Hamlet-Act 1 Scene 2 Thoughts

Act 1 Scene 2 of Hamlet is an incredibly important scene in the play because it is the first time we truly get to see Hamlet for who he is and understand his inner thoughts. During this scene, Claudius (King of Denmark) is marrying Hamlet's father's former wife Gertrude in a close time span of the former king's death. Just to give a brief synopsis, during this scene Claudius sends ambassadors to Norway and urges Hamlet to stay here rather than study in Wittenberg for university.

During Claudius's soliloquy, he claims, " Therefore our sometime sister, now our queen,/Thy imperial jointress to this warlike state." It is interesting to note Shakespeare's use of the word "state" throughout the text. State has a multitude of denotations which include the condition of a person or thing, rank or status, style of loving, and even the partial condition of the mind. All of these denotations can be used and applied to the sentence as if Shakespeare has meant to put that many layers within the writing of his text. For example, the warlike "state" could be a reference to the partial condition of Hamlet's mind in which he is incredibly hostile towards Claudius. Also, Claudius uses a myriad of paradoxes within this soliloquy such as "With mirth in funeral and with dirge in marriage". This use of paradox and contradictory structure indicates the deceptive nature of Claudius as if he is truly trying to manipulate those around him. After the King speaks with Polonius, we hear Hamlet's very first line in which he claims "A little more than kin and less than kind."This line definitely portrays Hamlet's viewpoint towards this manipulative king who seems to disdain him for taking the place of his father. Similar to the double meaning seen in word state, Gertrude claims "Do not forever with thy vailed lids/Seek for thy noble father in the dust." Dust has the denotation of human remains and the dry particles of earth. Thus, Shakespeare is yet again using this multiple meaning that could portray the deceptive nature of Gertrude. This deception is further exemplified through the theme of seeming vs. is-ing. For example, Hamlet claims "Seems, madam? Nay it is. I know not seems/Tis not alone my inky cloak, (good) mother..." In this scene, I think Hamlet aptly describes a reocurring theme throughout the text which is the idea of perception versus reality or otherwise known as appearance versus truth. Even in the very structure of the Denmark throne, there seems to be some disorder and chaos because Hamlet is not chosen to take the place of his father. Yet, Claudius is still trying to those in Norway that the kingdom is stronger than ever. It is also interesting to note that Claudius allows Laertes to leave while Hamlet is not allowed to. This reveals an important character trait about Claudius in which he likes to stay in control. In a sense, he is in control of everything except Hamlet. We also notice that Hamlet worships his father as a "Hyperion" which is a sun god. In this way, we can see that Hamlet is willing to sacrifice anything in order to please his father.