Scene 3.1
Scene 3.1 – Within the Castle
The following day
Claudius interviews Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, hoping they have discovered a
possible source for Hamlet’s madness. They
have little to report and – fearful further conversation might reveal that
Hamlet knows full well of their mission –
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern quickly change the subject, talking instead about
the players who have arrived. Polonius
adds that Hamlet has invited the King and Queen to see the play this very night.
Happy to hear Hamlet is enthusiastic about the play, Claudius and
Gertrude readily agree to attend. Claudius
then asks Gertrude to leave because Hamlet will be arriving soon, and Claudius
would like to be alone with Polonius to witness the encounter with Ophelia. Before departing, the good-natured Gertrude wishes Ophelia
well, saying she hopes it is indeed Ophelia’s beauty that has caused
Hamlet’s “wildness,” for her virtues should then be equally able to
restore him. Polonius next prepares
Ophelia for Hamlet’s impending visit. Claudius,
prompted by an offhand comment Polonius utters about the goodly outside of
falsehood, makes a stunning confession in an aside to the audience: he is in fact guilty of the former King’s murder!
Hamlet, however, isn’t yet privy to this information.
Hamlet then enters
and speaks the most famous soliloquy of English literature:
“To be, or not to be, that is the question – / Whether ’tis nobler
in the mind to suffer / The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, / Or to
take arms against a sea of troubles, / And by opposing end them.
To die, to sleep – / No more; and by a sleep to say we end / The
heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks / That flesh is heir to – ’tis a
consummation / Devoutly to be wished.” There
is no consensus among scholars on what “the question” exactly is, but two of
the most frequent interpretations are 1) that Hamlet is discussing whether it is
more noble to endure a difficult life or to commit suicide or 2) that Hamlet’s
“To be, or not to be” more precisely means “To act, or not to act,” and
that he is presently wracked by his indecision and lack of resolve.
In either case, it seems clear enough from the speech that Hamlet is
deeply troubled, at a complete loss as to what he should do next.
He concedes that the uncertainty of what comes after death leads most
people to bear their burdens rather than commit suicide, especially since the
latter is unacceptable in the eyes of God – “thus conscience does make
cowards of us all.” It is this
same conscience that prevents Hamlet, despite his earlier promise to the ghost,
from striking down Claudius before he is fully convinced of the King’s guilt:
“the native hue of resolution / Is sicklied o’er with the pale cast
of thought.” That is, thinking at
length about right and wrong, good and evil, salvation and damnation, has
obscured his initial resolve to revenge his father’s murder.
On this gloomy
note the hapless Ophelia enters. Hamlet
says he loved her once, only to follow with the comment that she shouldn’t
have believed him, for he loved her not. Stunned,
Ophelia says she was deceived, for she was quite certain he did in fact love
her. Harsh Hamlet spouts “Get
thee to a nunnery,” the only place where she can escape the wicked
inclinations of others and herself. Some
critics have taken “nunnery” to mean “brothel” (a connotation it
sometimes had in colloquial speech) – which would make Hamlet’s comment all
the more cruel – but this remains a much-disputed reading.
It seems clear enough that Hamlet’s disgust with humanity lies behind
these words: it is best that no one
reproduce, the sooner to make an end of humankind’s sinfulness.
He therefore wishes infertility on Ophelia should she ever marry.
Aghast at Hamlet’s wounding words, Ophelia bemoans the mind that she
witnesses here overthrown as Hamlet walks off stage saying “To a nunnery,
go.” Claudius and Polonius enter
on the heels of Hamlet’s departure. “Love?”
Claudius questions. There is no
doubt in his mind that Hamlet is not suffering from the unrequited love of
Ophelia, as Polonius suggested, nor does he think his nephew-son is completely
crazy. Claudius detects something
else but isn’t sure what. Perhaps
a trip to England – the fresh ocean air, a different country – will shake
Hamlet out of this funk? England,
after all, is late in paying its tribute to Denmark and Hamlet could act as
collector. Polonius concurs,
although he remains convinced Hamlet’s grief is really just love-sickness for
Ophelia. Before shipping Hamlet off
to England, however, Polonius proposes that he arrange and overhear a
conversation between Hamlet and Gertrude in which she tries to draw out the
source of his madness. If this
last-ditch effort fails, Claudius and Polonius agree, then off to England it is
for Hamlet.
