Cambridge School Shakespeare Hamlet (latest edition)

Shakespeare

HAMLET

Cambridge School

Edited by Richard Andrews Series editors: Richard Andrews and Vicki Wienand Founding editor: Rex Gibson

University Printing House, Cambridge CB2 8BS, United Kingdom Cambridge University Press is part of the University of Cambridge.

It furthers the University’s mission by disseminating knowledge in the pursuit of education, learning and research at the highest international levels of excellence. www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9781107615489 Commentary and notes © Cambridge University Press 1994, 2014 Text © Cambridge University Press 1985, 2014 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press.

First published 1994 Second edition 2005 Third edition 2014 Printed in the United Kingdom by Latimer Trend A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library ISBN 978-1-107-61548-9 Paperback Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

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Cover image: Baxter Theatre Company/RSC 2006, © Donald Cooper/Photostage

Contents Introduction Photo gallery

iv v

Hamlet List of characters Act 1 Act 2 Act 3 Act 4 Act 5

1 3 59 101 157 201

Perspectives and themes Characters The language of Hamlet Hamlet in performance Writing about Shakespeare Writing about Hamlet Timeline Acknowledgements

242 254 264 270 278 280 282 283

Cambridge School

Shakespeare

Introduction This Hamlet is part of the Cambridge School Shakespeare series. Like every other play in the series, it has been specially prepared to help all students in schools and colleges.

The Cambridge School Shakespeare Hamlet aims to be different. It invites you to lift the words from the page and to bring the play to life in your classroom, hall or drama studio. Through enjoyable and focused activities, you will increase your understanding of the play. Actors have created their different interpretations of the play over the centuries. Similarly, you are invited to make up your own mind about Hamlet, rather than having someone else’s interpretation handed down to you.

Cambridge School Shakespeare does not offer you a cut-down or simplified version of the play. This is Shakespeare’s language, filled with imaginative possibilities. You will find on every left-hand page: a summary of the action, an explanation of unfamiliar words, and a choice of activities on Shakespeare’s stagecraft, characters, themes and language.

Between each act and in the pages at the end of the play, you will find notes, illustrations and activities. These will help to encourage reflection after every act and give you insights into the background and context of the play as a whole.

This edition will be of value to you whether you are studying for an examination, reading for pleasure or thinking of putting on the play to entertain others. You can work on the activities on your own or in groups.

Many of the activities suggest a particular group size, but don’t be afraid to make up larger or smaller groups to suit your own purposes. Please don’t think you have to do every activity: choose those that will help you most.

Although you are invited to treat Hamlet as a play, you don’t need special dramatic or theatrical skills to do the activities. By choosing your activities, and by exploring and experimenting, you can make your own interpretations of Shakespeare’s language, characters and stories.

Whatever you do, remember that Shakespeare wrote his plays to be acted, watched and enjoyed.

Rex Gibson Founding editor This new edition contains more photographs, more diversity and more supporting material than previous editions, whilst remaining true to Rex’s original vision. Specifically, it contains more activities and commentary on stagecraft and writing about Shakespeare, to reflect contemporary interest. The glossary has been enlarged too. Finally, this edition aims to reflect the best teaching and learning possible, and to represent not only Shakespeare through the ages, but also the relevance and excitement of Shakespeare today.

Richard Andrews and Vicki Wienand Series editors This edition of Hamlet uses the text of the play established by Philip Edwards in The New Cambridge Shakespeare.

iv

Hamlet dramatises the tragic story of the young prince of Denmark. His country is threatened with invasion by Norway, but Hamlet is obsessed with the recent death of his father and the marriage of his mother, Gertrude, to his uncle, Claudius, who has become king.

v

Hamlet’s first appearance, dressed in black, conveys his isolation from the court. His unhappiness about Gertrude’s relationship with Claudius is evident. The outcome will be the destruction of two families: Hamlet’s (Gertrude and Claudius) and royal counsellor Polonius’s (Laertes and Ophelia).

vi

Hamlet learns the truth from his father’s ghost: Claudius murdered old Hamlet. Hamlet desires revenge, but is not sure if the Ghost has spoken honestly.

vii

To test the truth of the Ghost’s story, Hamlet puts on ‘an antic disposition’.

His strange behaviour arouses the suspicion of Claudius.

Claudius sends for Hamlet’s old schoolfriends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, to spy on his stepson.

