco's bad feelings. The frequent use of punctuation such as exclamation marks and commas are used to suggest jumpiness. "Stand, Ho! Who is there?" The comma is used as a pause to create

  • Word count: 779
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Hamlet - Act 3 Scene 2

Hamlet - Act 3 Scene 2 In this scene, staged in the Great Hall of Elsinore, Hamlet's cunning plan to determine his uncle's guilt comes together. Hiring players to act out a play based on his father's death (as his father's ghost described it), he awaits Claudius' reaction. The whole point of this is Hamlet putting to rest his insecurity over the matter, once he discovers for certain Claudius did murder his father and was the snake in the orchard, only then can Hamlet feel at rest and kill him. This scene is one of the many examples throughout the play which demonstrates one of many weaknesses in Hamlet's personality, in which he comes across as immensely pensive and unsure about nearly everything. The significance of the scene is evident in that both Hamlet and Claudius plotting each others death begins here. For Hamlet as he is now finally at ease with what his father's ghost told him earlier in the play, thus he can now kill his uncle without any remorse and for Claudius as he is now alarmed to the fact Hamlet is aware of his crime. Although this scene shows a negative side to Hamlet, we also get a glimpse of Hamlet as an intellectual. He takes role as an authority on acting, advising that the actors should use moderation and not to excess (even though this is a contradiction in sense - as his relentless verbal assault to Ophelia earlier in the play suggests). There is

  • Word count: 1134
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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Hamlet Act II Questions and Answers

Jacqueline Chung Ms. Ledman AP Literature 2 March 2012 Hamlet Act II . One scholar has noted that in Act II the reader sees Hamlet as a devoted fan of theatre and actor. What evidence supports each of these roles? Use a quote for each role. In the middle of Act II, scene 2, Hamlet reveals himself as a devoted fan of theatre while talking to Rosencrantz: He that plays the king shall be welcome; his Majesty shall have tribute of me; the adventurous Knight shall use his foil and target; the lover shall Not sigh gratis; the humorous man shall end his Part in pease the clown shall make those laugh Whose lungs are tickle o' th' sere' and the lady shall Say her mind freely, or the blank verse shall halt For't. What players are they... (II.ii.328-335). Hamlet talks about different roles in a play and how each role can particularly rebuke a certain emotion, but Hamlet devotion of theatre shows because he already knows the types of roles the actors play and how to tell if they are adequate enough to proceed into entertaining him. Towards the end of Act II, scene 2, Hamlet again shows himself as a devoted fan of theatre amongst his fellow players. He greets the players as old friends: "You are welcome, masters, welcome, all. I am glad to see thee well. Welcome, good friends" (II.ii.430-431). By treating the players as old friends, Hamlet already associates himself with

  • Word count: 2625
  • Level: International Baccalaureate
  • Subject: World Literature
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