Plot
Who did Hamlet think he killed (he did not think it was Polonius)?
Claudius
Who are Hamlets BFFS
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
Why is it dangerous that Hamlet is "running loose"?
He might kill someone else
What type of figurative language is this?
Hamlet says the king keeps them "in his mouth like an ape, moving them around from one side of his mouth to the other". This visualizes their manipulation, showing how they are used and manipulated by Claudius
Simile
"Come, Gertrude, we'll call up our wisest friends
And let them know both what we mean to do
And what's untimely done. "
Claudius
How does Gertrude describe Hamlet's state of mind to Claudius?
-Gertrude describes Hamlet’s state of mind to Claudius as completely mad
Who is Laertes?
Polonius' son/ Ophelia's brother
Where is the body?
Under the stairs
Why does Hamlet call Rosencrantz a "sponge" and what does this metaphor reveal about his view of his former friends?
Because they do whatever the king asks them with no question.
" The body is with the king, but the king is not with the body"
Hamlet
Is Gertrude covering for Hamlet or telling the truth about his madness?
Gertrude is actively covering for Hamlet
How does Gertrude feel about Hamlet?
Loyal to Hamlet, telling Claudius that Hamlet is crazy but knowing he is really not truly insane, just pretending
What does Claudius want to do with Hamlet?
Claudius wants Hamlet to be sent away and executed
What does Hamlet mean by calling Rosencrantz a good apple to the king?
He takes a bite of it but does not swallow right away. Instead, he keeps it in his mouth, to squeeze whenever he wants something from it.
Rosencrantz is always there for the King and the King uses him
“Ah, my good lord, what have I seen tonight!”
Gertrude
What does Hamlet say he did with the body?
He mixed it with dust
How is Hamlet feeling- is he treating this situation seriously?
No
Why can't Claudius have Hamlet charged with Murder?
the general public adores him and this would make the family's reputation really bad
What kind of figurative language is this? Hamlet speaks to the king about where Polonius is, "A man may fish with the worm that hath eat of a king, and eat of the fish that hath fed of that worm".
Imagery
“What have you done, my lord, with the dead body?”
Rosencrantz
Does Claudius realize he was the intended target of the kill?
Yes
What is the "double meaning" in Claudius's plan?
Claudius tells the audience he is shipping Hamlet to England to be killed immediately, but he frames it to the public as a safety measure for a prince who has gone insane.
What did Hamlet call Polonius before he killed him?
A rat
How is Gertrude justifying Hamlet's actions by using metal types as a metaphor in this quote? "O'er whom his very madness, like some ore / Among a mineral of metals base, / Shows itself pure." (Gertrude, 4.1.25-27)
Gertrude attempts to justify Hamlet's actions by saying his inner remorse (the "pure" metal) is only covered by the "base" metal of his madness
"Mad as the sea and wind when both contend
Which is the mightier. In his lawless fit,
Behind the arras hearing something stir,
He whips his rapier out, and cries, "A rat, a rat!"
And in his brainish apprehension kills
The unseen good old man."
Gertrude