Literature Circle Role

Literature Circle Role
SUMMMARIZER
Name: Angelika Faith S. Gabiola Year & Section: III – Chlorine
Literature Circle Name: Date: September 23,2012
Title of the book: The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark
Author: William Shakespeare Chapters/Pages: 5-119

Summarizer: Your job is to prepare a brief summary of today’s reading. Your group discussion will start with 1-2 minute statement that covers the key points, main highlights, and general idea of today’s reading assignment.

Characters and their Characteristics:
Major Characters: Minor Characters:
Hamlet- bitter, clever, brave, emotional Horatio- supportive
Claudius- corrupt and false Francisco, Baranardo, Marcellus- curious, considerate
Ophelia- innocent, lovable, weak Polonius- devoted Laertes- bold and rash

Key Points:
1. The late king died and appeared as a form of a ghost.
2. The ghost speaks only to Hamlet.
3. Hamlet wants to get revenge on his uncle for his father’s death.
4. Queen Gertrude married her brother in law, Claudius.
5. Polonius doesn’t like Hamlet for his daughter Ophelia.

Summary At the Elsinore castle, in the dead of the night, Francisco, a soldier who is guarding, when he is relieved by Bernardo, an officer. Enters Barnardo and Horatio, friend of Hamlet who doubts that the castle is haunted by a ghost as the officers claim. The ghost appears Denmark’s former king and just as quickly vanishes. Horatio speculates as to the meaning of the ghost with respect to Denmark’s fate when the ghost reappears. Horatio tries to speak to it. The ghost remains silent, however, and disappears again just as the cock crows at the first hint of dawn. The three men inform Prince Hamlet of their strange encounter with the ghost.The morning after Horatio and the guardsmen see the ghost, King Claudius gives a speech to his courtiers, explaining his recent marriage to Gertrude, his brother’s widow and the mother of Prince Hamlet. Having discharged Cornelius and Voltemand, his couriers, on a diplomatic mission to Norway, King Claudius attends to domestic affairs; namely, giving Laertes, a youth Claudius is sympathetic to, his blessing and permission to leave for France and persuading Hamlet to stay in Elsinore as opposed to letting him return to Wittenberg where he is a student. On both counts, King Claudius gets his way and to show his pleasure he orders preparations be made for a bout of drinking and celebration later that night. Alone, still unable to come to terms with his mother’s second marriage, Hamlet broods and curses his fate only to be interrupted by Horatio, his friend, and the officers Marcellus and Bernardo. They exchange pleasantries and then Horatio tells Hamlet of the marvel he had witnessed: namely of the ghost and of the ghost’s likeness to Hamlet’s father. Thrilled, Hamlet resolves to see the ghost for himself. He tells his friends to keep the matter a secret and that he will join them, at the platform, later that night, when the ghost is wont to walk. Laertes is about to depart for France. Before he departs he talks to Ophelia to be careful of Hamlet’s romantic advances, arguing that Ophelia may be giving Hamlet’s words too much belief on account of Hamlet’s lofty status. They part when Polonius scolds Laertes for delaying his departure. By and by, Laertes departs but the sermon continues as Polonius ferrets out what was said between brother and sister. Polonius then picks up right where Laertes had left off. Indeed, Polonius takes the preaching up a notch, forbidding his daughter henceforth to talk, much less to meet, with Hamlet, likening Hamlet’s advances as a trap to cage unwary prey. At around midnight, Hamlet joins Horatio and Marcellus on the castle platform. Trumpets and gunfire sound from the castle signifying the start of the drinking and banqueting that King Claudius had earlier made the night’s agenda. Hamlet is against at the celebration, calling it an indulgence that dishonors Denmark in the eyes of other nations. He meditates upon nature of evil, of how a physical defect can inexplicably be its cause when the ghost appears. Hamlet addresses it, calling it King, Father, Royal Dane. The ghost beckons Hamlet to follow. Horatio and Marcellus try to stop Hamlet, going so far as to bodily restrain the prince. Hamlet frees himself and follows the ghost. As he was talking to the ghost in the darkness, Hamlet was shocked of what the ghost had said to him. The ghost is claiming to be his father’s spirit and said that he should avenge his father of what his uncle did to him.

