Class Notes on Hamlet, by Shakespeare.

Module:

Classical Drama

These notes have been taken during classes, and are

intended to be of help to new literature students; however, I
am free of any responsibility in case these notes are used
non-ethically.

Scenes analysed:
Act 1, Scene 1: From the beginning till This bodes some strange
eruption to our state.
Scene 2: The beginning till But break my heart for I must hold my
tongue (The first soliloquy).
Scene 4 and 5 (Hamlet and the ghost) second soliloquy (O all you
host of heaven...I have sworn it).
Act 2, Scene 2: From Polonius: This business is done...These tedious
fools (Polonius, The queen, and king / Hamlet and Polonius). Third
Soliloquy (Now Im alone...till the end).
Act 3, Scene 1: To be or not to be soliloquy.
Act 3, Scene 4: Hamlet and the queen.

Act 1 Scene 1.

This is the opening scene of the play; we are

introduced to four characters, one of whom is
to show so often in the play, while others have
more secondary roles. Horatio, the character
in which we are interested, comes in an hour
of great intensity. The guard, Francisco,
shows great caution in addressing Bernardo
who was not known to him in the very beginning. Whos there? starts the play; it is a question of
identity. The theme of identity is prominent in the play. When Bernardo unfold[s] himself when
uttering the obviously common code of the soldiers of Denmark, Long live the king, a moment of
relief prevails. Bernardo is there to replace Francisco in the watch, but before the latter leaves,
Marcellus and Horatio join them. We notice the repetition of the question who is there?, which
further emphasises the theme we have mentioned earlier, identity. A dialogue goes on between
Francisco and the two rivals of [his] watch before the former leaves. Horatio seems at ease in this
scene, unlike Marcellus and Bernardo who feel rather anxious at the possibility of the appearance of
this thing. What they are indicating here is the ghost of father Hamlet. Horatio, who is a scholar,
believes that ghosts don not exist, and calls what his fellow soldiers claim a mere fantasy.

Fully aware of the difficulty of convincing

Horatio of the appearance of the ghost,
Marcellus entreated him [Horatio] along
hoping that the ghost might appear again.
When Bernardo begins narrating the story
of what they two nights have seen, the
ghost comes in. We are informed that the
Ghost comes in the same figure of the
king that is dead, father Hamlet. Given
the scholarly nature of Horatio, Marcellus
requests that he speaks to the Ghost.
Horatio is awestruck by the sight of the
Ghost, but he soon recovers himself and
addresses the apparition. He questions the
Ghost, but answer made it none. The
Ghost then leaves in haste, and Horatios
reason is beaten. Were it not for the sight
of the Ghost, he would never have
believed. The description of the Ghost
informs us that it resembled the late king
of Denmark in appearance. It had the same
armour, and even the same visage,
frowned. Horatios intellect tells him
that everything happens for some cause,
and the appearance of the ghost bodes
some strange eruption to our state
[Denmark]. Upon the second appearance
of the Ghost later on in this scene, Horatio
and his fellow soldiers decide to take the
matter to Hamlet, and see if the Ghost
would speak to him, given that it
resembles the shape of Hamlets father.

The morning after Horatio and the guardsmen see

the ghost, King Claudius gives a speech to his
courtiers, explaining his recent marriage to
Gertrude, his brothers widow and the mother of
Prince Hamlet. Claudius says that he mourns his
brother but has chosen to balance Denmarks
mourning with the delight of his marriage.
He mentions that young Fortinbras has written to him, rashly demanding the surrender of the lands
King Hamlet won from Fortinbrass father, and dispatches Cornelius and Voltimand with a message for the
King of Norway, Fortinbrass elderly uncle.
His speech concluded, Claudius turns to Laertes, the son of the Lord Chamberlain, Polonius. Laertes
expresses his desire to return to France, where he was staying before his return to Denmark for Claudiuss
coronation. Polonius gives his son permission, and Claudius jovially grants Laertes his consent as well.