Hamlet greets them joyfully, but then discovers they are Claudius’s agents.

viii

Hamlet plans to discover Claudius’s guilt. He orders a group of players to stage a play showing a king murdered by his brother, who then marries the queen.

Hamlet’s plan succeeds, and Claudius acknowledges his guilt as he prays. Hamlet is about to kill Claudius, but decides to wait until he can choose a moment when Claudius’s soul will go straight to hell.

ix

▲ Polonius has concealed himself, wishing to overhear what Hamlet says to Gertrude. But Hamlet mistakes the hidden Polonius for Claudius, and kills him. ▲

Hamlet rages at his mother, begging her to give up Claudius. But Claudius, wanting to be rid of his dangerous stepson, sends Hamlet to England, secretly ordering his execution there.

▲

(top) Claudius and Gertrude watch appalled as Ophelia’s songs recall Hamlet’s rejection and his killing of her father, Polonius. Her madness will shortly result in her death.

▲

(bottom) Hamlet has escaped execution in England, but has sent Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to their deaths there. In the graveyard, the sight of Yorick’s skull prompts him to reflect on mortality.

x

xi

Hamlet duels with Laertes, Polonius’s son, who

Romeo and Juliet seeks revenge for his father’s and sister’s deaths.

Claudius and Laertes have conspired to kill Hamlet by deceit. But their plot descends into chaos: Gertrude drinks the poison intended for Hamlet, and Laertes, Claudius and Hamlet are all fatally wounded by the poisoned sword.

xii

Hamlet

List of characters The Royal House of Denmark Prince of Denmark King of Denmark, Hamlet’s uncle GERTRUDE Queen of Denmark, Hamlet’s mother GHOST of King Hamlet, Hamlet’s father HAMLET

CLAUDIUS

The Court of Denmark Counsellor to the king OPHELIA his daughter LAERTES his son REYNALDO his servant POLONIUS

VOLTEMAND CORNELIUS MARCELLUS BARNARDO

OSRIC LORDS

Courtiers

GENTLEMAN MESSENGER and ATTENDANTS

Ambassadors to Norway Officers of the Watch

FRANCISCO SOLDIERS and GUARDS

Former fellow students of Hamlet Hamlet’s friend

HORATIO

ROSENCRANTZ GUILDENSTERN

Sent for by Claudius to inform on Hamlet

Norway Prince of Norway in Fortinbras’s army

FORTINBRAS CAPTAIN

Other characters in the play First PLAYER actors visiting Elsinore Other players English AMBASSADORS SAILORS

gravedigger and sexton SECOND CLOWN his assistant PRIEST at Ophelia’s funeral CLOWN

The action of the play is set in and around the Danish royal palace at Elsinore.

1

Francisco is on sentry duty on the gun platform of Elsinore. It is midnight and freezing cold. Barnardo comes to relieve Francisco. Horatio and Marcellus arrive to join Barnardo.

Stagecraft To experience the tense and uneasy atmosphere of the play’s opening, the best thing to do is take parts and act out the first nineteen lines. As you rehearse, talk together about the following points. Remember, your aim is to make the opening moments of the play gripping and dramatic.

• What will be the first thing the audience sees? For example, is Francisco on sentry duty, patrolling the stage, before the first members of the audience enter?

• Barnardo, the newcomer, challenges Francisco. This is contrary to military practice (Francisco should challenge him). How can you use that error to intensify the nervous atmosphere?

• What effect do the short, staccato (‘rapid fire’) verbal exchanges have?

• How can you show the audience that the night is bitterly cold?

• Francisco is never seen again in the play, but his remark ‘And I am sick at heart’ forecasts the troubled melancholy that Hamlet feels when he appears in the next scene. How might Francisco speak and behave during his brief time on stage? What would be the effect if Hamlet and Francisco were played by the same actor?

• In Shakespeare’s day, plays were staged in broad daylight. Identify all the words and phrases in the script that help create the impression of night and darkness.

