HAMLET STUDY QUESTIONS
I.i-iii.
1. What is the dramatic function of the opening scenes being
haunted by the Ghost of the Dead King Hamlet? Would the play
be weakened if it did not open this way?
2. Why do you suppose that King Claudius is so irritated by
Hamlet’s persistent grief and melancholy?
3. What is the story with Fortinbras of Norway? What is he trying
to do and why?
4. In your culture, how are emotions managed or domesticated
through various rituals? Is it necessary that one ‘just get on with
things’ or ‘just get over it’ when someone dies? Is there a
‘reasonable’ amount of time that should be spent in mourning and
beyond which it becomes a little ridiculous? Have you ever felt
that a ritual, like a funeral, failed to do justice to your emotions?
What was this like? See I.ii.76-86.
5. Explain Hamlet’s ambivalent relationship to Claudius at this
point in the play. Remember that he does not yet know that
Claudius is responsible for the death of his father.
6. What is Hamlet’s complaint about what his mother Gertrude
has done? How does he seem to be feeling about her generally?
7. What are THREE reasons Hamlet has to be upset at the
beginning of the play?
8. What do you make of Hamlet’s confusion about time in his
speech in I.ii.129-160? Does he seem completely sane? Could this
be used as evidence for what some have called madness?
9. As Laertes is leaving Elsinore, he tells his sister Ophelia to
beware Hamlet’s romantic advances. Why does he tell her this?
See I.iii.10-44. Why might it not be wise for Hamlet to marry
Ophelia?
I.iv-v and II.i
1. What custom is Hamlet criticizing in scene iv? Why does he
think it should be criticized? What sort of portrait is being painted
of King Claudius in scenes like this?
2. What does Hamlet learn in scene v?
3. How was King Hamlet killed? By whom?
4. What does Hamlet’s father request? On what grounds does he
make this request?
5. What does the ghost demand for Hamlet’s mother, Gertrude?
6. What is Hamlet’s mental state in lines 92-112? What is he doing
in this speech?
7. What grounds does Hamlet have for proclaiming that this is an
“honest ghost”? Can a ghost be honest? Underline this passage in
your text, particularly I.v.138.
8. Why is Polonius sending Raynaldo to France? What does he
want him to do?
9. What is your impression of Polonius so far? Does he seem
wise, foolish, ‘goofy’?
10. In lines 78-83 of scene 1, Ophelia is describing a rather
disturbing encounter with Hamlet. What happend here? What
might nr on Hamlet’s mind when he looks at Ophelia?
11. Why does Polonius think Hamlet is ‘mad’? Does this suggest
anything about his own ego?
Act II.ii
1. Why did Claudius and Gertrude have Rosencrantz and
Guildenstern come to Elsinore? Who are they?
2. How is the problem with Norway and Fortinbras resolved?
3. In II.ii.387-388, what is Hamlet saying? Is he crazy or not?
4. Why might Hamlet want to feign (fake) madness?
5. Why does Hamlet think Denmark’s a prison? How is it literally
a prison for him?
6. Is Hamlet ‘playing’ with Rosencrantz and Gildenstern? Why?
7. What is Hamlet saying in lines 301-319?
8. What is Hamlet’s opinion of the players? Why are they
valuable?
9. How does Hamlet decide to use the players?
10. What is he saying in the ‘O, what a rogue and peasant slave am
I’ speech? (This is an important soliloquy.)
11. Why does Hamlet need more proof of Claudius’ wrongdoing?
How and why is he skeptical of the ghost?
12. Is Hamlet a coward, as he himself suggests?
Act III.i
1. Do Claudius and Gertrude get the information they wanted
from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern?
2. What sort of father is Polonius, given that he is willing to
expose his daughter to further violence from Hamlet?
3. What are Hamlet’s views on suicide? What reason does he give
for NOT doing it? What other reasons does Hamlet have for not
doing it?
4. Compare the “to be or not to be” speech with Hamlet’s speech
in I.ii.129-158.
5.
Why does Hamlet deny having ever loved Ophelia or giving
her gifts? How is Hamlet viewing women in general in at this
point?
