Why does Hamlet go to Gertrude's chamber in Act 3, Scene 4? Polonius and Claudius then begin their p… 28 terms. 1. He is kind of condescending to her. He warns her about bad things approaching and there will be a curse if she chooses to stay with him. To my mind, the biggest problem with the play is that we are not given an sufficient explanation for Hamlet’s miserable treatment of Ophelia. If he remains ignorant of their presence, then this scene strongly suggests Hamlet's madness and the way that he is losing control of himself. According to lines 131-141, Hamlet wants Ophelia to go to a convent (but this term is used mockingly to refer to a brothel). Why do you think he does this? What literary devices are used in the "To be or not to be" soliloquy in Shakespeare's, What is the importance of the gravedigger scene in the story of. They can't be together. Hamlet's cruelty to Ophelia has everything to do with his mother's marriage to Claudius and little to do with Ophelia herself. In Act 3 Scene 1, Hamlet engages in a conversation with Ophelia in which he acts very strangely. Ophelia enters and the two begin a very strained conversation. FutureExeterAlum. He starts becoming hostile, and tells her to go back to the "nunnery." Asked by Inara Pyarli P #801479 on 6/12/2018 1:23 AM Last updated by jill d #170087 on 6/12/2018 1:57 AM Answers 1 Add Yours. What follows is one of the most explosive scenes of the play. Why does Hamlet tell Ophelia to go "to a nunnery," and what does he give as his reason? The combination of her former lover’s cruelty and her father’s death sends Ophelia … In act 1, scene 3, of Hamlet, what is Polonius's advice to Laertes? He acted very aggressive and not very nicely. 3. Then, in Act 1, Scene 3 of Hamlet, the audience learns that father and son both like giving long-winded and sexist advice. Anonymous said... Hamlet treats Ophelia badly to stop Polonius's theory that Hamlet is going mad because he loves Ophelia. Hamlet insults her virtue and tells her that, while he may have loved her once, he certainly doesn’t love her now. What advice do both Polonius and Laertes give to Ophelia in Hamlet, act 1, scene 3? To protect her. 1 decade ago. Please write a brief note on the nunnery scene in Hamlet. slavrey TEACHER. Why does Ophelia agree to betray Hamlet's trust? In Shakespeare's Hamlet, please analyze Queen Gertrude's explanation of Ophelia's death in Act IV, Scene 7. An entourage consisting of the king and queen, Polonius and Ophelia, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern enters to begin the Act. Explain the significance of Hamlet's soliloquy in act 2, scene 2 of William Shakespeare's Hamlet. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are having no luck discovering the reason for Hamlet’s madness, so Polonius decides to make good on his plan from Act II, Scene 2. Who are the experts?Our certified Educators are real professors, teachers, and scholars who use their academic expertise to tackle your toughest questions. Being aware of the presence of Polonius and Claudius also gives another further option: Hamlet is so cruel to Ophelia because she has been so cruel to him in betraying him and setting him up. Hamlet: Act 3, Scene 1 Enter KING, QUEEN, POLONIUS, OPHELIA, ROSENCRANTZ, GUILDENSTERN, LORDS. Why can’t Claudius pray? Angrily, Hamlet denies having given her anything; he laments the dishonesty of beauty, and claims both to have loved Ophelia once and never to have loved her at all. He tells Ophelia to enter a nunnery rather than have children and marry...... he likens women to monsters...... he makes it seems as if without women, dishonesty wouldn't exist. 2. According to lines 143-144, Hamlet told Ophelia to let Polonius be locked in his home so that he may play his fool nowhere except in his house. Hamlet Act 3, scene 1 Synopsis: After Rosencrantz and Guildenstern report their failure to find the cause of Hamlet’s madness, Polonius places Ophelia where he and Claudius may secretly observe a meeting between her and Hamlet. He confuses her with mixed messages. He does not want to kill Claudius while he is praying, because then Claudius will go straight to heaven. After watching Ophelia and Hamlet interact, what does Polonius decide to do next? At the beginning of Act 3 Scene 1, Claudius, Gertrude, and Polonius discuss Hamlet's depressed behavior with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. ACT 3 SCENE 1. 2. Again, he is using her to vent his frustrations with his mother..... what he sees as her dishonesty and disloyalty to his father. He tells her that he never loved her. HELP. He calls her a prostitute in doing so, and then tells her he may have once loved her. Back to the Play. (Please include literary devices.) 