Act II scene i of William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet is a scene in which a lot is revealed. In this scene Polonius sends his servant, Reynaldo, to France to see Laertes and also to spy on him. As Reynaldo is on his way out, Ophelia comes into the scene and she is very distraught. She explains to Polonius that Hamlet had confronted her in a very unkempt state. Hamlet had grabbed her wrist and held her there for a few moments and then sighed. In this entire encounter Hamlet did not speak. Polonius is convinced that Hamlet is madly in love with Ophelia and that in addition to Polonius forcing Ophelia to distance herself from Hamlet is that is the reason for this encounter. The scene ends with Polonius going to see Claudius of his idea. This scene shows evidence of dramatic irony because Polonius is convinced that Hamlet is mad because he is in love with Ophelia but the audience knows that Hamlet is only pretending to be mad.
This scene is divided into two different parts, the first between Reynaldo and Polonius and the second between Ophelia and Polonius. The dramatic irony can be found in the second part not the first. In the second part of the scene Ophelia is telling Polonius about Hamlets stranger behaviour and says:
“Lord Hamlet with his doublet unbraced
No hat upon his head, his stockings fouled,
Ungartered, and down-gyved to his ankle
Pale as his shirt, his knees knocking each other,
And with a look so piteous in purport
As if he had been loosed out of hell
To speak of horrors — he comes before me.” (II, i, 86-92)
After hearing this description, Polonius assumes that only one thing could cause Hamlet to behave like this so he asks is Hamlet is “Mad for thy love?” (II, i, 94) This scene is full of beautiful language spoken b...
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...s take my time and fully understand what Shakespeare was trying to convey with every word he wrote down. I feel that this is important because Shakespeare was an author who put hidden meanings into all of his work and noticing things in the play can be hard, but having to reread just a little bit showed me how the ghost uses the idea of getting poison poured into his ear to describe how all of Denmark is deceived when he says:
“Now, Hamlet, hear.
‘Tis given out that, sleeping in my orchard,
A serpent stung me; so the whole ear of Denmark
Is by forged process of my death
Rankly abused; but know, thou noble youth,
The serpent that did sting thy father’s life
Now wears his crown.” (I, v, 39-45)
This reuse of the idea of pouring poison in one’s ear doesn’t seem to be a very important one but it was something I missed the first time around from reading too fast.
Though the reader realizes Hamlet's extreme anger and brooding throughout the entire play, he has no actual confrontation with another character until the aforementioned lines in Act III Scene I. One may notice the Prince's biting tone aimed at Claudius, Polonius or even Gertrude, but until his "Get the to a nunnery!" speech, no outbursts of pure rage in the presence of others can be found. This harshness in relation to Ophelia may be one of Hamlet's first moments of "action." The Prince seems reluctant to act upon any of his emotions toward anyone, though he often does give off an aura of discontentment and sorrow over his father's death. However, in these specific lines the audience sees Hamlet take an active stance in purging this young lady's once p...
of the Capulet’s orchard. This is a brave thing to do, for, if he had
In act I scene ii Hamlet,his mother, and father/uncle were discussing how Hamlet should remain in Denmark and not go back to school in Wittenberg. This scene is crucial in the play because it takes the quote "keep your friends close, and your enemies closer" very literal. By asking Hamlet to stay Claudius is getting the upper hand with having the ability of keeping his eye on Hamlet.The main character Hamlet is viewed as a recently become madman because of his rejected love from Ophelia. He is also seen a inexperienced prince by his stepfather, Claudius and Polonius. In Hamlet's soliloquies we can see that he disapproves of his mothers marriage to Claudius[uncle/stepfather] because she married him so soon after his fathers death.Along with
his mind and would change the way he would be seen by an audience. The
In the first scene of Act II, Polonius and Ophelia discuss the meaning of Hamlet's odd behavior. Though the two characters agree his actions arise out of the torment of spurned love, they arrive at that point through very different means. At the beginning of the dialogue, Ophelia says that she has been "affrighted" by Hamlet in her bed chamber. (II,i 75) Her encounter with the Prince left her scared about his real intentions. She says that he looks like he has been,"loosed out of hell/To speak of horrors". (II,i 83-4) The very fact that Hamlet does not speak one word to Ophelia makes him look even more intimidating. By not speaking anything, Hamlet at once strengthens his image as a madman, as well as shrouding his real intentions towards those around him. Just following this passage comes a place in the text where we can see how the character of Ophelia has been manipulated by Polonius. After his "hint" that he might be doing this out of frustrated love, Ophelia says that that is what she truly does fear. (87) Her feelings of pity and concern are shaped by her father in order to fit his case of madness against Hamlet.
Hamlet Soliloquy Act 1, Scene 2. The play opens with the two guards witnessing the ghost of the late king one night on the castle wall in Elsinore. The king at present is the brother of the late king, we find out that king Claudius has married his brother’s wife and thus is having an incestuous relationship with her, and her love. We also learn that Claudius has plans to stop.
