Women

Question 1

Frailty…

Answer 1

Frailty, thy name is woman!
- hamlet expressing deep disillusionment & frustration with women
- misogynistic view suggesting women are inherently weak/fickle (morally weak hasty remarriage to Claudius)
- this inner turmoil, torn between love & loyalty to mother & duty to avenge, leads to indecision & inability to reconcile his conflicting emotions

Question 2

Get thee…

Answer 2

Get thee to a nunnery
- hamlet, Elizabethan slang for brothel, doubly offensive
Telling her to preserve her virtue & over hand to overindulge

Question 3

To a…

Answer 3

To a nunnery go
- hamlet orders Gertrude away, wanting her to remain free of sin

Question 4

That’s a fair thought…

Answer 4

That’s a fair thought to lie between maids’ legs
- hamlet’s vulgar side, seems cruel as he teases & embarrasses Ophelia with sexual innuendo
- particularly hurtful given their recent closeness