1. Hamlet
Act III Notes

2. Scene 1
King and queen check in with Rose and Guild who say they have not discovered the reason for Hamlet’s depression
They are happy to hear Hamlet is interested in the actors so agree to go for that purpose
Hamlet comes in speaking his “To be or not to be. . .” speech about committing suicide and the point of living
When Ophelia tries to give him his love letters Hamlet gets angry and tells her he never loved her and she should go to a nunnery
He then gets so angry he appears crazy, which causes Ophelia to get upset over his apparent madness

3. Scene 1 end
Claudius declares love is not the reason for madness, but whatever is, it is dangerous
He decides Hamlet needs to leave Denmark for England
Polonius agrees, but asks that he be allowed to listen in on Hamlet and Gertrude before he leaves to see if he reveals to her it is indeed love sickness causing his madness
Claudius agrees

4. Scene 2
Hamlet instructs Horatio, his best friend, to watch the King’s reaction to the play since he knows what the ghost told Hamlet
Before the play begins Hamlet intentionally acts bizarre by asking about Polonius’s time as an actor and flirting with Ophelia
The actor’s act out a scene where a king is murdered, via poison in the ear, by his nephew
The player queen also told her player king she would not remarry after he dies
Claudius cries for light and leaves
Hamlet and Horatio discuss the king’s behavior and determine he is in fact guilty of killing Hamlet Sr.
Rose, Guild and Polonius say Gertrude would like to speak with Hamlet
He agrees to go, but vows to himself to be brutally honest with her, but not to lose control

5. Scene 3
Claudius speaks with Rose and Guild. He asks them to escort (babysit) Hamlet to England.
Claudius considers Hamlet too dangerous to keep around Denmark
Claudius admits guilt and grief over killing his brother when he is alone
He wants forgiveness, but is unwilling to give up what he sinned (the crown and the queen). Then he prays.

6. End of Scene 3
Hamlet sees him praying and prepares to kill him then and there.
However, he does not go through with it because he is afraid if he kills Claudius while he is praying he will be forgiven and go to heaven
He decides it will be better to wait until he is sinning (either drunk, angry, or lustful) to kill him so he cannot go to heaven

7. Scene 4
Polonius urges Gertrude to be harsh with Hamlet and chastise him for his recent behavior, she says she will
Hamlet storms into the room. Gertrude accuses him of offending Claudius and Hamlet accuses her of offending Hamlet Sr.
Hamlet grabs her almost violently and says he will make her see the horrible wrongs she and Claudius have done
She fears for her life and screams, Polonius cries for help
Hamlet believes it is Claudius and stabs him, Polonius dies, then Hamlet looks behind the tapestry and realizes he killed the mostly innocent Polonius not his uncle.
He call Polonius an interfering fool

8. Scene 4 continued Then he furiously addresses his mother
He tells her he will wring her heart then bitterly talks about the difference between his father and uncle by showing pictures of the two men
She begs him to stop, saying what he has said has made her look inside herself and she does not like what she sees there
He continues to talk poorly of Claudius until the ghost of his father appears

9. Scene 4 continued
Hamlet speaks with the ghost, but Gertrude cannot see or hear it, she thinks he is mad (crazy)
The ghost reminds Hamlet of his purpose to avenge its murder and to convince Gertrude it is there
He describes the ghost, but she still doesn’t see it and still believes him crazy
He tries to convince her otherwise, but since he has been pretending to be crazy fails

10. End of Scene 4
Then he tells her not to sleep with his uncle anymore to regain her good conscience/reputation. He also asks her to not tell Claudius he has only been acting crazy
Gertrude is still shaken from Hamlet’s furious yelling, but agrees to keep his secret
Hamlet reminds his mother that he is leaving for England with Rose and Guild, but he suspects that are loyal to the king, not him so he will treat them like rattlesnakes
Then he laves dragging Polonius’s body