On a bleak, frigid night, the guards Francisco and Bernardo tell Horatio, a friend of Hamlet, about the ghost they had seen that resembles Hamlet's father. They convince Horatio to join them and attempt to talk with the ghost if it reappears. Horatio scoffs at the talk of a ghost but agrees to wait. As they begin describing what they saw, the ghost appears. Horatio can't get it to speak but promises to tell Hamlet about the specter.
The darkness and cold, coupled with the apparition, set a dire tone of calamity and dread for the remainder of the play. The scene opens in contrast to the previous one, as King Claudius celebrates his recent wedding to Gertrude in a bright, joyous castle room surrounded by courtiers. A brooding Hamlet sits outside the action. It is two months since his father's death and his widow has already married his brother. The king discusses a possible war and agrees to let Laertes, son of the king's lord chamberlain Polonius , leave the court and return to school.
Recognizing that Hamlet is upset, he tries to make amends, urging Hamlet to abandon mourning and stay in Denmark instead of returning to school. Hamlet agrees to stay. Everyone but Hamlet leaves. He delivers a soliloquy expressing his anger, depression, and disgust for what he considers incest between the new king and his mother. The guards and Horatio enter and tell Hamlet about the ghost.
He agrees to join them that night to watch for another appearance. When Claudius scolds Hamlet for his continued mourning, referring to his "stubbornness" and "unmanly grief," Shakespeare sets him up as an antagonist to Hamlet, who is unmoved by the king's words.
The king's criticism of Hamlet "A heart unfortified, a mind impatient, An understanding simple and unschooled Laertes says goodbye to his sister, Ophelia, whom we learn has been seeing Hamlet. He warns her that Hamlet, still in line to be king, will always put the kingdom before her.
Polonius enters and lectures his son on how to conduct himself at school, advising him to treat his friends well, listen more than talk, dress well but not too well, avoid lending money, and "to thine own self be true. She promises not to see him. Polonius' advice to Laertes seems rote, relying on aphorisms regarding appearances rather than offering honest advice to a son. With Ophelia, he is more concerned that she bring honor and wealth to the family than about her own desires.
Ophelia, as an obedient daughter of the time, agrees to spurn Hamlet. Polonius' treatment of his children continues a theme of generational conflict. That night, Hamlet, Horatio, and Marcellus, one of the guards who had seen the ghost, wait outside on another cold night. The miserable weather is juxtaposed again with revelry from the castle, which Hamlet criticizes as excessive and damaging to Danes' reputation for drunkenness. The ghost appears and beckons Hamlet.
There are complicated social codes at court which mirror the complex codes of religion, honor, and revenge which Hamlet will soon have to navigate.
Religion, Honor, and Revenge. This passage introduces Hamlet as sulky and cheeky—but justifiably so in many ways. He has no proof, at this point, of any violence or foul play—he has only his disgust for what he perceives as madness and disorder within his own family. Related Quotes with Explanations.
Claudius echoes Gertrude , assuring Hamlet that death is normal, and to mourn it so is a kind of crime against nature. He urges Hamlet to stay in Denmark as a high-ranking member of court rather than return to Wittenberg to resume his studies. Gertrude, too, begs Hamlet to stay. Hamlet replies to Gertrude that he will obey her. Claudius remarks upon how wonderful it is that Hamlet has chosen to stay, and asks Gertrude to come drink with him in celebration.
Claudius, Gertrude, and the other members of court all exit to go be merry—except Hamlet, who stays behind. Hamlet has no interest in revelry or togetherness—he is completely isolated within his own grief.
Hamlet has a depressive, ruminative personality to begin with—and things are only headed downhill as he is forced to confront and contemplate issues of mortality, evil, and vengeance. Hamlet is clearly in a state of agony over what to do. Horatio , Marcellus , and Barnardo enter and greet Hamlet. Hamlet retorts that if Horatio was here for the funeral, he must have seen the wedding, too. Hamlet again laments how quickly his mother remarried, and sadly states that the world will never again see a man like his father.
Hamlet is eager to voice his displeasure over the current state of affairs at Elsinore to anyone who will listen. He makes his grievance known not just to Horatio, but the sentinels as well. Hamlet is amazed by the news and asks to know more details about the ghost. Claudius hopes that the old man has the power to stop Fortinbras from carrying out his mission. Claudius then turns his attention to Laertes, who petitions the King for permission to return to school in France. Claudius confers with Polonius who answers verbosely that he consents to Laertes' wish.
Having dismissed Laertes, the King and Queen both notice Hamlet's dark demeanor, and Hamlet sneers at the King's loving posture.
Gertrude and Claudius encourage him to cease grieving and to get on with life. Gertrude asks Hamlet why he seems so particularly affected by his father's death, and Hamlet snaps at her that, unlike his mother and her husband, he has no pretenses.
Nay, it is. Claudius reminds Hamlet that he is next in line to the throne, and asks him not to return to school in Wittenberg, a request that Gertrude reiterates.
Hamlet acquiesces without enthusiasm. Satisfied that they have had their way, Claudius and Gertrude leave Hamlet to his own thoughts. In his first soliloquy, Hamlet bemoans the fact that he cannot commit suicide.
These thoughts torment him, but he knows that he can't speak them aloud to anyone.
0コメント