Hamlet’s first encounter with the his father’s ghost establishes Hamlet’s motive for revenge. It’s thus an important scene, and Shakespeare himself played the role of the Ghost (remember, he was an actor as well as a playwright). But what Hamlet learns — presuming the Ghost can be believed — goes beyond the knowledge that his uncle murdered his father. What other important information does the Ghost tell him?
“Words, words, words,” says Hamlet. To many critics, audiences, and readers, Hamlet is simultaneously the supreme expression of the English language and the most profound rumination on the strengths and weaknesses of language in general. One of the ways the play achieves this is through Hamlet’s incredible facility with puns and word-games, which in this act contrasts with Polonius’s less impressive gifts. Examine his conversation with Polonius, and discuss why the old counselor says (while not really understanding what is going on), “Though this be madness, yet there is method in’t.”
What is the importance of Hamlet’s meeting with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern? These are clearly old friends of Hamlet, probably closer to him in the past than Horatio had been. What then goes wrong? What is Hamlet trying to get them to say and do, and why won’t they do it?
At the end of Act 2, after meeting with the players, Hamlet berates himself severely for being “pigeon-livered.” This soliloquy is no doubt a significant source for the judgment (such as Olivier’s about Hamlet being “a man who can’t make up his mind”) that Hamlet delays his revenge unnecessarily. But is this (self-)criticism fair? How should Hamlet have acted more expeditiously? Why does he react this way after hearing the player’s speech about the killing of Priam?
Read Derek Jacobi’s commentary on the “To be or not to be” speech. Do you find his argument persuasive? Why or why not? What advantages derive from reading and performing the scene in this way? What problems arise from doing so?
However sympathetic we may be to Hamlet, given the nearly impossible situation in which he finds himself, his treatment of Ophelia is unspeakably cruel. Why does Hamlet treat Ophelia as he does? Is his apparent anger justifed? Is it simply part of his feigned madness? Or can you imagine another reason?
The dialogue between Queen Gertrude and Hamlet at the end of Act III is powerful, but it is important that you pay close attention to how Hamlet’s tone changes partway through. What is the change, when does it happen, and what causes it?