Hamlet Act Four

Scene One  Gertrude tells Claudius that Hamlet killed Polonius  Claudius, Gertrude, and their advisors will figure out a way to tell the public about Polonius’ death without making Hamlet look like an enemy  Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are sent to convince Hamlet to bring Polonius’ body to the chapel before they all leave for England

Scene Two  Hamlet doesn’t tell Rosencrantz and Guildenstern where he put Polonius’ body  Hamlet calls Rosencrantz a sponge because he is used by Claudius to soak up information and tell Claudius everything he knows  “you shall be dry again,” – Hamlet foreshadowing Rosencrantz’s death

Scene Two Continued  “The body is with the king, but the king is not with the body. The king is a thing-” Hamlet  Body could mean either Polonius or King Hamlet  King could mean either King Claudius or King Hamlet  Hamlet may be avoiding responsibility for his actions, threatening Claudius, or speaking generally about what happens when people die.

Scene Three  Claudius also cannot get Hamlet to tell him where Polonius’ body is, but he does hint at its location  Hamlet’s speech is not making sense  Hamlet is sent to England  Claudius has asked the king of England to kill Hamlet as soon as he arrives there

Scene Four  Fortinbras enters with his army to ask Claudius’ permission to pass through Demark to Poland  One of the captains tells Hamlet they are planning to fight for a small piece of land that isn’t worth much, but that the Polish army is already stationed to defend it  Hamlet says, “This is th’ impostume of much wealth and peace, that inward breaks and shows no cause without why the man dies.”  Too much peace and money are not good for a country

Scene Four Continued  Hamlet feels that Fortinbras’ willingness to fight for something is yet another reason he should have gotten his revenge by now  Hamlet says, “ Oh, from this time forth, my thoughts be bloody, or be nothing worth!”  Hamlet will now only think about and act on violent thoughts

Scene Five  Ophelia has seemingly gone insane since her father died  She is desperately trying to see Gertrude to talk to her, but Gertrude is hesitant because she feels guilty because of her role in Polonius’ death  Ophelia is described as insane and she sings a song about love and virginity

Scene Five Continued  People in Denmark are talking about Polonius’ death because Claudius buried him quickly without the proper state funeral  Laertes has secretly returned from France and there are rumors that Claudius is responsible for Polonius’ death  People storm the castle chanting “ Laertes shall be king! Laertes king!”

Scene Five Continued  Laertes confronts Clauidus  Laertes as Hamlet’s counterpart – he calls himself a bastard since his father’s murderer is still living while Hamlet still has not acted in revenge  Ophelia’s madness further encourages Laertes to get revenge for his father  Laertes to agrees to hear Claudius’ side of the story

Scene Six  A sailor finds Horatio with a letter from Hamlet  A pirate ship attacked the ship Hamlet was taking to England and somehow Hamlet ended up on board with the pirates as the only prisoner  Hamlet is back in Denmark and the sailors will show Horatio where to find him because he has a lot to tell him about Rosencrantz and Guildenstern

Scene Seven  Claudius tells Laertes the truth about Polonius’ death and gives two reasons why more was not done to punish Hamlet  1. Gertrude loves her son and Claudius does not want to hurt Gertrude  2. The public loves Hamlet and would twist anything bad Claudius says about him into something good and they would only hate Claudius instead

Scene Seven Continued  Hamlet’s letter tells Claudius that he is back in Denmark and wants to see him tomorrow  Claudius promises Laertes that Hamlet will be killed and it will be in a way that leaves both of them innocent