Wednesday, December 28, 2016

Hamlet's True Feelings

Act 3. Scene 4. Lines 47-60

"QUEEN: What have I done, that thou dar'st wag thy tongue
In noise so rude against me?

HAMLET: Such an act that blurs the grace and blush of modesty,
Calls virtue hypocrite, takes off the rose
From the fair forehead of an innocent love
And sets a blister there, makes marriage vows
As false as dicers' oaths -- O, such a deed
As from the body of contraction plucks
The very soul, and sweet religion makes
A rhapsody of words! Heaven's face does glow
O'er this solidity and compound mass
With heated visage, as against the doom,
Is thought-sick at the act."


In this scene, Hamlet is verbally attacking his mother for her decisions in life, especially her decision to marry Claudius. He is extremely unhappy with her for marrying his uncle after his father died and she does not seem to understand his pain and feelings towards the marriage. This passage takes place directly after Hamlet kills Polonius, thinking it was actually his uncle, and it depicts Hamlet to be taking out his frustrations on his mother while she is confused and helpless. It is clear that the feelings Hamlet expresses to his mother are not ones that he came up with on the spot, Hamlet has been thinking about these feelings and letting them build up since the marriage took place and he happened to crack at this very moment.
This passage begins with the Queen expressing her confusion and general uneasiness regarding Hamlet's attitude towards her. She asks him what she had done to him to make his "tongue in noise so rude against [her]," meaning what she did to upset him and make him act so rude. Hamlet quickly replies with an honest and blunt answer. He indirectly calls his mother a hypocrite and declares that her marriage vows to her father were false since she chose to marry his uncle when his father died. He continues by referencing the "body of contraction," meaning the body of her marriage contracts between her two husbands, and states that it "plucks the very soul," meaning it can seriously affect a person. This connects to Hamlet's personal feelings on marriage and love because it implies that marriage only harms people in the end rather than bringing them joy and happiness which is what he also believes in his own life. Next, he states that religion can makes marriage contracts and "rhapsody," or jumble, "of words," meaning that matrimony is not even clearly laid out by the church which indirectly enables marriages like his mother's and uncle's to each other after his father died. Hamlet then states that "Heaven's face does glow o'er this solidity and compound mass," further emphasizing the church's acceptance of this marriage despite his hatred towards it and his mother's decisions.
 It is clear through this passage that Hamlet detests his mother's new marriage and he now questions everything he once knew about his mother. He does not feel like he truly knows her anymore because he never believed that his mother could commit such a distasteful act. It is also clear that Hamlet detests his uncle even more. This passage shows that Hamlet questions love and marriage a great deal and certainly more now than he did when his own father was still alive. This incident of lashing out at his mother may just be due to the fact he just filled Polonius thinking it was Claudius, however, the reason behind it doesn't matter as much as the simple fact that it occurred and his true feelings towards his mother were finally expressed to her.

3 comments:

  1. I like how you begin this post with contextualization to inform the reader of the events which took place directly before the passage in question. Your organization is strong as you analyze the passage piece by piece. You show a deep understanding of the passage through your writing. I like how it is very focused on Hamlet's mother and his disapproval of her marriage to his uncle. This is overall a really strong piece.

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  2. Right away you start with a great explanation of what this passage is about and where it sits in the play and how its placement is important. Next you go on to analyze well by saying how we feels, what it means, and why he said it. And your last paragraph sums up his feelings very well.

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  3. I fully agree that this is an unusual moment of complete honesty for Hamlet. You did a very good job of how passionate he feels about this subject, and how much pressure forced him to let these passions be visible to his mother. The step-by-step explanation of each piece was also a great addition. Nice job!

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