6. What sort of world view is Hamlet revealing in III.i.121-131?
Why does he tell Ophelia to enter a nunnery?
7. In line 122 Hamlet says that Ophelia, if she were to marry,
would be a breeder of sinners. What does he mean by this?
8. In speaking to Ophelia, is Hamlet really speaking to his
mother? Would this be a reasonable position to argue?
9. Why would he want to outlaw marriage? What does it represent
to Hamlet?
10. In II.ii.56-57, Gertrude suggests that she knows exactly why
Hamlet has changed so much. What does she say? Is she believed
or ignored? Claudius and Polonius later decide that the cause of
his ‘madness’ is Ophelia, who has been told to reject Hamlet (by
Polonius). Why would Claudius and Polonius want to believe that
she was the cause of the trouble rather than the more obvious
possible causes?
11. What does Claudius conclude about Hamlet's madness after
seeing this exchange between Hamlet and Ophelia? III.i.165-170
12.What does Claudius mean in the last lines of the scene in which
he says “Madness in great ones must not unwatched go”?
Act III. ii-iv
III. ii: The play within the play
1. How does Hamlet seem to feel about the theatre? What does
he think it is able to do?
2. What sort of commentary about the theater and its place in
popular culture might Shakespeare be making? Why?
3. What does Hamlet’s state of mind seem to be just before the
play begins?
4. The play within the play is essentially divided into two parts.
One is 'for' Gertrude, the other for Claudius. Describe the
Gertrude portion of the play.
5. Do Rosencrantz and Guildenstern deserve Hamlet’s harsh,
almost violent treatment?
6. Around lines 350-380, what is Hamlet accusing R&G of?
7. What is Hamlet’s plan for his mother? See lines 396-408.
8. In lines 396-400, what sort of mental state is Hamlet in? Does
he seem ready to finally DO something? Contrast it with the rest
of the scene. There is a dramatic shift in tone in these final lines.
Account for that shift.
9. In Hamlet's final speech in this scene, he seems to be distraught.
In the middle of the speech, his attention shifts from what he has
to do (to Claudius) to how he needs to be when he visits his
mother in the next scene. How thorough can this emotional
changing of the gears be? Might there be some spillover from
"now could I drink hot blood" etc...to "soft, now to my
mother..."?
III. iii
1. What is Claudius’ plan for Hamlet?
2. Why is Hamlet now infinitely more dangerous to Claudius than
he had been previously? What does he now know for certain?
3. What is Polonius going to do while Hamlet is talking to
Gertrude? Why does he claim this is necessary? See lines 31-33
especially.
4. What is Claudius’ state of mind while he is ‘praying’? Is he
repentant?
5. Why does Claudius think he cannot truly repent or be forgiven
for what he has done? See lines 52-56 especially.
6. When does Hamlet have a chance to kill Claudius? Why
specifically does he refrain? When does he think he should kill
him?
III. iv: Gertrude’s chamber
1. What is the purpose of Hamlet’s visit to his mother’s chamber?
2. Characterize the conversation between Hamlet and Gertrude.
What sorts of emotions are flying around? (Early in the scene she
assumes that Hamlet is there to kill her).
3. What happens to Polonius in this scene?
4.
Look at III.iv.29-31. What is being revealed to Gertrude?
Do you think she knew what happened to King Hamlet?
5. Does Gertrude understand what the problem is that Hamlet is
talking about? Which lines help make your case?
6. Why does the ghost show up at this point? What does the
Ghost mean when he says that “the purpose of this visitation is
but to whet thy almost blunted purpose”? Can Gertrude see the
ghost?
7. In what ways can ‘traditions’ and ‘customs’ prohibit genuine
expression of feeling? Are traditions necessarily right or
venerable? See line 38. What is Hamlet saying about the power of
custom, or rather habit, on how we engage and are affected by the
world?
8. Why does Hamlet show Gertrude the two pictures? What does
he ultimately ask her?
9. Do you believe that Gertrude doesn’t know what her "vile act"
was?
