Hamlet Plot Development
Exposition
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Setting:
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Denmark
At the castle, Elsinore
Graveyard
Polonius’s house (still in Elsinore)
Hamlet: Prince of Denmark, Son of
Ghost and Gertrude,
nephew/stepson of Claudius
Ghost: past king of Denmark
Gertrude: mother of Hamlet and
Queen of Denmark
Claudius: King of Denmark, brother
to ghost, husband of Gertrude
Polonius: advisor (Lord Chamberlain)
to Claudius, father to Ophelia and
Laertes
Ophelia: daughter of Polonius,
Laertes sister, Hamlet’s girlfriend
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Laertes: son to Polonius, brother of
Ophelia
Horatio: friend of Hamlet’s from
school (Wittenberg), only one Hamlet
trusts
Rosencrantz and Guilderstern:
Hamlet’s childhood friends, spies on
Hamlet for Claudius and Gertrude (to
see what’s wrong with Hamlet)
Fortinbras: Prince of Norway
War between Norway and Denmark:
Old Hamlet slay Old Fortinbras and
acquires land. Now Young Fortinbras
wants to get revenge and take the
land back.
Rising Action
• Ghost wants Hamlet to get revenge for his
death: Should he get revenge or not? Does he
even believe the ghost is his father?
– Anger towards Gertrude
• Impending war (current) Young Fortinbras
attempting to wage war against Denmark to
recover the land that was lost.
• Hamlet’s feeling towards Ophelia: Does he
genuinely love her or not?
Climax
• When Hamlet asks the players to perform The Death of
Gonzago (which he calls “The Mousetrap”) and he adds a
portion of the play to assess Claudius’ guilt. And Claudius
reacts and shows his guilt.
• Hamlet tells Ophelia that he doesn’t want be with her, she
gives him back his letters and gifts, and he tells her to
swear off men and go to a nunnery.
• Claudius receives word from King of Norway that he was
not aware of Young Fortinbras’ plans to wage war against
Denmark and that he thought he was waging war against
Poland. King of Norway asks for safe passage through
Denmark so that they can invade Poland.
Falling Action
• Hamlet kills Polonius
• Claudius sends Hamlet to
England to get killed
• Hamlet switches letters
and has Rosencrantz and
Guilderstern killed instead
• Laertes comes back for
revenge
• Laertes and Claudius set
up duel, conspire to kill
Hamlet by poison on
sword or in the drink
• Ophelia goes crazy and
dies (maybe suicide)
• Fortinbras shows up in
Denmark with his troops
heading to Poland and his
general tells Hamlet what
is going on
Resolution
• Duel:
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Gertrude drinks the poison
Laertes slashes Hamlet with poison tipped sword
Hamlet stabs Laertes with the poison tipped sword
Laertes confesses about conspiracy with King
Hamlet stabs Claudius and makes him drink the poison
Hamlet tells Horatio to tell what happened
Fortinbras is now the king of Denmark
• Hamlet and Laertes fight inside of Ophelia’s grave
(Hamlet professes love and says no one loved her more
than he)