7 terms. After Hamlet departs, Claudius and Polonius reenter, newly suspicious that Hamlet’s madness isn’t lovesickness after all. Hamlet sees Ophelia: After a few more words about how thinking stops action, Hamlet sees Ophelia and greets her. They order Ophelia to stop seeing Hamlet, referencing his erratic behaviour. Ophelia has dumped him, and he has paid her a strange, silent visit that frightened her, but now he says "Nymph, in thy orisons / Be all my sins remember'd" (3.3.89-90). i need specific lines lol. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern leave. “Hamlet” is a magnificent play, but no play is perfect. Remember, Hamlet has said that he plans to fake being insane. How does Claudius react to the murder scene in the play? Claudius asks Rosencrantz and Guildenstern what they have learned about Hamlet’s malady. Sign up now, Latest answer posted December 08, 2020 at 1:46:08 PM, Latest answer posted March 28, 2018 at 10:44:45 AM, Latest answer posted April 09, 2011 at 1:00:45 PM, Latest answer posted December 22, 2019 at 12:49:29 PM, Latest answer posted November 22, 2009 at 9:00:00 AM. Abominably. He’ll send Ophelia to talk to the prince, while he and Claudius will watch in secret. He was pushing and yelling at her. He knows Polonius and the King are trying to get Hamlet to confess his love to Ophelia to prove that that's the cause of his madness. The Nunnery Scene. In this part of Act 3 Scene 1, Ophelia goes to return the gifts Hamlet gave to her in the past. Do his feelings for Gertrude play a role in his decision? Philip. Hamlet Act II Questions. He does not want to kill Claudius so soon after the play, because then people will suspect him of the murder. Act 3 Scene 1 – Key Scene . All Site Content Hamlet Act 3 Scene 1. How does Hamlet treat Ophelia? In the case of an ingenue like Ophelia, a very young and lovely woman, Shakespeare would have been writing for a boy. Relevance. William Shakespeare's Hamlet follows the young prince Hamlet home to Denmark to attend his father's funeral. It is clear that Hamlet becomes distrustful of woman in general due to this deception from his mother that he curses all woman in general which includes Ophelia, “Frailty, thy name is woman!” (1.2.147). Prior to this moment, Ophelia is taken aside by King Claudius and her father, Polonius. Claudius orders Gertrude to leave so that he and Polonius can spy on Hamlet, who has an imminent meeting with Ophelia. His strange behavior can be attributed to one of two reasons. ©2021 eNotes.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 5. i know he rants about girls in make up, but is that the betrayal? This of course represents a betrayal of Ophelia towards him, and in this version Hamlet is grief-stricken by yet another betrayal of somebody whom he loves. Ophelia enters, and the Queen, in a moment of maternal affection, tells Ophelia that she hopes that Hamlet and Ophelia will patch up their broken romance so that Hamlet can get on with his life. Why didn't Hamlet kill Claudius when he had the chance at the end of act 3, scene 3? There is no reasoning with Hamlet at this point..... he's looking for faults in everyone, and Ophelia has put herself in a position to be the object of his wrath. To wit: 1. The two reply that they have not been able to find its cause. Part of the difficulty is that Shakespeare wrote his female roles for men, and there were always limitations on them that restricted and defined the characterizations devised. ... Hamlet Act 1. “I did love you once,” Hamlet tells Ophelia, and she retorts that Hamlet only made her believe that he did. How does Hamlet treat Ophelia in Act 3? Hamlet asks her questions about goodness and beauty, then proceeds to tell her he didn't love her. Answer Save. He’ll send Ophelia to talk to the prince, while he and Claudius will watch in secret. Act 3, Scene 1 . 3. Ophelia is a difficult role to play because her character, like Gertrude's, is murky. Ophelia obeys, but her action sends Hamlet into a fit of misogynistic rage. In mid-thought, Hamlet sees Ophelia approaching. Soon after, Hamlet mistakenly kills Polonius. We’ve discounted annual subscriptions by 50% for COVID-19 relief—Join Now! They think Hamlet's upset over his love for Ophelia. At the end of scene 1, what does the king decide to do with Hamlet? DolphinLover368. When Ophelia visits Hamlet in Scene 1 Act 3, he is very happy to see her. Another possible interpretation is that he's angry at his mother for remarrying so quickly after his father's death, and is … 1. Hamlet and Ophelia clearly resent each other, and Hamlet uses sexist and vile language to assault Ophelia’s integrity—even though it’s possible that he was the one who stripped her of her “honor.” In this speech, Hamlet has just left Ophelia after speaking to her rudely and out of character and saying completely 'mad' things to her. Answered by jill d #170087 on 6/12/2018 1:54 AM how does hamlet discover Ophelia has has betrayed him in act 3 scene 1? In Act 3, Scene 1, she serves as bait, so that Polonius and Claudius can spy on Hamlet. Explain the significance of Hamlet's soliloquy in act 2, scene 2 of William Shakespeare's. Are you a teacher? 