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Hamlet
Includes questions specifically asking about this Shakespeare play. Questions about the movie version should be placed under "Movies." Questions about Shakespeare should be placed under his category under Authors and Poets.
2,117 Questions
What is the storyline to Hamlet?
Hamlet is the son of King Hamlet and Queen Gertrude of Denmark, but his father has recently died and his uncle Claudius has become king and married Queen Gertrude. Hamlet is taken to a battlement where the ghost of his father appears and tells him that he was murdered by Claudius and commands Hamlet to revenge him by killing Claudius. Hamlet decides to act crazy while looking for a chance to get at the king. His crazy behaviour induces the king to set spies on him, first his school pals Rosencrantz and Guildenstern and later his girlfriend Ophelia.
Hamlet, still unsure of the ghost's veracity, gets some travelling players to put on a play which mimics the murder. Claudius's reactions confirm he is the murderer all right. Hamlet then has a chance to kill him, but holds his hand because he is praying. He then visits his mother in her room and kills the king's advisor who is also his girlfriend's father and who was spying on him for the king. The king then sends him to England to get him out of the way with instructions to the English to kill him.
The death of her father drives Ophelia crazy and she drowns. Her brother arrives, desperate for revenge. Hamlet's ship gets attacked by pirates and he ends up back in England. Ophelia's brother Laertes and the king plot to kill Hamlet by staging a fencing match in which Laertes will have a poisoned sharp sword, and Claudius will give Hamlet a poisoned drink. But it all backfires. Hamlet gets hold of the poisoned sword after Laertes cuts him with it and kills Laertes. Gertrude drinks the poisoned drink and dies. Hamlet stabs Claudius and gives him the remains of the poisoned drink and then dies himself in the arms of his best friend Horatio.
What does Hamlet tell ophelia about Hamlets decleration of affection?
He claims at one point it was false, with the implication that he was just trying to get into her pants. We probably shouldn't believe him; it's all part of the act. Ophelia is often depicted as taking this rather hard, since it's what Laertes and Polonius warned her might be happening.
Who is the young girl in love with the prince of Denmark?
If you are talking about Prince Frederik the Crown Prince of Denmark, he's 42 and married and so any young girl who might be in love with him is out of luck.
If you are talking about Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark in the Shakespeare play, Ophelia is the name of the girl that is interested in him.
Is Hamlet a classic literature book?
Hamlet is definitely a classic. Of course, you would want to find the unabridged version to get the most out of it.
What is the nature of Hamlet's speech to Laertes before they fence?
It's sort of an official and not very believable apology.
How does Laetres die in Hamlet?
Laertes annoints his sword in order to poison Hamlet, however at somepoint in the match (after Laertes poisons Hamlet, but before Hamlet is killed by the poison), Laertes and Hamlet switch swords and Hamlet also poisons Laertes.
Which characters in Hamlet died that were pathos?
were the characters who died in the hamlet pathos or tragic
What does the ghost in Hamlet symbolize?
if you are asking this for, say, a homework assignment, then I recommend you figure it out on your own, as your teacher could find this easily.
The ghost in Shakespeare's Hamlet is Hamlet's father, who is dead. In Hamlet, Hamlet's father is killed by Hamlet's uncle. Hamlet's father's ghost (the ghost) comes back to basically tell Hamlet what happened, and to tell him (more or less) to have revenge on Hamlet's uncle.
Was Hamlet in position of power?
Hamlet is the Prince of Denmark so that does come with its own power. But Claudius is the one with the most power. However Hamlet is loved by all the people so it essentially makes Hamlet unkillable because if Claudius kills him the people will turn against him. In the eyes of the people Hamlet can do no wrong, so in a way he is in a position of power.
What is the difference between Claudius' treatment of Laertes and his treatment of Hamlet?
Quite a lot. He respected Laertes, in public at least, and had no evil plans to kill him. Polonius, Laertes' dad, was Claudius' right hand man, and so Claudius had no reason to treat Laertes badly. Conversely, Claudius could never truly see Hamlet through the eyes of a father figure (as he told him he did) because C had killed Hamlet's dad. When the king found out that Hamlet knew about the murder of Hamlet snr., Claudius obviously distanced himself from Hamlet, even sending him to England to be killed.
Polonius is the chief counselor to the king, and also the father of Ophelia and Laertes.
What is happening now in Germany?
Germany, like so many other countries in 2012 is going broke. Because Spain, Greece, Ireland and few other countries are in such bad financial shape they are bringing down the Euro value.
What are the similarities between the hyenas in the Lion King and England in hamlet?
The hyenas in the Lion King resemble more the hangers-on Catesby, Ratcliffe and Lovell in Richard III than any characters in Hamlet, and the plot and structure of the film more closely resembles that of Richard III and Macbeth than Hamlet. Nevertheless one might view them as having some resemblance to the government of England, which is tasked with the job of killing Hamlet as the hyenas are tasked with killing Simba. However, the hyenas are hired more as private thugs than as a request from one sovereign to another--they resemble much more the murderers who are hired to kill Banquo and Fleance in Macbeth, and as in Macbeth the father dies but the son gets away. (In Hamlet the usurpation takes place while Hamlet is out of the country.)
Why did the king send a letter to the English court?
King Claudius needed a way to dispose of Hamlet without Denmark, or Hamlet's mother (his wife) knowing that he had committed the murder. Cluadius' letter to the English court was meant to tell the Englisht that when Hamlet arrived in England, they should kill him.
Hamlet dies because he is stabbed by Laertes with a poisoned sword. It is not stated what the poison is. Perhaps it could be hemlock, but it seems that hemlock is less fast-acting, especially for the tiny dose that Hamlet must have received. (See Plato's Phaedo for an example of death by hemlock.)
Who was the ill fated heroine of Shakespeares Hamlet?
Ophelia, who drowns (maybe a suicide as she is mad and so falls into the water). She is mad out of grief for her father polonius, who Hamlet killed accidentally.
What results have come from Cornelius' and Voltemand's trip to Norway?
Fortinbras's uncle was not aware of Fortinabras plan to attack Denmark, but his uncle has stopped him from doing against Denmark. He then asks if his army can cross into Denmark on their way to battle in Poland.
Why did Hamlet kill Polonious?
hamlet killed polonius by accident.
polonius was hiding behind the arrays in gertrudes room and hamlet thought it was claudius so he stabbed him with his sword only to find that it wasnt cladius, but polonius.
What is Claudius crime in Act III of Hamlet?
Claudius commits no crime in Act III. He is, however, forced to consider his previous crime of murdering his brother.
Gertrude told the king that Hamlet wept for killing Polonius did he cry?
No, Gertrude is lying as Hamlet suggested she should.
Did Queen Gertrude marries her dead husband's brother?
Actually, after old Hamlet died, Gertrude married a Norwegian spy so that they would combine the two countries and rule this larger piece of land together. Gertrude eventually becomes impregnated and gives prince Hamlet a brother and a sister.
Whom do the soldiers and guards want to tell about the ghost?
The soldiers want to tell about the ghost to scare you.
