Main themes – Atomic Theory and Dead Elephant Syndrome – Spying “By indirection, find directions out.” – Polonius Polonius hires Reynaldo to spy on his son, Laertes, in France Ophelia reports Hamlet's "strange" behavior More spies – Rosencranz and Guildenstern – Hired as the Queen's snitches Polonius appears at court to snitch on Hamlet – embarrassing love letter Cornelius and Voltemand report Young Fortinbras wants clear passage thru Denmark. Claudius doesn't respond Polonius talks in circles It remains That we find out the cause of this effect, Or rather say, the cause of this defect, For this effect defective comes by cause. Thus it remains, and the remainder thus. Polonius concludes saying "Hamlet's crazy," be we know Hamlet is putting on an act. Hamlet and Polonius then converse. Polonius is compared to Fishmongers (their profession stinks) Maggots (they kiss dead meat) [theme -- both comparisions are dead elephant syndrome] Bad father (Predicts Polonius's daughter will get pregnant) An old fool who should go backward to Hamlet's age and start life again. Enter R & G, the snitches. Hamlet admits Denmark's a prison He's been depressed. He hates men and women. Snitches say "Your ambitions may be too great for a little country like Denmark." Hamlet answers, "I could be bounded in a nutshell and count myself King of Infinite Space, except that I have bad dreams." The snitches say ambitions are only dreams so Hamlet answers that this means kings and queens are vapor because that’s all they are; greedy ambitious jerks. Hamlet confronts the snitches with their paid spying gig, and they confess. At this point, the players (acting troop) shows up. line 317 -- “hidden hint” that either DeVere or Marlowe is Shakespeare because playwrights who wrote plays for child actors did so to make fun of the royal household Hamlet is only playing insane -- “My aunt-mother and uncle father are deceived. I am but mad north by northwest, When the wind is southerly, I know a hawk from a handsaw.”
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September 2019
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