Polonius dispatches his servant Reynaldo to France with money and written notes for Laertes, also ordering him to inquire about and spy on Laertes’ personal life. He gives him explicit directions as to how to pursue his investigations, then sends him on his way. As Reynaldo leaves, Ophelia enters, visibly upset. She tells Polonius that Hamlet, unkempt and wild-eyed, has accosted her. Hamlet grabbed her, held her, and sighed heavily, but did not speak to her. Polonius says that Hamlet must be mad with his love for Ophelia, for she has distanced herself from him ever since Polonius ordered her to do so. Polonius speculates that this lovesickness might be the cause of Hamlet’s moodiness, and he hurries out to tell Claudius of his idea. Claudius and Gertrude, the king and queen, have commissioned courtiers Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, Hamlet’s childhood acquaintances, to keep Hamlet company. Anon, Polonius, the Lord Chamberlain, enters the scene and informs the king and queen that he has found out the cause of Prince Hamlet’s distemper and proposes to give proof, but not before the king and queen give audience to Cornelius and Voltemand who have returned from Norway with good news. The news is good indeed: Fortinbras has turned his aggression against Poland and he only requires that Denmark permit his troops to march through her en route to Poland. Pleased with the news, Claudius dismisses the ambassadors from Norway and turns to the business of his disgruntled nephew. After much beating about the bush, Polonius produces a document. It is a love letter from Hamlet to Ophelia. Polonius avers that the cause of Hamlet’s distemper can be no other than his injunction forbidding Ophelia to reciprocate Hamlet’s affections. To prove it, Polonius proposes to engage the prince directly while the king and queen hide and observe. The scheme is agreed to and is carried out by and by. The desired proof is scarcely produced but there’s no persuading Polonius who will test his theory again, later. Meanwhile Hamlet finds himself in the company of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern whose sudden appearance and over-the-top chumminess strikes the prince as disingenuous. His suspicion proves to be right as Rosencrantz and Guildenstern confess that their visit is actually a performance of a duty as commissioned by the king and queen. Without going into specifics, Hamlet expounds on his existential disillusionment, the unhappy tenor of which is interrupted, however temporarily, by the appearance of a troop of traveling actors. Hamlet welcomes the actors. He escorts them to the city gate where they are all greeted by Polonius. Recalling their earlier encounter, Hamlet baits and humors Polonius with a reference to Ophelia when, out of the corner of his eyes, Hamlet sees an actor whose face is familiar. Hamlet accosts the actor and entreats him to recite Aeneas’ speech to Dido, which speech Hamlet had once before witnessed the actor perform. The speech involves the fall of Troy, exemplified by the instant when Pyrrhus slaughters Priam. The actor performing it weeps, so moving is the speech. Polonius finds its length unbearable, however, and as a result he is at odds with Hamlet. It’s not the only thing for which the two are at odds, however. Indeed, Hamlet finds Polonius’ manners and attitude with respect to the actors needlessly condescending and tells him so. Alone again, Hamlet is incredulous at the discrepancy he had just witnessed. Doesn’t his real-life predicament warrant a passion astronomically more intense than the make-believe passion that was just just demonstrated? The discrepancy is so startling that Hamlet accuses himself of being a coward, a kitchen wench, and whatnot only to compose himself and arrive at a course of action that would erase any doubts as to the ghost’s substantiality. He will stage a play depicting a king’s murder at the hands of the king’s brother. And if uncle Claudius betrays a guilty conscience, vengeance will have its day.
Book Report
The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark

Gabiola, Angelika Faith
Kitane, Angelyn
Canunayon, Rachelle
Ferrer, Mary joy
Yerro, Angelica
Mondarte, Elcee
Vera, Prince Larry
Belandres, John Mark
De Joya, Marione John
Ms. Toda (Teacher)