Turning to Prince Hamlet, Claudius asks why the

clouds still hang upon him, as Hamlet is still wearing

black mourning clothes (I.ii.66). Gertrude urges him to cast off his nightly colour, but he replies bitterly that
his inner sorrow is so great that his dour appearance is merely a poor mirror of it (I.ii.68). Affecting a tone of
fatherly advice, Claudius declares that all fathers die, and all sons must lose their fathers. When a son loses a
father, he is duty-bound to mourn, but to mourn for too long is unmanly and inappropriate. Claudius urges
Hamlet to think of him as a father, reminding the prince that he stands in line to succeed to the throne upon
Claudiuss death. With this in mind, Claudius says that he does not wish for Hamlet to return to school at
Wittenberg (where he had been studying before his fathers death), as Hamlet has asked to do. Gertrude echoes
her husband, professing a desire for Hamlet to remain close to her. Hamlet stiffly agrees to obey her. Claudius
claims to be so pleased by Hamlets decision to stay that he will celebrate with festivities and cannon fire, an old
custom called the kings rouse. Ordering Gertrude to follow him, he escorts her from the room, and the court
follows. Alone, Hamlet exclaims that he wishes he could die, that he could evaporate and cease to exist. He
wishes bitterly that God had not made suicide a sin. Anguished, he laments his fathers death and his mothers
hasty marriage to his uncle. He remembers how deeply in love his parents seemed, and he curses the thought that
now, not yet two month after his fathers death, his mother has married his fathers far inferior brother.

It is now night. Hamlet keeps watch outside the castle with Horatio and Marcellus, waiting in the cold
for the ghost to appear. Shortly after midnight, trumpets and gunfire sound from the castle, and Hamlet
explains that the new king is spending the night carousing, as is the Danish custom. Disgusted, Hamlet
declares that this sort of custom is better broken than kept, saying that the kings revelry makes
Denmark a laughingstock among other nations and lessens the Danes otherwise impressive
achievements. Then the ghost appears, and Hamlet calls out to it. The ghost beckons Hamlet to follow
it out into the night. His companions urge him not to follow, begging him to consider that the ghost
might lead him toward harm. Hamlet himself is unsure whether his fathers apparition is truly the
kings spirit or an evil demon, but he declares that he cares nothing for his life and that, if his soul is
immortal, the ghost can do nothing to harm his soul. He follows after the apparition and disappears
into the darkness. Horatio and Marcellus, stunned, declare that the event bodes ill for the nation.
Horatio proclaims that heaven will oversee the outcome of Hamlets encounter with the ghost, but
Marcellus says that they should follow and try to protect him themselves. After a moment, Horatio and
Marcellus follow after Hamlet and the ghost.
5: In the darkness, the ghost speaks to Hamlet, claiming to be his fathers spirit, come to rouse Hamlet
to revenge his death, a foul and most unnatural murder (I.v.25). Hamlet is appalled at the revelation
that his father has been murdered, and the ghost tells him that as he slept in his garden, a villain poured

poison into his earthe very villain who now

wears his crown, Claudius. Hamlets worst fears
about his uncle are confirmed. O my prophetic soul! he cries.

The ghost exhorts Hamlet to seek revenge, telling him that Claudius has corrupted Denmark and corrupted
Gertrude, having taken her from the pure love of her first marriage and seduced her in the foul lust of their
incestuous union. But the ghost urges Hamlet not to act against his mother in any way, telling him to leave her
to heaven and to the pangs of her own conscience.

Polonius declares, after a wordy preamble, that the prince is mad with love for Ophelia. He shows the
king and queen letters and love poems Hamlet has given to Ophelia, and proposes a plan to test his
theory. Hamlet often walks alone through the lobby of the castle, and, at such a time, they could hide
behind an arras (a curtain or wall hanging) while Ophelia confronts Hamlet, allowing them to see for
themselves whether Hamlets madness really emanates from his love for her. The king declares that
they will try the plan. Gertrude notices that Hamlet is approaching, reading from a book as he walks,
and Polonius says that he will speak to the prince. Gertrude and Claudius exit, leaving Polonius alone
with Hamlet. Polonius attempts to converse with Hamlet, who appears insane; he calls the old man a
fishmonger and answers his questions irrationally. But many of Hamlets seemingly lunatic
statements hide barbed observations about Poloniuss pomposity and his old age. Polonius comments
that while Hamlet is clearly mad, his replies are often pregnant with meaning (II.ii.206). He hurries
away, determined to arrange the meeting between Hamlet and Ophelia.

Hamlets mood shifts from self-loathing to a

determination to subdue passion and follow
reason, applying this to the testing of the Ghost
and his uncle with the play. The first part of the
speech mirrors the style of the First Player
describing Pyrrhus, with its short phrasing,
incomplete lines, melodramatic diction and
irregular metre. This is a highly rhetorical
speech, full of lists, insults and repetitions of
vocabulary, especially the word villain; this
suggests he is channelling his rage and
unpacking his heart with words in this long
soliloquy, railing impotently against himself as
well as Claudius.
He then settles into the gentler and more regular
rhythm of thought rather than emotion. The irony
being conveyed is that cues for passion do not
necessarily produce it in reality in the same way
that they do in fiction, and that paradoxically,
deep and traumatic feeling can take the form of an
apparent lack of, or even inappropriate,
manifestation.