Nay answer me go ahead – answer me

unfold yourself identify yourself, give the password Long live the king! (the password, which will prove ironic as the play reveals the death of King Hamlet) most carefully precisely relief (both ‘relief ’ in the modern sense, and replacement on the watch or guarding of the battlements)

rivals partners

Stand ho! stop and

1 Horatio This is the first time we meet Horatio, who will turn out to be an important character in the play.

• Look at Horatio’s lines in the script opposite and on the following page, and start making notes on his character, based on the attitude he takes towards the Watch and the Ghost. Write down the range of emotions he displays. As you progress through the play, your first impressions of his character will inform your notes on Horatio, and the role he plays in relation to Hamlet.

declare yourself

this ground this castle and country

liegemen to the Dane loyal followers of the Danish king

Give you I wish you

A piece of him a characteristically laconic, witty or modest statement from Horatio

2

Hamlet, Prince of Denmark Act 1 Scene 1

A gun platform on the battlements of Elsinore Castle Enter BARNARDO and FRANCISCO, two sentinels BARNARDO FRANCISCO BARNARDO FRANCISCO BARNARDO FRANCISCO BARNARDO FRANCISCO BARNARDO FRANCISCO BARNARDO

FRANCISCO

Who’s there?

Nay answer me. Stand and unfold yourself.

Long live the king!

Barnardo?

He. You come most carefully upon your hour. ’Tis now struck twelve, get thee to bed Francisco.

For this relief much thanks, ’tis bitter cold And I am sick at heart.

Have you had quiet guard?

Not a mouse stirring.

Well, good night.

If you do meet Horatio and Marcellus, The rivals of my watch, bid them make haste.

I think I hear them.

5

10

Enter HORATIO and MARCELLUS HORATIO MARCELLUS FRANCISCO MARCELLUS FRANCISCO MARCELLUS BARNARDO HORATIO

Stand ho! Who is there?

Friends to this ground.

And liegemen to the Dane.

Give you good night.

Oh farewell honest soldier, Who hath relieved you?

Barnardo hath my place.

Give you good night.

Exit Francisco Holla, Barnardo!

Say, What, is Horatio there?

A piece of him.

15

3

Marcellus reports that he and Barnardo have seen the Ghost twice. Horatio doesn’t believe them, but is struck with fear and amazement when the Ghost of Hamlet’s father appears.

Stagecraft ‘Enter GHOST’ – dead King Hamlet appears (in pairs) The entry of the Ghost of Hamlet’s father is a thrilling moment in the theatre. Each new production attempts to ensure that the entrance is as electrifying and memorable as possible. Imagine you are directing the play. You will keep a Director’s Journal in which you consider stagecraft, how to advise the actors, tone and other features of the production. a Talk with your partner and write notes on each of the following: • What does the Ghost look like? Horatio gives a clue in lines 47–9 (and see the pictures in the photo gallery and on pp. 10 and 146).

• Suggest how the Ghost might enter. Slowly or suddenly?

From which direction? Decide whether he makes any gestures, what sound effects you might use and how he leaves the stage.

• Sometimes, as the Ghost appears, the bell strikes. Would you have it strike if you were directing the play? Why, or why not? b In some productions, the Ghost does not appear physically. The audience has to imagine its presence through lighting, sound and characters’ reactions. How effective do you think this style of presenting the Ghost would be? Have two groups present the scene, one with the Ghost on stage and the other with him off stage, to compare dramatic effect.

but our fantasy only our imagination

Touching concerning entreated requested and urged apparition vision, ghostly sight approve our eyes believe our story

Tush, tush (equivalent to a combination of ‘sshh’ and ‘tut tut’)

assail your ears tell you forcefully

yond yonder (far distant) pole pole star (North Star) t’illume to illuminate

scholar student (ghosts were believed to speak Latin)

1 An inner ghost? (in pairs) In a production at the Royal Court Theatre in London in 1980, the actor Jonathan Pryce played Hamlet, with the Ghost appearing to speak from inside him. At times he was bent double with the pain of the Ghost’s voice coming through him; at other times the Ghost appeared to speak in a horrible voice that cut through Hamlet’s own voice, bubbling up in an uncontrolled fashion. Discuss the following points: • What are the advantages and disadvantages of having the Ghost come from within a character?

• How could this first scene be presented if the Ghost is an internal rather than an external presence?

• What does an inner Ghost imply about the nature of ghosts, and the purpose of this particular Ghost in the play as a whole?

4

harrows tortures, tears

usurp’st wrongfully seizes buried Denmark the dead King Hamlet

charge order

Hamlet Act 1 Scene 1

BARNARDO MARCELLUS BARNARDO MARCELLUS

HORATIO BARNARDO

HORATIO BARNARDO

Welcome Horatio, welcome good Marcellus.

What, has this thing appeared again tonight?

I have seen nothing.

Horatio says ’tis but our fantasy, And will not let belief take hold of him Touching this dreaded sight, twice seen of us.

