Hamlet Act 2

How has Laertes been doing in Paris? run out of money
who is Polonius sending to Paris? Reynaldo, Polonius’s servant
What is Reynaldo’s two jobs? get Laertes’ money and to inquire among the Danish people there to find out what Laertes has been up to
How is Reynaldo going to find this out? find Danish people, make up something about Laertes (gambling, drinking, prostitutes), then person will agree or disagree
What was Ophelia doing when Hamlet entered? sewing in her room
How did Hamlet look? his jacket is all unfastened, not wearing a hat, stockings are dirty and around his ankles, pale, knees knocking together
Describe what Hamlet did in her presence. grabbed her wrist, stares at her, shakes her arm, shakes head up and down 3X, sighed, walks out door without looking
What does Polonius believe has caused Hamlet to act this way? love/ Polonius’s refusal
Who have the King and Queen summoned to spy on Hamlet? What is their relation to Hamlet? Rosencrantz and Guildenstern; boyhood friends
Where were the two boys previously? the university of Wittenberg
What are the two boys going to find out? what has caused the change in Hamlet’s behavior
How are they going to do this? do fun things with Hamlet- things he would enjoy
What will the King and Queen do if successful? reward them
What two bits of information does Polonius have for the King 1.Voltemand and Cornelius have returned from Norway2. He feels he has discovered why Hamlet is acting the way he is
Which thing does Claudius want to hear about first? What does Polonius start with? “Hamlet’s lunacy”; C and V
What wise thing does the queen suggest about Hamlet? The queen says that what is the cause of his madness is his father’s death and their hasty marriage
What news did Voltemand and Cornelius bring about the King of Norway? he looked into the actions of young Fortinbras, who was in fact planning to attack; the king ordered him to stop; young Fortinbras vowed to stop and not attack again
What did the King of Norway do to reward young Fortinbras for his vow? money in an annual fee; can be used to attack Poland instead
What is the King of Norway asking of Claudius? response? safe passage through Denmark to Poland; will think about it
What does Polonius share with Claudius regarding Ophelia/Hamlet? What is the purpose of doing this? the love letter that Hamlet had given to Ophelia; prove that Hamlet does love Ophelia and how Ophelia gave
What ironic thing does Polonius say regarding the letter? “Since brevity is the soul of wit”- Polonius is never brief
What does Polonius list as the classic stages of love madness? 1. person becomes sad2. falls into a fast- doesn’t eat3. can’t sleep4. becomes weak or lightheaded5. goes insane
What do Claudius and Polonius plan to do to proves Hamlet’s love madness? Hamlet likes to go into the lobby to read a book for 4 hours; send Ophelia in; hide behind curtain and eavesdrop
What do we discover about Hamlet in his conversation with Polonius? how witty and sarcastic Hamlet can be
What name does Hamlet call Polonius? What does this mean? fishmonger (a pimp)
How else does Hamlet mess with Polonius? What is Polonius’s reaction? asks if he has a daughter-says don’t let her come out into the sun because she could get pregnant; thinking Hamlet really is mad, and says he was once young and mad in love too
How does Hamlet describe the book he’s reading? its about slander; old man, wrinkled face, describing polonius
When Polonius says “I’m going to take leave of you,” what does Hamlet respond with? you can’t take anything from me
What does Hamlet call P after he has left? an old fool
What does Hamlet ask R and G? why they have come to visit
How does Hamlet refer to Denmark? Why? a prison; he’s not allowed to leave and return to school
Why does Rosencrantz think Denmark is a prison to Hamlet? his ambition to claim the throne
What do the two admit? they were sent for by the king and queen
What do the two inform Hamlet of after he says nothing makes him happy anymore? that the players that he enjoyed, the tragedians in the city, are coming
Why are the players travelling? a new company of child actors have replaced them in the city
As a preview of their performance, what has Hamlet requested? a speech from a play he admires it
What is the speech about? the story of the Trojan war
In the story of the Trojan war, who is telling the story? to who? the surviving Trojan prince, Aeneas; Dido, the queen of Carthage
Who is Aeneas’s father (according to Ms. Saucier and not Mary Grace) King Priam
What happened to King Priam? slaughtered by Greek soldier, Prius
What was happening in Troy? the city was being sacked and burned by the Greeks
What is happening in the first part of the speech describing Prius, dressed in black, covered in the blood of his victims, searching for the king
What part of the speech does the first player tell? Priam’s wife, Hecuba, witnesses her husband’s murder and her wailing would have brought tears to the eyes of the gods
How is the first player feeling? so emotional that his face is flushed and is crying real tears
What does Hamlet tell Polonius do? take the players to their rooms
What two things does Hamlet request of the play “the murder of Gonzago”asks him to memorize a speech of some 12-16 lines that Hamlet is going to write and insert into the play