Rosencrantz and Guildenstern | Friends of Hamlet; Called to Denmark to spy on him |
The Players | Actors; Called to Denmark to distract Hamlet |
Where does Polonius send Reynaldo? Why? | France; To spy on his son, Laertes |
Why does Polonius think Hamlet is “mad”? | He thinks Hamlet is just lovesick for Ophelia |
Why have Rosencrantz and Guildenstern come to the castle? | Gertrude and Claudius asked them to come watch Hamlet, distract him, and find out why he is insane. |
What is Polonius’ plan for testing his theory that Hamlet is love crazy? | Use Ophelia as bait; She will give Hamlet his stuff back, while Polonius and Claudius watch unseen. |
When Rosencrantz and Guildenstern finally meet with Hamlet, how does Hamlet react? | He is happy, then becomes suspicious that they were sent for. |
How does Hamlet describe his personal problems to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern? What does he tell them? | He tells them he is depressed, and no longer enjoys life or likes people. |
What arrangement does Hamlet make with Player 1? Why? | He asks Player 1 to put on a play and learn a few extra lines written by Hamlet because he wants to make the play more like the murder of his father. |
After Rosencrantz and Guildenstern leave Hamlet, what does he basically say in his soliloquy? | He calls himself a coward for not killing his father, and plans to have the actors do a play like the murder of his father in order to trap Claudius into giving himself away. |
Describe the relationship between Hamlet and Polonius in this act. | Polonius is a foil for Hamlet. He is not stupid, boring, but not distracted from his task. Hamlet is smart and mocks him, but fails to focus on his task. |
Hamlet Act 2 Study Questions
August 20, 2019