Act 3 Quotes Flashcards
III,1
“Oh, ’tis too true!
How smart a lash that speech doth give my conscience!”
Claudius
This is the first time the audience actually has evidence that Claudius is guilty of something, for them the worst has become true. This moment is kind of like anagnorsis for the audience, a revelation which confirms the worst fears. But the audience does not have time to digest this information nor does anything come from this revelation. Foreshadowing how Hamlet’s secondary anagnorsis would also be redundant after his worst fears are confirmed with no room for catharsis.
III,1
“To be, or not to be? That is the question…
…And lose the name of action.”
Hamlet
This is Hamlet’s most famous soliloquy and its interesting in more ways than one.
First of all lets talk about the techniques that Shakespeare has used and how hes bent the use of soliloquys. Traditionally soliloquys are one on one speeches to the audience that reveal hidden truths and motivations of the character. However, Hamlet’s monologue is witnessed by other characters of the play, putting a twist on the traditional technique. It seems Hamlet was a way for Shakespeare to explore many concepts at length.
Secondly, the content of the soliloquy; Hamlet ponders the benefits and problems associated with suicide. He discusses suicide increasingly impersonally, he generalises suicidal ideation. He talks about it as if suicide is the answer for everyone but the potential consequence of suicide is what throws most people off.
Now thirdly inaction; Hamlet states that too much thought and pondering of suicide is what drives inaction. This draws a parallel between suicide and vengeance. Hamlet thinks on the action of revenge and this deters him, the same deters him from suicide. Perhaps he views revenge as intrinsically connected to suicide, in the sense that if he kills Claudius a part of him dies as well.
Some critics attribute this to an oedipus complex that Hamlet might have had, Raman Seldan stated “Hamlet identifies himself with Claudius, because he did the thing the son unconsciously desired to do”.
III,1
“The undiscovered country from whose bourn
No traveler returns”
Hamlet
Hamlet’s words here are in contradiction to the knowledge he possesses of the afterlife, Hamlet knows that purgatory exists and humans do come back from the slightly know country of the dead as ghosts. Perhaps this is evidence that Hamlet has kind of convinced himself by this point of the scene that King Hamlet was a devil or perhaps it hints that Hamlet overexaggerates his conceptions of life, death and suicide. He knows certain facts of life as well as death but purposely forgoes his rational knowledge to feed into his suicidal ideation as a general want narrative.
III,1
“I was the more deceived.”
Ophelia
Ophelia’s reactions and words are more telling about her ‘situation’ with Hamlet more than anything. When i read and re-read this scene I could not help but think she is definitely in cahoots with Hamlet. This is one of their first times talking after she essentially broke up with with him, thus, all the insults he throws at her should have felt harsher, stung more, sent her into a rage. But instead her replies are calm and calculated and the emotional responses only emphasise Hamlet’s madness again and again as if to convice certain spectators of his unsoundness of mind as well as to eliminating any semblance of causality between Hamlet’s madness and his relationship with Ophelia.
III,2
“Be not too tame neither, but let your own discretion be your tutor.”
Hamlet
Hamlet’s affinity towards directing and acting and theatre overall clues the audience in on multiple things:
Hamlet is a stand in for Shakespeare, he speaks for the author through dialogue making the play meta once again. Hamlet’s statements to some degree are relevant to Shakespeare’s true beliefs about theatre and thus, perhaps action and inaction.
The main aspect of theatre is acting. Its like Shakespeare is doing wordplay with the events of the play, Hamlet finds it difficult to pull himself out of inaction yet he motions and instructs others how to literally act. I daresay its dramatic irony.
III,2
“A man that Fortune’s buffets and rewards
Hast ta’en with equal thanks.”
Hamlet
Hamlet recognises Horatio’s stoicism and celebrates it jovially. Hamlet’s over appreciation of Horatio’s stoic nature perhaps indicates envy. Hamlet is unable to contain his emotions, he is extemely sensitive, he grieves, laments, gets excited. He finds the pains of the world so unbearable he even contemplates suicide along with the futility of mankind. Hamlet is a man who is so self aware that he is utterly helpless.
