PART 1: Reading Logs for Act IV and V
For each scene on Acts IV and V, complete
- a one to three sentence summary of each scene.
- five significant lines from each scene ("lines" does not refer to visual line of text - length of "lines" are your discretion)
- an short explanation of the significance of each selected line. (You do not have to do this for Act V, scene ii).
PART 2: Specific Questions
ACT IV
Act IV, scene i -- Complete a close reading of line 7- 33 (go through the passage line by line). What is so significant about the King's statements (particularly l. 22-24). How can you compare the Queen's specific language (diction, metaphors) with the King's? What insights into their characters do you gain from this comparison?
Act IV, scene ii -- Hamlet chooses to put on an "antic disposition" before he kills Polonius. Could Hamlet no longer be under the guise of an antic disposition, and actually be falling into madness? Look at ll. 23-24. What do these lines or scene indicate? Explain.
Act IV, scene iii -- Read ll. 6-7. What theme do these lines support? Explain.
Act IV, scene iv-- Compare Hamlet's fourth soliloquy (ll. 34 - 69) to his earlier soliloquies. What has changed? What is revealed? How does his diction and tone change? Support with specific references.
Act IV, scene v - How does the description and portrayal of Ophelia's madness shake the audience's confidence in Hamlet and his actions? How does her descent into madness make us, the audience, question Hamlet?
- Look specifically at Ophelia's lines from l.178 to the end of the scene. Do her lines indicate any sense of sanity? Is their any truth in what she says? Or are her words gibberish and meant to hyperbolize her declension into madness?
Act IV, scene vii -- Compare Hamlet and Laertes. What line in this scene directly foils Hamlet? Explain.
ACT V
Act V, scene i -- What are the dramatic purposes of the gravediggers? Select at least 5 specific line said by the gravediggers and explain how they relate or effect the play.
Act V, scene ii -- Hamlet shows us his existential struggle through some of his soliloquies (particularly, "to be or not to be"). Compare his "To be or not to be" soliloquy with the following lines:
ll. 11-12
ll. 79-80
ll. 83-84
l. 152
ll.234-236
-- Choose one of the following themes and explain how the final scene demonstrates your chosen theme the most. In arguing for your theme, you may address the other themes. Use references from the play to support your answer. Remember: Make a point, provide proof of your point AND explain the insight you gain (your understanding of a complex, deeper issue within the play or within a character). If you don't know what some of the words mean, look them up.
1. nemesis
2. anagnorosis
3. a return to moral order
4. revenge
This last question should be typed up, as we are going to be working with this question when we return in January. 2-3 pages typed. You may NOT write a five paragraph essay. You may have any number of paragraphs, except five!