Abby End of Act 3

 Finally some action! To set the scene, Claudius decides Hamlet has got to go since he’s officially mad and asks Hamlet’s rude traitor school friends to take him back to England. Rosencrantz sucks up to Claudius and starts ranting about how the suffering or death of a king affects everyone!! (Unless it’s the death of Hamlet’s father apparently…) Then, Polonius, who is addicted to spying on Hamlet’s personal business, proposes that he listen in on Hamlet’s convo with his mother in her closet. Claudius approves, of course.

    We finally hear Claudius’s perspective on the murder of his brother. Surprisingly, it seems like Claudius feels kinda bad about it! Only because it’s probably going to prevent him from getting into heaven, but you have to start somewhere. He goes on and on about how guilty he feels, except he just can’t quite get himself to repent for his crime since he’s still reaping the benefits of it. At least he’s self aware. Little does he know, Claudius’s futile attempt to appeal to the heavens is the only thing preventing Hamlet from killing him on the spot…

Next, Polonius slithers into his hiding spot as Hamlet arrives to speak to his mother. Gertrude attempts to reprimand Hamlet, but Hamlet quickly gains the upper hand, scaring his mother so much that she calls out for Polonius’s help. Out scurries Polonius like the little rat he is, only to be MURDERED by Hamlet… oh no… Hamlet then turns back on his mother, shaming her for her actions following the murder of his father. I can’t decide if Gertrude knew about the murder or not. When Hamlet reveals to her the truth, she simply responds, “As to kill a king?” Quite suspicious in my opinion since she has no other reaction to such a shocking statement. As Hamlet continues to humiliate his mother, the ghost of Hamlet’s father appears, reminding him who the real enemy is. Gertrude is incredibly grateful when Hamlet’s verbal assault ceases and is replaced by urging for her to repent for her sins and to stay out of Claudius’s bed.

This is all getting crazier by the minute, I’m excited to see what happens next…

Mia- Act 4 Scenes 1-6

 These scenes all seem to be building up to one large event. A lot happens, but nothing happens at the same time. The plot and tension are building to a big moment which I believe will occur in the following scenes. One thing that really shocked me was Hamlet's decision to kill Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. After all, these are his former best friends. While I side with Hamlet, I think it does show he is in some kind of mad state to be drawn to such violence. His uncle and mother are not completely crazy for accusing him of going insane. I also think it is important to talk about poor Ophelia. She is heartbroken for so many reasons. She really is crazy now. Her father's death has broken her to such a point that I am not sure that she could ever recover from it mentally. I know she made some mistakes, but I like Ophelia. I really do feel bad for her and hope that Hamlet can come back into her life to help her. Even though he did kill her father. I also think it is interesting how all of a sudden Laertes appears back into the story. He is so defensive of the father that had secretly sent men to spy on his son. I believe there is more going on with Laertes than is being shown because of Polonius's spy, and I think it is going to come out soon. After all, we have no idea anything that has been happening with Laertes. I am excited to keep reading and uncover some of the secrets that seem to slowly be coming to the surface!