10. Do you think that Hamlet is crazy in this scene? Why would
Gertrude almost prefer that he be insane at this point? See lines
145-148 especially.
11. What does Hamlet not want Gertrude to do? See lines 160190. Why?
Act IV
IV. iii
1. What does Claudius decide about Hamlet? What is he going to
do to him? What is going to happen to him when he goes to
England?
IV. iv
1. What effect does seeing Fortinbras have on Hamlet?
2. What is going on his soliloquy in this scene? Is he any closer to
action at its end?
3. Does he seem to have any more insight into why he is still
hesitating? What do you think his problem is?
IV. v
1. Why has Ophelia gone mad?
2. Look at the King’s speech around lines 75-95. It begins with
“follow her close….” What is on Claudius's mind?
3. What is the King saying about the state of things in Denmark?
4. What has caused things to decay like this? (Hint: think of what
killing a king represented, especially given what the King was in
England after the formation of the Church of England)
5. Why is Laertes so angry in this scene? What has he come to do?
6. Contrast Laertes’s motivation for revenge with that of Hamlet.
Describe the difference. Does his approach seem better or worse
than Hamlet's? Are they both seriously flawed? Why and how?
7. Look at the King’s final speech in this scene. What does he
mean in the last three lines? How do you predict he will ‘use’
Laertes and his anger?
IV. vi
1. What is Hamlet's letter to Horatio all about? What does he plan
to do to Rosencranz and Gildenstern? Is this justified?
IV. vi-vii
1. Laertes is asking Claudius why he hasn’t punished the murder of
Polonius more swiftly. What are Claudius’ reasons? Do they seem
legitimate? How might they be self-serving? What problems do
these reasons suggest with his authority?
2. Around lines 58-60, what is Claudius planning to do? Is this
disingenuous? Self-serving?
3. What is the plan that Claudius and Laertes devise for killing
Hamlet?
4. What is deeply ironic about Claudius’ utterance around lines
105-110 when he asks Laertes whether his father was dear to him
or whether this show is ‘put on’ in some way and the following
longer speech?
5. Is there a moral sort of problem with Laertes’ over zealous
willingness to get his revenge any way possible, including cutting
Hamlet’s throat in the church? Hamlet over thinks to the point of
inaction, but Laertes seems almost too willing. What are the issues
at work here? Describe the difficulties in both of these scenarios.
6. What news does Gertrude bring at the end of the scene?
Act V
V.i. the graveyard
1. Why do the 'clowns' think Ophelia will receive a Christian
burial? Do they think she deserved it?
2. What sort of social class critique is going on in this scene?
3. What is the function of the 'comic relief' that the gravediggers
supply?
4. What is Hamlet learning about death in this scene? How might
he be changing emotionally?
5. Based on the burial scene, can you make any 'final'
determination about Hamlet's feelings about Ophelia?
V. ii: the denouement
1. How does Hamlet escape and return to England? What
becomes of Rosencrantz and Giuldenstern? Does their demise
reflect badly upon Hamlet?
2. What does Osric do? What des he suggest?
3. What are the two options that Hamlet must choose between?
What is the likely outcome of the option that isn't the duel? In
light of this, why do you suppose he chooses the duel?
4. What does Horatio think about Hamlet's choice?
5. How does Hamlet feel about the choice he makes to duel?
6. Pay extra special attention to lines 220-225 in this scene. What
might these lines suggest about Hamlet's view of death?
7. Why is the pearl important?
8. Why does Claudius not more forcefully deter Gertrude from
drinking the poisoned wine?
9. At what point does Hamlet finally decide to kill Claudius? Is this
in any way unsatisfying?
10. What does Horatio want to do at the end? Why? What sort of
person is Horatio?
11. Why won't Hamlet allow Horatio to kill himself?
12. Of what are Hamlet's final thoughts? Why is this appropriate?
(Hint: what is he, for just a second, at this point?)
13. Who becomes King at the end of the play and why?
14. Do you suppose that Hamlet approves of Fortinbras becoming
King? Why?
15. As he takes the throne, how does Fortinbras seem to feel
about and regard Hamlet? What will his final rites be, and why?