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Hamlet moves from the particular to the general, and he

asks why humans put up with their burdens and pains when
they have a means of escape with a bare bodkin. Hamlet
also questions whether it is better to act or not to act, to be a
passive stoic like Horatio or to meet events head on, even if
by taking up arms this will lead to ones own death, since
they are not to be overcome. There is disagreement by as to
whether to take up arms against a sea of troubles ends
ones opponent or oneself, but it would seem to mean the
latter in the context. Although humans can choose whether
to die or not, they have no control over what
dreams may come, and this thought deters him
from embracing death at this stage.
Although death is devoutly to be wished because
of its promise of peace, it is to be feared because of
its mystery, and reason will always counsel us to
stick with what we know.
Strangely, the Ghost does not seem to count in
Hamlets mind as a traveller who returns. Given
that Hamlet has already concluded that he cannot
commit suicide because the Everlasting
hadfixed/His canon gainst self-slaughter, there
is no reason to think he has changed his mind about
such a fundamental moral and philosophical
imperative. Hamlet does not suffer from a fear of
dying, but from a fear of being dead, of the
unknown and unknowable. However, Hamlet later
comes to see that this is a false dichotomy, since
one can collude with fate rather than try futilely to
resist it, and then have nothing to fear. The
conscience which makes us all cowards probably
means conscience in the modern sense, as it does in
catch the conscience of the King
However, its other meaning of thought is equally
appropriate, and the double meaning encapsulates
the human condition: to be capable of reason means
inevitably to recognise ones guilt, and both thought
and guilt make us fear punishment in the next life.
With the exception of Claudius, intermittently and
not overridingly, and Gertrude after being schooled
by Hamlet, no other character in the play shows evidence of having a conscience in the sense of being
able to judge oneself and be self-critical.

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In Gertrudes chamber, the queen and Polonius wait for Hamlets arrival. Polonius plans to
hide in order to eavesdrop on Gertrudes confrontation with her son, in the hope that doing so will

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enable him to determine the cause of Hamlets bizarre and threatening behavior. Polonius urges the
queen to be harsh with Hamlet when he arrives, saying that she should chastise him for his recent
behavior. Gertrude agrees, and Polonius hides behind an arras, or tapestry. Hamlet storms into the
room and asks his mother why she has sent for him. She says that he has offended his father, meaning
his stepfather, Claudius. He interrupts her and says that she has offended his father, meaning the dead
King Hamlet, by marrying Claudius. Hamlet accosts her with an almost violent intensity and declares
his intention to make her fully aware of the profundity of her sin. Fearing for her life, Gertrud cries
out. From behind the arras, Polonius calls out for help. Hamlet, realizing that someone is behind the
arras and suspecting that it might be Claudius, cries, How now! a rat?. He draws his sword and stabs
it through the tapestry, killing the unseen Polonius. Gertrude asks what Hamlet has done, and he
replies, Nay, I know not: / Is it the king?. The queen says his action was a rash and bloody deed,
and Hamlet replies that it was almost as rash and bloody as murdering a king and marrying his brother.
Disbelieving, the queen exclaims, As kill a king! and Hamlet replies that she heard him correctly.
Hamlet lifts the arras and discovers Poloniuss body: he has not killed the king and achieved his
revenge but has murdered the relatively innocent Polonius. He bids the old man farewell, calling him
an intruding fool. He turns to his mother, declaring that he will wring her heart. He shows her a
picture of the dead king and a picture of the current king, bitterly comments on the superiority of his
father to his uncle, and asks her furiously what has driven her to marry a rotten man such as Claudius.
She pleads with him to stop, saying that he has turned her eyes onto her soul and that she does not like
what she sees there. Hamlet continues to denounce her and rail against Claudius, until, suddenly, the
ghost of his father again appears before him.
Hamlet speaks to the apparition, but Gertrude is unable to see it and believes him to be mad. The ghost
in tones that it has come to remind Hamlet of his purpose, that Hamlet has not yet killed Claudius and
must achieve his revenge. Noting that Gertrude is amazed and unable to see him, the ghost asks
Hamlet to intercede with her. Hamlet describes the ghost, but Gertrude sees nothing, and in a moment
the ghost disappears. Hamlet tries desperately to convince Gertrude that he is not mad but has merely
feigned madness all along, and he urges her to forsake Claudius and regain her good conscience.

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