Therefore I have entreated him along With us to watch the minutes of this night, That if again this apparition come He may approve our eyes, and speak to it.

Tush, tush, ’twill not appear.

Sit down awhile, And let us once again assail your ears, That are so fortified against our story, What we two nights have seen.

Well, sit we down, And let us hear Barnardo speak of this.

Last night of all, When yond same star that’s westward from the pole Had made his course t’illume that part of heaven Where now it burns, Marcellus and myself, The bell then beating one –

20

25

30

35

Enter GHOST MARCELLUS BARNARDO MARCELLUS BARNARDO HORATIO BARNARDO MARCELLUS HORATIO

MARCELLUS BARNARDO HORATIO

Peace, break thee off. Look where it comes again.

In the same figure, like the king that’s dead.

Thou art a scholar, speak to it Horatio.

Looks a not like the king? Mark it Horatio.

Most like. It harrows me with fear and wonder.

It would be spoke to.

Question it Horatio.

What art thou that usurp’st this time of night, Together with that fair and warlike form In which the majesty of buried Denmark Did sometimes march? By heaven I charge thee speak.

It is offended.

See, it stalks away.

Stay! Speak, speak, I charge thee speak!

40

45

50

Exit Ghost

5

Horatio agrees that the Ghost is the exact image of the dead King Hamlet. He thinks it foretells disasters for Denmark. Horatio begins to explain why there are so many urgent preparations for war.

1 A battle? Or an angry gesture? (in small groups) Do lines 62–3 tell of Denmark’s king defeating the Polish army (‘Polacks’) in a battle on the ice (‘sledded’ = on sledges)? Or do they mean that the king, in an angry discussion (‘parle’) with the Norwegians, struck his battle-axe on the ice like a sledgehammer (= ‘sledded’). Sometimes the word ‘Polacks’ is printed as ‘polax’ (poleaxe).

• Stage two tableaux (frozen pictures) showing each interpretation.

sensible and true avouch evidence

Decide which version is more imaginative and dramatic.

Write about it

Denmark prepares for war (in pairs) In lines 70–9, Marcellus questions why Denmark is feverishly preparing for war. Guards are mounted everywhere. ‘Brazen’ (brass) cannons roll off the production line daily. Weapons are bought in foreign countries and imported (‘foreign mart for implements of war’). Ships are being built by forced labour (‘impress’), working night and day, even on Sundays (unusual in a Christian country).

• Write six additional lines, in Shakespearean verse or in modern

prose, listing more of Denmark’s frantic war preparations. Use the same urgent style as Marcellus does.

Language in the play ‘Doubling’ – a feature of the play

Norway King of Norway parle exchange of words leading (in this case) to violence

Polacks forces from Poland jump exactly martial stalk military stride In what particular … work how to think about it

gross and scope general view bodes … state is ominous for us and for Denmark

Good now now then (deriving from ‘In the name of God’ or ‘’For God’s sake’) mart market impress employment toward in preparation

In the script opposite there are several examples of a language device that recurs through the play. It is the use of ‘and’ between two verbs, nouns or noun phrases, or between adjectives, to achieve a ‘doubling’ effect: ‘tremble and look pale’, ‘sensible and true avouch’, ‘gross and scope’, ‘strict and most observant’. a As you read on, list other examples (there are at least seven in Horatio’s lines 80–107). The technical term is hendiadys (pronounced ‘hen-die-a-dees’). You will find information about its dramatic importance on page 267. b What is the linguistic and dramatic effect of such doubling?

6

emulate jealous

sealed compact treaty ratified confirmed law and heraldy laws of chivalry

Hamlet Act 1 Scene 1

MARCELLUS BARNARDO

HORATIO

MARCELLUS HORATIO

MARCELLUS HORATIO

MARCELLUS

HORATIO

’Tis gone and will not answer.

How now Horatio? you tremble and look pale.

Is not this something more than fantasy?

What think you on’t?

Before my God, I might not this believe Without the sensible and true avouch Of mine own eyes.

Is it not like the king?

As thou art to thyself.

Such was the very armour he had on When he th’ambitious Norway combated; So frowned he once, when in an angry parle He smote the sledded Polacks on the ice. ’Tis strange.

Thus twice before, and jump at this dead hour, With martial stalk hath he gone by our watch.

In what particular thought to work I know not, But in the gross and scope of mine opinion This bodes some strange eruption to our state.

