Interpreting Shakespeare: Hamlet A breakdown in layman's terms of 5 important soliloquoys contained in Shakespeare's "Hamlet".

William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616) is probably the most famous English playwright and poet whose life has been open to interpretation almost as much as his works. However, interpreting his works proves to be a very complicated and time-consuming process. Many scholars have devoted their entire lives to reading and understanding Shakespeare's works and educating others as to how to decipher the 16th century writer's enigmatic style of writing. Here is an attempt to do just that, in one of Shakespeare's most infamous tragic plays, Hamlet. Five passages below will be summarized, analyzed, and explained in an attempt to further enlighten the reader as to what exactly is occurring in each scene. What each passage reveals about the character, or the overall plot, and any thematic relevance will also be explicated. The scenes and lines are given before each synopsis and analysis; it may be helpful to have a copy of the play at hand while reading this composition.

Act 1: Scene 2 - Lines 129-159 (Hamlet):

Hamlet had just asked his uncle, the king, if he could return to the university in Wittenberg, but both the king and his mother quickly denied his request. Angered by this decision, but still desiring to respect his mother's wishes, Hamlet went off alone and mused over all of his troubles regarding his father's death, his uncle's acquisition of the throne, and his mother's hasty marriage to his uncle.

The first 9 lines of the speech are basically curses against Claudius' rejection of Hamlet's request to return to the university in Wittenberg. Because he had not been permitted to go, he went into a speech that served as ventilation for his anger and his angst toward his father's death, his mother's marriage to Claudius, and Claudius' decision to coerce Hamlet to stay in Ellsinore. Lines 138-140 are in praise of the majestic king that his father once was, and show Hamlet's admiration of both his father's character and his reign over Denmark. He even compared his father to a Sun god (Hyperion) and his uncle to a goat-like creature (Satyr). Lines 140-142 speak of how well Hamlet's father treated his mother, saying that he would not even allow the wind to blow against her face too roughly. Hamlet went on to express contempt for the impudence and lack of respect that his mother exhibited to his father not long after his passing by marrying his brother right away. Lines 143-148 further curse his mother's wedding, and show that Hamlet viewed her choice to re-wed as a betrayal to her marriage to his father. He placed much emphasis upon how quickly she remarried, before his father's shoes were even cold. Lines 149-151 prove to be a blatant insult against his mother, saying that when his father first died, she did nothing but cry. He compared her to the Niobe of Greek mythology, who was so upset about her children dying that she cried until she turned to stone, a stone from which endless tears flowed. Hamlet then went on to say that any common, ignorant animal would have grieved longer than she did, but instead she chose to wed his uncle. Lines 152-153 express Hamlet's confusion as to why his mother was even attracted to Claudius. He said that Claudius is to the late King Hamlet as he (Prince Hamlet) is to Hercules, an obvious imbalance. In lines 153-156, Hamlet continued that before her eyes even stopped being red from crying, Gertrude remarried. Lines 156-158 express how Hamlet regarded Claudius' and Gertrude's marriage as incestuous because Claudius became like his mother's brother once she initially married Hamlet Sr. Lines 158-159 illustrate that even though he despised their marriage, Hamlet had to keep his silence and respect them, though holding his tongue broke his heart.

Act 2: Scene 2 - Lines 1-18 (King Claudius):

The king had decided to use two of Hamlet's childhood friends to follow Hamlet around and figure out why he had been so upset lately. It is suggestive that the real reason the king wanted to know why Hamlet was so mad is because he wanted to make sure that Hamlet did not know the real details of his father's death, that he had murdered his brother to inherit the throne.

In lines 1-2, Claudius welcomed Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two Danish courtiers to whom neither he nor Gertrude had seen or spoken to in quite some time. Lines 2-4 reveal already that the reason why he sent for them was important, that he needed their services urgently. Claudius introduced the story behind why his majesty called upon them for assistance in lines 4-5. He asked if they had heard about Hamlet's eccentric change in behavior. In lines 6-7, Claudius said that neither Hamlet's outward appearance (his clothing) nor his behaviors were what they used to be. Lines 7-10 show how Claudius did not understand what could cause Hamlet to change so suddenly. He suspected that it might be something more than his father's recent death, though he could not imagine what it was. Here, Shakespeare shows how Claudius, in his ignorance, hadn't any idea that marrying his late brother's wife would almost certainly upset Hamlet and cause him to act this way. Lines 10-12 mention why the king chose Rosencrantz and Guildenstern for such a devious task. Both had grown up with Hamlet and knew him well, therefore the idea was that Hamlet would trust them enough to tell them his private matters, namely, the cause of his apparent madness. This demonstrated what little respect Claudius had for his nephew's privacy, using Hamlet's very own childhood friends to spy on him. In lines 13-16, Claudius suggested that Guildenstern and Rosencrantz stay in their home for a little while to become better acquainted with Hamlet again and perhaps draw some information out of him. Claudius mumbled line 17 to himself, saying that if they could not get any information from Hamlet, Gertrude and he would never know what was troubling Hamlet. This statement revealed that Claudius was well aware that Hamlet would not confide in neither he nor the queen, which could suggest that he suspected Hamlet's problem was with them, as opposed to everyone in general. Line 18 simply states that once it was discovered what was wrong with Hamlet, actions could then be taken to change his mood and behavior.