25 terms. One of my favourite adaptions of this play is the Kenneth Brannagh version, which suggests the reason why Hamlet is so cruel towards Ophelia is that he becomes aware that their conversation is being watched by Polonius and Claudius. How does Hamlet treat Ophelia in scene 1? He talks kindly to her, until she tries to return his letters. He treats her bad. Copyright © 1999 - 2021 GradeSaver LLC. At the top of Act Three Polonius forces Ophelia to return Hamlet’s letters and renounce his affections. Already a member? Hamlet EXPLAIN WHY HAMLET TREATS OPHELIA SO CRUELLY WHY DOES HE SUGGEST THAT SHE ENTER A NUNNERY? One way to interpret his treatment of Ophelia is that it's part of his crazy act. It's almost as if Ophelia is in the wrong place at the wrong time. How does Hamlet treat Ophelia in this scene? Send him to England, because he's dangerous and needs to stay away from Ophelia. 4. 2 Answers. KING 1 And can you, by no drift of circumstance, Polonius ’s daughter, Laertes ’ sister, and Hamlet ’s lover. He goes on to insult Ophelia … Hamlet Act 3. He feels betrayed. What does Claudius decide to do about Hamlet? Clearly Claudius knows Hamlet is feigning madness (see line 2) and likely believes the reason is thwarted ambition . Yet if we think about it, how a director stages this scene is necessarily going to revolve around a question that the text does not answer for us: is Hamlet aware of Claudius and Polonius and at what point does he become aware of them? Describe Hamlet’s tone when he speaks to Ophelia while in the castle corridor. Hamlet recants and says Ophelia’s right—he never really cared for her. Educators go through a rigorous application process, and every answer they submit is reviewed by our in-house editorial team. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are having no luck discovering the reason for Hamlet’s madness, so Polonius decides to make good on his plan from Act II, Scene 2. This depends on how one decides to produce the scene, but normally, Hamlet reacts in a very venomous and angry manner. When Ophelia attempts to return Hamlet's "tenders of affection", firstly, Hamlet denies ever having given her any gifts -- " No, not I. I never gave you aught ." There are a number of options you have in explaining Hamlet's behaviour towards Ophelia in Act III scene 1, the famous nunnery scene, where Hamlet is rather cruel towards her. Get free homework help on William Shakespeare's Hamlet: play summary, scene summary and analysis and original text, quotes, essays, character analysis, and filmography courtesy of CliffsNotes. Why then does he bother eavesdropping on Hamlet and Ophelia? Not affiliated with Harvard College. Hamlet. The way a director answers this question will of course have massive ramifications in terms of Hamlet and how his character is played in this scene. Why? Rosencrantz and Guildenstern leave. His greeting, like his soliloquy, is surprising. When they withdraw, Hamlet enters alone on stage and delivers his famous “To be or not to be” soliloquy. Explain the dramatic irony in lines 25-28. Favorite Answer. Having received her orders from Polonius, she tells him that she wishes to return the tokens of love he has given her. Either Hamlet truly is insane or he is merely faking insanity to ward off suspicion so he will be able to avenge his father’s death by killing Claudius. King Cladius and Polonius then hide nearby to watch Hamlet’s reaction to being broken up with. Start your 48-hour free trial and unlock all the summaries, Q&A, and analyses you need to get better grades now. Top subjects are Literature, Social Sciences, and History. If he is aware of their presence, this could be a scene where he uses Ophelia, just as Ophelia has used him, to continue to present his "antic disposition" to the King. eNotes.com will help you with any book or any question. Why does Hamlet repeatedly say to Ophelia, "Get thee to a nunnery". One moment he says 'I did love you once', the next 'I loved you not'. 4. Our summaries and analyses are written by experts, and your questions are answered by real teachers. Log in here. They do mention, however, that Hamlet was very enthusiastic about the players’ performance that night, which prompts Claudius to agree to attend the play.