Hamlet Act IV--Writing Assignments

Choose any one of the following suggestions. The first two are creative writing assignments, so you will not include quotes in these answers. However, in all others be sure to include lines (quotes) from the play (along with their scene and line numbers) which support and justify your answers. No answers should be made up of only quotes; your interpretation and commentary is essential to the answer.

1. Imagine that, between their exit in scene 1 and entry in scene 2, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern discuss the situation (with Hamlet). Improvise a dialogue in which they consider Hamlet’s actions and ‘madness’, and their own position. Be sure to include at least five of your vocabulary words. Please highlight these.

2. Hamlet uses metaphor to sum up Rosencrantz’s nature: he is a sponge, or he is like food to be sucked and swallowed by a king in the same way that an ape eats. Hamlet also plays with metaphor to divert Rosencrantz from his attempt to find out the whereabouts of Polonius. Make up your metaphors to describe each of the following characters: - Hamlet (a chameleon? changeable weather?) - Guildenstern (a toad?) - Horatio (a solid rock?) - Claudius - Gertrude - Ophelia Develop two of the metaphors into descriptive paragraphs.

3. When Ophelia enters Act IV, scene v, the play’s directions say she comes in ‘distracted’. Remember, ‘mad’ people often reveal their obsessions in what they say, even if their speech seems ‘distracted’. What are three of the subjects she speaks on, and what do these indicate about her character?

4. In scene v Claudius reflects on the fact that sorrows never come alone, but all together. “When sorrows come, they come not single spies,/But in battalions” (78-79). Is he referring to Ophelia’s sorrows or his own? What troubles does he include in his list? Can you think of any others?

5. Claudius has been trying (in scene v) to control and direct Laertes’ anger, but the entrance of Ophelia and her effect on Laertes have made his attempt more difficult. Laertes’ anger is refueled. How does Claudius manage to salvage the situation and turn Laertes’ passion for revenge to his own ends?

6. In scene vii, Claudius claims that Hamlet not only killed Polonius but was intent on killing him, too. He explains that he did not punish Hamlet for two reasons: love of Gertrude and Hamlet’s popularity with the people. What evidence can you find in the play for these reasons? Suggest other possible reasons that might explain Claudius’ delay in acting against Hamlet.