This act is very short but it is also the most telling and insightful into the main characters is the play. It reveals the dynamics at work in Hamlet’s family as well as Ophelia’s. In this Act we see two different sets of parents working behind the scenes to direct their children’s lives. In scene 1 we see Polonius directing Reynaldo to go and spy on his son, Laertes, and see how he is doing. Then he expounds and wants Reynaldo to spread false and vicious rumors because he thinks his son is boring. In scene 2 we see the King and Queen calling some of Hamlet’s friends to come to keep watch over Hamlet to see if they can find out why he is acting so crazy. Why do they not go to him themselves?
While the Queen is likely self centered and needy of male attention, the King is wicked but Polonius is conniving, controlling and manipulative. A father that directs his aid to slander his son’s good name and destroy his impeccable reputation is a wicked as well. Additionally, he tells his daughter to play games with Hamlet by returning his letters and gifts to the point that she also becomes the object of Hamlet’s doubt and supposed insanity. We see at the close of the act a glimpse or the increasing insanity of Hamlet as he meets with his friends then his speech at the end where he doubts everything he has ever known.
I think that foreshadowing is the most prominent literary theme in this Act. In both cases, the parents seem concerned for their children but they may or may not realize that they are really the cause of the ills that will befall their children. The concern is superficial and self centered. The actions of each parent leads to the eventual demise of both families. The King and Queen by their own manipulation of the lives of others by killing Hamlet’s father and Polonius by manipulating his daughters behavior toward Hamlet as well as his sneaky, slanderous gossip about his son.
Do you think that the parents are in any way really caring and concerned for their children?
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I think both parents do care about their children, but they also care about their own position in power. They also care too much for intrigue and manipulation rather than about what is directly in front of them.
ReplyDeleteFor Gertrude and Claudius, they are oblivious to the ravages of grief. After all, they were married a month after the death of King Hamlet and show no signs of grief (other than superficial comments) themselves.
ReplyDeletePolonius takes it a step further by actively plotting against his own son, daughter and Hamlet. Which is worse, ignorance or active subterfuge. This contrast is especially odd considering that Claudius had the guts to commit murder.
I think that the parents do care about their children to an extent. They are more worried about their selves than they are about their children. I get the impretion that they are looking for their childrens ultimate downfall.
ReplyDeleteThe plot of Hamlet revolves around two families (Hamlet-Claudius-Gertrude), and (Ophelia-Polonius-Laertes). There are two sets of fathers (Hamlet Sr./Claudius and Polonius), and two sets of children (Hamlet and Laertes/Ophelia). The relationships between parents and their children are portrayed in two different ways: first, Hamlet’s relationship to his father’s ghost contrasts to Laertes’s relationship with his father (lots of advice involved, the question of revenge), and second, Polonius’s misunderstanding of Ophelia reflects Gertrude’s misunderstanding of Hamlet. The parallels can raise questions about the kinds of relationships the play depicts. Doesn’t everyone have a parent that misunderstands them? Doesn’t everyone receive long-winded advice from his father?
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