Good now sit down, and tell me he that knows, Why this same strict and most observant watch So nightly toils the subject of the land, And why such daily cast of brazen cannon, And foreign mart for implements of war, Why such impress of shipwrights, whose sore task Does not divide the Sunday from the week.

What might be toward, that this sweaty haste Doth make the night joint-labourer with the day?

Who is’t that can inform me?

That can I – At least the whisper goes so. Our last king, Whose image even but now appeared to us, Was as you know by Fortinbras of Norway, Thereto pricked on by a most emulate pride, Dared to the combat; in which our valiant Hamlet – For so this side of our known world esteemed him – Did slay this Fortinbras; who by a sealed compact, Well ratified by law and heraldy, Did forfeit (with his life) all those his lands Which he stood seized of, to the conqueror;

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60

65

70

75

80

85

7

Horatio says that young Fortinbras intends to regain the lands his father lost when killed by King Hamlet.

The Ghost’s appearance presages violence, just as Caesar’s death was foretold by ominous events.

1 Act out Horatio’s story (in groups of six or more) In lines 80–107, Horatio explains why Denmark is preparing for war.

The king of Norway (old Fortinbras) had challenged King Hamlet (Hamlet’s father) to personal combat. Both men wagered (‘gagèd’) large areas of land on the outcome of the duel. King Hamlet killed Fortinbras and so took over his territory, which was passed on to his son, Hamlet, when he died. Now young Fortinbras, with an army of mercenaries (‘landless resolutes’), seeks to recover his father’s lost lands. The Danes are hastily preparing to defend themselves against the imminent invasion.

• Bring Horatio’s story to life. One person narrates while the others

enact each episode. The lines contain over twenty-five separate actions that can be shown. (For instance, ‘Sharked up’ is a vivid image of a shark feeding indiscriminately.)

moiety competent equal amount gagèd calculated, wagered comart … design treaty

unimprovèd mettle untested bravery

skirts of Norway edges of the kingdom/edges of the king’s influence

a stomach in’t courage in it

terms compulsatory forced agreement

Write about it Predicting disasters

‘A mote it is to trouble the mind’s eye’ says Horatio (line 112): the appearance of the Ghost is an irritant (‘mote’) to the imagination.

It suggests that disasters lie ahead. Shakespeare had written Julius Caesar shortly before Hamlet. The sinister omens that preceded the death of Caesar were fresh in his mind. Horatio lists them: the living dead, comets, bloody rain, sunspots, an eclipse of the moon (‘the moist star’). Horatio uses the language of classical allusion (referencing), which gives the speech a lofty, important style. a Compare Horatio’s style here (lines 112–39) with that of his speech at lines 148–56 in this scene. Why does he use the more florid style in the script opposite? b Find a copy of The Elizabethan World Picture by E.M.W. Tillyard (first published in 1943) and write up a paragraph or two of background information on how the Elizabethans and Jacobeans (people living under the reign of James I, 1603–25) saw the universe and its influence on humanity. You could also compare Gloucester and Edmond’s lines in King Lear (Act 1 Scene 2, 103– 33). Present your research to the rest of the class. You might wish to develop these short presentations into a wall display or some other resource that everyone in the group can refer to.

8

post-haste and romage frantic activity and turmoil

portentous with importance and future significance

palmy (literally, with servants waving palm leaves to keep Caesar cool, but also with the suggestion of decadence and corruption) tenantless empty trains trails Neptune’s empire the sea precurse forewarning of doom (pre-curse) harbingers messengers climatures territories

Hamlet Act 1 Scene 1

[BARNARDO

HORATIO

Against the which a moiety competent Was gagèd by our king, which had returned To the inheritance of Fortinbras Had he been vanquisher; as by the same comart And carriage of the article design, His fell to Hamlet. Now sir, young Fortinbras, Of unimprovèd mettle hot and full, Hath in the skirts of Norway here and there Sharked up a list of landless resolutes For food and diet to some enterprise That hath a stomach in’t; which is no other, As it doth well appear unto our state, But to recover of us by strong hand And terms compulsatory those foresaid lands So by his father lost. And this, I take it, Is the main motive of our preparations, The source of this our watch, and the chief head Of this post-haste and romage in the land.

I think it be no other but e’en so.

Well may it sort that this portentous figure Comes armèd through our watch so like the king That was and is the question of these wars.

A mote it is to trouble the mind’s eye.