Act 3: Scene 3 - Lines 73-96 (Hamlet):

After seeing Claudius flee from the play in frustration (thus confirming his suspicion that Claudius murdered his father), Hamlet snuck into Claudius' room and found him praying. At first Hamlet thought this might be the perfect time to slay his father's assassin, but he changed his mind, fearing that if he killed Claudius in a state of prayer, Claudius might go straight to Heaven and not be punished for his sins.

Lines 73-74 tell Hamlet's thoughts out loud; he was basically trying to psych himself up and get the courage to avenge his father's murder by killing Claudius while he was in a vulnerable position (head down in prayer). In line 75, Hamlet was hit with a realization: that if he killed Claudius while he was praying, Claudius might then become a martyr of sorts and go directly to heaven. But in line 76, Hamlet reassured himself that if he killed Claudius, then and there, his father would finally be avenged, and he would have fulfilled his father's will. Nevertheless, Hamlet also acknowledged the fact that the whole idea behind his plot needed to be more closely examined and planned. So he decided to stop and rethink how he would go about getting rid of Claudius for a moment. Lines 77-79 quote Hamlet as saying that if he killed his father's murderer and sent him to heaven, it would be contradictory to his original intent of retribution. He even went on to say that Claudius should be paying him to send him to heaven; therefore it would not even be revenge if Hamlet had done him this favor. Lines 80-82 describe Hamlet saying that Claudius killed his father spitefully, and took his crown and his wife, so Hamlet could not possibly allow the fiend to go to heaven after the crimes he had committed. Lines 83-87 portray Hamlet saying that he would not kill Claudius as he purged his soul, and he would not send him to heaven when he deserved the exact opposite eternal fate. Hamlet then put his sword back into its sheath. This decision was made because Hamlet had too much love for his father to do his slayer any favors, not because of his contempt toward Claudius. Though he deeply wanted to kill Claudius and finally get closure on his father's death, his honor for Hamlet Sr. made him wait to ensure that Claudius would be damned to hell and eternal suffering when the time came. Hamlet formulated a new plan in lines 88-92 to kill Claudius the next time he was in a state of sin (passed out drunk, in a rage, having "incestuous" sex with the queen, gambling, or swearing) so that he would be sure to go to hell. Lines 93-95 briefly describe the hell that Hamlet wanted Claudius to be banished to when he finally killed him. Line 95 also acknowledges that his mother was still waiting to speak with him, which could suggest that even though he despised her marriage to Claudius, he still had some semblance of respect for her. He even admitted later that he would never kill her or harm her, but he also added that she did deserve his harsh words. Line 96 describes Hamlet basically saying that Claudius was lucky he was praying because his prayer bought him a little more time to live.

Act 4: Scene 7 - Lines 139-147 (Laertes):

After learning that Hamlet was responsible for Polonius' death and Ophelia's madness, Laertes agreed to kill Hamlet with some coaxing from Claudius. The plan was for Laertes to simply "fence" with Hamlet, and stab Hamlet with a poisoned sword. If, for any reason, the master fencer Laertes could not score a "hit" on Hamlet, the King would then propose a toast to Hamlet and offer him a drink from a goblet containing poisoned wine. Either way, Hamlet seemed doomed to death by the man who, ironically enough, he himself set out to kill. It seemed that the tables had turned, and the plotter became the one who was plotted against.

Line 139 is Laertes' answer of compliance for Claudius' plea for him to kill Hamlet, so that he might avenge his father's, Polonius', death. Line 140 introduces Laertes' plan to poison his sword to ensure Hamlet's death. Even if the wound itself did not kill him, the poison would. Lines 141-146 describe a poison that Laertes obtained from a crazed doctor that could cause such a sickness when in a man's bloodstream that no known medicine on Earth could prevent him from dying. Lines 146-148 further explain his plot, which required that he only scar Hamlet with his sword but once. That would be sufficient enough to cause Hamlet's abrupt death. Laertes' idea to use poison to kill Hamlet as opposed to openly slaying him shows two things. Firstly, murder with poison was considered a crime of passion, which shows how much Laertes loved his father and sister and how much he abhorred Hamlet for causing their deaths. Second, it also displayed a hint of cowardice, because he wanted to make sure that no matter how lightly he physically injured Hamlet with the sword, he would die regardless. Perhaps he was not sure he could beat Hamlet in a fair fencing fight. The fact that they were going to fence instead of dueling to the death also insinuates his fear of defeat.

Act 5: Scene 2 - Lines 396- 404 (Fortinbras):

Fortinbras had just returned from Poland with the English Ambassador by his side only to find the entire royal family of Denmark dead at his feet. After being very briefly informed of what happened by Horatio, he decided to honor Prince Hamlet's death like that of a brave royal soldier, and bury him as such.

Lines 396-399 have Fortinbras commanding that four soldiers carry Hamlet's body to the platform, like they would a fallen war hero. Fortinbras held Hamlet in such high regard because if he had been put to the test, he believed Hamlet would have proven himself to be a true royal soldier. In lines 399-401, Fortinbras commanded the soldiers to play music for Hamlet, as they would a fallen soldier, because the proud music would let the world know of his honorable death. Lines 402-404 have Fortinbras directing the soldiers to gather the other bodies as well and to complete the march, which was somewhat like a funeral procession.

Literature written by Shakespeare may take longer to read and interpret than most literary works, but using the right resources and having a certain level of patience can allow one to thoroughly enjoy and understand even the most difficult passages. Over time, one even begins to be able to construe Shakespeare on his/her own, without any secondary resources to aid in interpretation. This is when the true literary genius of William Shakespeare shines through, and one can commence reading his prose the way it was meant to be read, as a work of art.