Hamlet has mood swings as his mood changes abruptly throughout the play. Hamlet appears to act mad when he hears of his father's murder. At the time he speaks wild and whirling words:Why, right; you are I' the right; And so, without more circumstance at all, I hold it fit that we shake hands and part... [Act I, scene V, lines 127-134]. It seems as if there are two Hamlets in the play, one that is sensitive and an ideal prince, and the insane barbaric Hamlet who from an outburst of passion and rage slays Polonius with no feeling of remorse, Thou wretched, rash, intruding fool, farewell! / I took thee for thy better. Take thy fortune;/ Thou find'st to be too busy is some danger.- [Act III. scene IV, lines 31-33] and then talks about lugging his guts into another room. After Hamlet kills Polonius he will not tell anyone where the body is. Instead he assumes his ironic matter which others take it as madness. Not where he eats, but where he is eaten. / A certain convocation of political worms a e'en at him. [Act IV, scene III, lines 20-21]
Act 3 Scene 4, so called the closet scene, is the first time we see Hamlet and Gertrude together alone. In this scene Hamlet releases his anger and frustration at his mother for the sinful deed she has committed i.e. her marriage to her brother-in-law and the murderer. We can see that Gertrude is unaware of her husband's murder when she says `As kill a King?' and it is the first time she confronts her own behavior. There is a conflict between the two; Hamlet gives powerful replies
This quote taken from Hamlet is the scene of Ophelia and her father , Polonius, talking about prince Hamlet. Ophelia rushes to talk to her father about how Prince Hamlet came to her looking distraught and heartbroken. As Polonius listens to his daughter, he starts to believe that Prince Hamlet is "Crazy in Love" with his daughter ever since she has distanced herself due to his orders. When Ophelia is done explaining prince Hamlets actions to her father, he apologizes to her and tells her that he only wanted the best for her.
Upon learning that Ophelia has allied herself with Polonius and Claudius, he loses his head and has an incredibly dramatic episode. He is initially honest and open with Ophelia, but his mood quickly changes when he learns they are being spied on. He questioned Ophelia’s motives by asking whether she was honest and fair. He breaks her heart upon the realization she is not on his side. He tells her that he once loved her, then their conversation spirals into nothing more than Hamlet hurling insults at his former love before storming out.
The physical antics displayed by Hamlet and Ophelia are seen throughout the play, which portray these characters as childlike and emotionally unstable. The antics displayed by Hamlet give us a better view of his true character, which is feeble, unpredictable, and insane. He jumps around as if he were a small child trying to get their mother’s attention. His wild antics in front of the court show us how fleeting his thoughts are, and it pays tribute to the fact that he has lost his sanity. Hamlet’s antics also include physical contact or nearness, and that behavior is usually shown when he is mad about something, an example being when he discovers that he has been spied on by Polonius and Claudius, and puts himself in Ophelia’s personal space (Act 3, scene i). Hamlet’s disregard for personal space was very apparent when he was called to his mother’s chamber after the play-within-a-play (Act 3, scene iv) in which he gets mad at his mother, about her marrying his Uncle, who does not fully understand why Hamlet has such a vendetta against Claudius. Ophelia also showed a tendency to have physical antics, which took place in the scene right before her death when she sang a song for Gertrude and Claudius, and started runn...
Act 3 Scene 3 Of Romeo And Juliet by William Shakespeare Act 3 Scene 3 is a perfect example of Romeo's despondent persona. The events that take place in Friar Laurence's cell occur right after Romeo's marriage to Juliet. Romeo's devastation by the news that he is to be banished from Verona after murdering Juliet's cousin, Tybalt, had led him to seek guidance from Friar Laurence. Although this may seem understandable, Romeo is melodramatic and gives the impression that he is an over-the-top teenager. He illustrates this when he says; "Ha, banishment!
The reader is left guessing on Hamlet’s true feelings for Ophelia through his various insults, sexual innuendos, and admitted desire. Hamlet’s claim, “God hath given you one face, and you / Make yourselves another.” (3.1.155-156) is laced with irony and hypocrisy given Hamlet’s own deception regarding true feelings. This proclamation comes at the end of a lengthy tirade against Ophelia and womankind in general for their conniving deceit leading men astray. The fact that Hamlet cannot see this duplicity in his very own actions shows the double standard he holds for females. Ophelia’s immediate reaction is one of shock and defense due to the aggressive nature of Hamlet’s attack. She calls out “O, woe is me!” (3.1.174) in distress to the ferocity of Hamlet and is unable to form a particularly coherent response akin to the ones seen against Laertes and Polonius. She does show her intelligence and rebellion from this assumption of power by Hamlet in her songs while Hamlet is gone. While many attribute her madness to the death of her father, a large portion of her instability should be attributed to Hamlet and his earlier actions. In her first introduction as insane she sings, “And I a maid at your window, / To be your Valentine. / Then up he rose and donned his clothes / And dropped the chamber door, / Let in the maid, that out a maid / Never departed more.” (4.5.55-60). Due to her references to sexuality and deceit the
Ophelia’s betrayal ends up putting Hamlet over the edge, motivating him in his quest for revenge. Ophelia is one of the two women in the play. As the daughter of Polonius, she only speaks in the company of several men, or directly to her brother or father. Since we never see her interactions with women, she suppresses her own thoughts in order to please her superiors. Yet, however weak and dependent her character is on the surface, Ophelia is a cornerstone to the play’s progression.
Ophelia is manipulated by Hamlet to display to the King and the rest of the court that he is in fact mad. When Hamlet enters her room wearing disheveled clothing and acting quite strange towards her, he knows that Ophelia will tell her father and the King. Ophelia then reports this strange occurrence to her father, telling him about his strange composure of taking her “by the wrist and” holding her hard and then “shaking” when he was about to let go. (Act 2, Scene 1 Lines 86-91) The team of Polonius and the King also exploits Ophelia in order to dig deeper into Hamlet’s madness.