The main argument in favor of stoicism comes from Seneca’s moral essays where he states that ‘one must accept with tranquility those forces that he cannot control’. Hamlet describes Horatio exactly as such.
Critics such as J H Walter seem to agree: “Horatio has the ability to detach himself from events and examine them dispassionately, he is a stoical constant” Colin Burrow reiterates that Hamlet associates Horatio with Romantic Stoicism.
III,2
“You are merry, my lord.”
Ophelia
Even after the extremely intense and insulting confrontation between the two in the previous scene, Ophelia in particular seems to be largely unaffected. Even as Hamlet makes sexual jokes and innuendos Ophelia greets them in an honorable fashion, as one would call it. She even sets up his sexual jokes “I think nothing, my lord”, to me it gets clearer and clearer they have some sort of agreement. Perhaps this whole conversation is tongue and cheek to make Polonius angry, so Ophelia returns Hamlet’s remarks in a seemingly pure way but it is indeed to encourage him.
Even if Ophelia engages in bawdy remarks she does it restrainingly so, this displays the restrictive society where only mad men are allowed to be free and everyone else shall tie their tongues especially women.
III,2
“None wed the second but who killed the first.”
2nd Player (as Queen)
Hamlet’s The Murder of Gonzago or moore popularly known as the mousetrap not only attacks Claudius, it also heavily attacks Gertrude mainly for remarrying. The play projects a very cynical and misogynystic view of women, the very ideas of women that Hamlet harbors. Hamlet essentially uses the play to try to hold up a looking glass mirror upto his so called parents and try to decipher their true colors as he feels they are.
In contrast the soon to be dead king is projected as the valiant, progressive, honorable and deeply understanding lover. He is accepting of his queen taking on a second husband after his death and even reiterates that after his passing the queen’s strong feelings about him would weaken.
It is interesting to note that (according to the mousetrap) in Hamlet’s mind he does believe that Gertrude did actually love King Hamlet upto the end but he believes that the female mind is frail, it sways too quick and easily. Love doesn’t have a good hold on women basically.
III,2
“The lady doth protest too much, methinks.”
Gertrude
Its ironic that Gertrude does not like that the Queen character speaks so much when she is such a fan of elgant, elaborate words.
III,3
“The cease of majesty
Dies not alone, but, like a gulf, doth draw
What’s near it with it.”
Claudius
Dramatically ironic considering that killing King Hamlet is what caused the peripeteia and reversed almost all the good aspects Denmark, to bad.
III, 3
“Oh, this is hire and salary, not revenge.”
Hamlet
This is arguably the most important decision or atleast indecision that Hamlet makes in the entire play. This is the Climax, the turning point which dooms all the characters. Hamlet’s forced anagnorsis forces a peripeteia which now leads all the characters to a true scene of suffering.
III,3
“My words fly up, my thoughts remain below.
Words without thoughts never to heaven go.”
Claudius
Another moment of dramatic irony. It seems Shakespeare loves to be tongue and cheek with the audience. But what I want to talk about is the re anagnorsis or forced anagnorsis. Hamlet forces a second more concrete revelation and traditionally that revelation combined with peripeteia should be leading to a scene of suffering. A better way to express my understanding of the reason behind the forced anagnorsis is to enliven the action. A revelation leads to impulsive decisions and actions get carried out.
Although Hamlet did almost take action right before these lines were uttered, it was still futile since his habit of excessive logic and rationalisation forbid him to, trapping him to a type of psychological scene of suffering once again. “—That would be scanned.
A villain kills my father, and, for that,
I, his sole son, do this same villain send
To heaven.”
Perhaps Shakespeare is trying to tell its audience that Peripeteia, Anagnorsis and even more action and less character is not in fact what makes a good tragedy. He introduces all these traditionally tragic elements only to later undermine them repeatedly.
