Study Questions: Due FRIDAY

2/27/2013

2 Comments

 
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Another brutal blow to our schedule, kids! T.S. Eliot said that "April is the cruelest month," but obviously he was wrong. I know, you're all just as broken up about this as I am. 

Ok, here is the homework for Friday: 

Act III Study Questions
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This is a rich text format file so ALL computers can access it. If you can't, you need to email me pronto. See you soon! 


***Clarification: Please either print out the discussion questions and answer them on that sheet, or simply number a sheet of notebook paper and answer the questions there. Either way, please bring a hard copy to class, but don't post on blog. Sorry for the confusion! I wasn't clear on my original posting. :) 










2 Comments
Michelle
2/27/2013 03:21:15 am


1. At first, Claudius seems to be enjoying the play. Some characters--such as Ophelia--immediately begin questioning it, but Claudius doesn't say much. It is evident that the poisoning part of it upsets him because he calls for the lights to come on and he storms out of the room. Hamlet also has his servants--Horatio, Rosencrantz, and Guildenstern--keeping tabs on the King to see if it has disturbed him. They realize that it has and Hamlet knows that the ghost wasn't lying.
2. Claudius' dilemma comes from the fact that he is guilty of killing his brother. He is faced with the harsh rules of Heaven in that he must give himself up or risk landing in Hell. He realizes that the glory he is now experiencing--being the King and Gertrude's husband--is not worth the risk of landing in Hell, and he begins to pray on it. When he is done, he realizes that "My words fly up, my thoughts remain below;/ Words without thoughts never to Heaven go" (Shakespeare 3.4.102-103), suggesting that his prayers on what to do and his hopes of forgiveness aren't being heard.
3. Hamlet's chance comes when Claudius is praying. His eyes are closed, he is alone, and he is kneeling. Hamlet decides not to kill him then, though, because he feels Claudius will go to Heaven because he was praying while he was murdered, which is the opposite of Hamlet's goal. At the same time, Hamlet feels that he will go to Hell because he killed a praying man.
4. Hamlet attacks his mother to prove that she is wrong in marrying Hamlet's uncle so soon after her husband died. He is upset and disgusted by her and isn't afraid to tell her that. He discusses rebellion, virtue, and grace while slandering his mother. Gertrude begs Hamlet to stop because his words are like "daggers in her heart". When the ghost comes, however, she feels badly and realizes that Hamlet is mad and is being possessed--in a way--by some evil thing.
5. a. "Your bedded hair, like life in excrements" (3.4.138). This simile is Gertrude explaination of Hamlet's fear when he sees the ghost. She is telling of his hair, which is like human excrements, is standing on end. This proves that some of Hamlet's insanity may be real, but all of his fear definitely is.

b. “Such an act/ That blurs the grace and blush of modesty,/ Calls virtue hypocrite” (3.4.(no lines on this page)). Here, Hamlet is telling his mother what she has done to cause his outburst. This metaphor tells of the corruption in the family and how he truly feels about her actions.
c. “In the rank sweat of an inseamed bed” (3.4.104). This is Hamlet telling his mother what her actions really are: Sleeping with a sweaty man in a greasy bed. The bed symbolizes the sweaty, greasy nature of Claudius’ actions as well as Claudius himself.
d. “I’ll lug the guts into the neighbor room” (3.4.235). Hamlet is talking about Polonius’ body here. This goes along with the rot in this scene—rather than saying he will move Polonius, he refers to his body as guts, something else he is going to hide from everyone else.
e. “It will but skin and film the ulcerous place” (3.4.168). Hamlet is talking about how his madness can only touch upon the corruption that has been caused by Claudius—the “ulcerous place”.

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Ms. Draper
2/27/2013 04:12:48 am

Hi Michelle

I actually didn't mean for you to post on the website...just to write down answers and bring into class--going to go clarify that now! Sorry!

Ms. Draper

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