ACT 3,1 HAMLET AND OPHELIA

Question 1

What is happening in this scene

Answer 1

Hamlet abuses ophelia and calls her out on her deception and impurity

Claudius and Polonius are watching behind the arras and Hamlet notices

Question 2

Quotes on Ophelia’s corruption

Answer 2

sooner beauty will sooner transform what it is to a bawd

get thee to a nunnery

Question 3

quotes on Ophelia’s deceptiveness

Answer 3

I have heard of you paintings

you jig and amble and you lisp God’s/creatures

Question 4

quotes on Ophelia after being abused by Hamlet

Answer 4

o’ what noble mind has been o’erthrown

heavenly powers restore him

suck’d the honey of his music vows

Question 5

analyse sooner beauty will sooner transform what it is to a bawd

Answer 5

beauty is presented as a corrupting force as Ophelia is revealed to be impure as Hamlet compares her to a runner of a brothel - he feels betrayed by her

Question 6

analyse get thee to a nunnery

Answer 6

Hamlet wishes for Ophelia to become reformed and cleansed of her impurity

nunnery is also slang for a brothel so he calls her a prostitute and corrupt - belongs there

Question 7

analyse I have heard of your paintings

Answer 7

Hamlet exposes how Ophelia artifically conceals her corruption through innocence
she is presented as duplicitous by the makeup metaphor

Question 8

analyse you jig and amble and you lisp God’s/creatures

Answer 8

Hamlet’s use of asyndethic listing highlights how Ophelia’s image of innocence is a performance whereby she pretends to not know what is going on

also uses a sexual innuendo

Question 9

analyse heavenly powers restore him

Answer 9

despite being abused she still prays for Hamlet to be saved as she remains pious

this juxtaposes the sinful and corrupt recasting that Hamlet did

Question 10

analyse o’ what noble mind has been o’erthrown

Answer 10

Ophelia is presented to be naive towards Hamlet’s emotional transgression revealing how she believed he was incapable of such violence- foolish

Question 11

analyse suck’d the honey of his music vows

Answer 11

Ophelia even blames herself for Hamlet’s violence

Question 12

critics for this scene

Answer 12

We can imagine Hamlet’s story without Ophelia but Ophelia literally has no story without Hamlet (edwards)

Hamlet’s disgust at female passivity in himself translates to a violent revulsion towards women (swinbourne)

Question 13

which critic said we can imagine Hamlet’s story without Ophelia but Ophelia literally has no story without Hamlet

Answer 13

Edwards

Question 14

which critic said Hamlet’s disgust at female passivity in himself translates to a violent revulsion towards women

Answer 14

Swinbourne