In the most high and palmy state of Rome, A little ere the mightiest Julius fell, The graves stood tenantless and the sheeted dead Did squeak and gibber in the Roman streets; As stars with trains of fire, and dews of blood, Disasters in the sun; and the moist star, Upon whose influence Neptune’s empire stands, Was sick almost to doomsday with eclipse.

And even the like precurse of feared events, As harbingers preceding still the fates And prologue to the omen coming on, Have heaven and earth together demonstrated Unto our climatures and countrymen.]

90

95

100

105

110

115

120

125

9

Horatio five times demands that the reappearing Ghost speak to him. The cock crows and the Ghost vanishes without reply. Horatio says it cannot be harmed, but that it behaved like a criminal summoned to justice.

Characters Horatio’s response to the Ghost (in pairs) a Look back at Horatio’s lines in this scene, and refer to your notes on the activity about Horatio on page 2. Make a list of the different characteristics Horatio has shown, then compare them with a partner and build up a list that includes your combined ideas. Share this list with the class as a whole. b Try reading out lines 112–25 and lines 126–39, experimenting with different styles of delivery. The two sections are clearly different, but in how many ways could you present each of the sections? Which combination works best? c Stage an interview with Horatio, questioning him about his different reactions to the Ghost. Questions could include: what was your first reaction to hearing the reports of Marcellus and Barnardo? Have you changed your position since seeing the Ghost? What do you think its presence portends (signifies)? d Extend your notes on Horatio from the page 2 activity by writing up what you have learnt about his character from the activities on this page.

soft quiet cross address, confront

privy to knowledgeable about

uphoarded hoarded, hidden Extorted wrenched out by force

partisan pike, long-handled spear

invulnerable impossible to hurt vain blows futile attempts to hit ▼

In what ways does this Ghost match your own conceptions of how he might look?

started seemed surprised a guilty thing … summons an evildoer caught red-handed

extravagant and erring wandering

hies … confine hurries to his prison (cell, place of confinement) present object apparition (the Ghost)

made probation gave proof

10

Hamlet Act 1 Scene 1

Enter GHOST

MARCELLUS HORATIO BARNARDO HORATIO MARCELLUS

But soft, behold, lo where it comes again!

I’ll cross it though it blast me. Stay, illusion.

It spreads his arms If thou hast any sound or use of voice, Speak to me.

If there be any good thing to be done That may to thee do ease, and grace to me, Speak to me.

If thou art privy to thy country’s fate, Which happily foreknowing may avoid, Oh speak.

Or if thou hast uphoarded in thy life Extorted treasure in the womb of earth, For which they say you spirits oft walk in death, Speak of it. Stay and speak! Stop it Marcellus.

Shall I strike at it with my partisan?

Do if it will not stand. ’Tis here. ’Tis here. ’Tis gone.

130

135

The cock crows 140

Exit Ghost

BARNARDO HORATIO

We do it wrong being so majestical To offer it the show of violence, For it is as the air invulnerable, And our vain blows malicious mockery.

It was about to speak when the cock crew.

And then it started like a guilty thing Upon a fearful summons. I have heard, The cock, that is the trumpet to the morn, Doth with his lofty and shrill-sounding throat Awake the god of day; and at his warning, Whether in sea or fire, in earth or air, Th’extravagant and erring spirit hies To his confine. And of the truth herein This present object made probation.

145

150

155

11

Marcellus claims that the cockerel crows all night long at Christmas, a time when no harm can be done.

Horatio seems to agree. He proposes that they tell Hamlet about the Ghost.

1 Daybreak after darkness: a change of mood (in pairs) Dawn is breaking. The mood of fear, tension and apprehension gives way to a different emotional climate. Lyrical, poetic language creates a sense of religious awe and wonder. To experience the atmosphere of these closing moments of Scene 1, try the activities below: a Talk together about non-verbal ways in which the change of mood could be conveyed in the theatre (lighting, sound, posture and so on). b Marcellus is a soldier. He may be dressed in armour for his night’s vigil, but he speaks eloquently. His words are filled with poetic wonderment, and do not sound like the language of a no-nonsense military man.

Experiment with ways of speaking lines 157–64: full of religious awe; bluntly and factually; conspiratorially, as a great secret. Decide how you think the lines should be spoken on stage. c After Marcellus’s eloquent description of how Christmastime prevents any evil, Horatio responds with ‘So have I heard, and do in part believe it.’ His remark seems tinged with scepticism. Speak line 165, emphasising ‘in part’. See if you can agree on whether the actor should use the line to show that Horatio does not really believe what Marcellus says.

Themes Disorder, death and the afterlife (in pairs) The first scene in Hamlet provides us with an atmospheric and dramatic start to the play. The Watch is nervous, having seen the Ghost twice already. There is a tense political situation – Denmark is in dispute with Norway over lands that have been awarded to Hamlet, following the killing of the king of Norway by Hamlet’s father. The Ghost’s appearance seems to foreshadow a number of disturbing themes. a Note down as many themes as you can identify in this opening scene. Remember that a ‘theme’ can be captured by more than a single word. So, as well as ‘fear’, ‘anxiety’ and ‘politics’, for example, you can characterise a theme in a more complex way, such as ‘the relationship between reason and the imagination’. b Arrange the themes you have identified in a diagram that shows how they relate to each other.

12

ever ’gainst always before (or in expectation of) our Saviour Jesus Christ bird of dawning cockerel stir abroad move around outside no planets strike (the planets were assumed to crash into each other at times, causing disorder in the world)

takes bewitches, does harm hallowed holy russet mantle reddish-coloured cloak

impart tell spirit (the Ghost) acquaint him with it let him know about it

most conveniently very easily

Hamlet Act 1 Scene 1

MARCELLUS

HORATIO

MARCELLUS

It faded on the crowing of the cock.

Some say that ever ’gainst that season comes Wherein our Saviour’s birth is celebrated, This bird of dawning singeth all night long, And then, they say, no spirit dare stir abroad, The nights are wholesome, then no planets strike, No fairy takes, nor witch hath power to charm, So hallowed and so gracious is that time.

So have I heard, and do in part believe it.

But look, the morn in russet mantle clad Walks o’er the dew of yon high eastward hill.

Break we our watch up, and by my advice Let us impart what we have seen tonight Unto young Hamlet, for upon my life This spirit, dumb to us, will speak to him.

Do you consent we shall acquaint him with it, As needful in our loves, fitting our duty?

Let’s do’t I pray, and I this morning know Where we shall find him most conveniently.

160

165

170

175

Exeunt

13

Claudius announces to the court that, although he grieves for his dead brother, he has, with joy, married Gertrude. He turns his attention to the political situation: young Fortinbras is threatening Denmark.

1 Claudius: honest or devious? (in small groups) King Hamlet has recently died. Claudius, his brother, has become king of Denmark and has married Gertrude. Claudius now possesses his dead brother’s throne and his widow. He explains his marriage to his sister-inlaw so soon after her first husband’s death (lines 1–16), and then turns to political affairs (lines 17–39). a Stage the entrance Explore different stagings of Claudius’s entrance.

One version could show Claudius respected by the courtiers. Another might show he is feared: his courtiers suspect he may become a tyrant. b Honest or devious? Some critics argue that Claudius’s eloquence is appropriate to the occasion. His long, carefully constructed sentences suggest he is self-assured and honest. But other critics argue that the speech reveals his insincerity. Its fluency makes it sound rehearsed and false. His constant references to himself using the royal ‘we’, ‘us’, ‘our’ suggest he is anxious about whether his kingship is legal. Take turns to speak lines 1–39 to show Claudius as, alternately: confident and in control, uneasy and insecure, devious and crafty, honest and sincere.

Afterwards, talk together about what you feel Claudius’s language reveals about his character. c Oppositions Lines 10–14 display another characteristic of the play’s language: antithesis (setting words against each other, for example ‘defeated’ versus ‘joy’, ‘mirth’ versus ‘funeral’, see p. 265). Speak the lines using an action to accompany each antithesis.

Characters

green young, fresh us befitted was appropriate contracted creased

sometime former imperial jointress joint ruler of the state

auspicious promising happiness dirge sad song dole sadness barred rejected, disregarded

Holding … worth underestimating us

Claudius a After you have done some or all of the activities above, start making notes on Claudius as a character. There is much in this opening speech for you to include. Collect what you see as the key lines in Claudius’s speech. Then annotate each quotation with comments about Claudius’s character. As the activities above suggest, you can gauge his character through his actions, his words and his manner of speaking. b Compare your notes with others to see if you are coming to the same initial conclusions about Claudius.

14

Colleaguèd linked dream of his advantage his imagined advantage and rights

Importing concerning bands of law legally binding agreements