Act 3, Scene 1: Key Events

Key Events in Act 3, Scene 1

Hamlet enters. In his most famous soliloquy (“To be, or not to be”), he broods on his weariness of life, the potential merits of suicide and the fear of eternal damnation.

Key events in Act 3, Scene 1

Polonius and Claudius spy on Hamlet and Ophelia and witness Hamlet behave cruelly towards her, insisting that she retires to a “nunnery”.
Claudius, troubled by Hamlet’s behaviour and perhaps sensing danger to himself, decides to send Hamlet to England.

Claudius' feelings of guilt

As Polonius prepares Ophelia for her meeting with Hamlet, Claudius, in an aside, admits to feelings of “conscience”.
- In admitting to feeling guilty, Claudius provides the audience with the first confirmation that he has indeed killed his brother. In doing so, Shakespeare creates dramatic irony for the audience - the audience knows more than Hamlet does of the truth of Claudius’ crime.

"Lash" imagery

Claudius (on hearing Polonius tell Ophelia that appearances may disguise an inner ugliness): “How smart a lash that speech doth give my conscience”.
- Claudius overhears Polonius’ advice to Ophelia on how appearances may disguise an inner ugliness and it triggers intense feelings of guilt.
- The imagery of a “lash” creates connotations of torture, suffering and punishment, providing the audience with its first insight into Claudius’ inner turmoil.

Significance of "conscience"

The abstract noun “conscience” recalls Hamlet’s final words at the end of the previous scene about catching “the conscience of the King” and foreshadows events in the next scene when Claudius watches the players re-enact his murder of his own brother.

More Key Events in Act 3, Scene 1

As Polonius has planned, Hamlet comes across Ophelia while she is praying. Ophelia hands back to Hamlet the “remembrances” (tokens of love) which he had given to her, causing Hamlet to respond angrily.

How much does Hamlet know?

Each production of the play must decide how much Hamlet knows of this meeting being set up by Claudius and Polonius.
- If he is unaware that he is being spied upon, his behaviour towards Ophelia stems from genuine hurt and anger.
- However, if he suspects that the King or his spies are eavesdropping, his words and actions may be a performance (i.e. Hamlet putting on his “antic disposition”) intended to throw Claudius off the scent of his quest for revenge. Regardless of Hamlet’s motivation, Ophelia is left shocked by his behaviour.

Hamlet's forceful tone

Hamlet (to Ophelia): “Get thee to a nunnery. Why wouldst thou be a breeder of sinners?”
- Hamlet’s tone is forceful, almost aggressive, confronting Ophelia with the blunt imperative (command) to take up residence in a “nunnery” where she will be able to preserve her chastity and avoid sexual corruption.

Double meaning of "nunnery"

But Elizabethan audiences would have been familiar with the term “nunnery” being used as a slang-term for ‘brothel’, giving the instruction a more derogatory, insulting implication: that Ophelia is already prostituting herself.
- Critics disagree over whether Hamlet knows that the conversation is being spied upon by the eavesdroppers, Claudius and Polonius, but Hamlet may well suspect that Ophelia’s rejection of him has come at the behest of her father.

Significance of "breeder"

Hamlet’s question is a direct challenge to Ophelia.
- The derogatory term “breeder” dehumanises Ophelia, reducing her to the level of livestock.

Link between sex and "sin"

Hamlet once again links sex to “sin”: his imagination continues to be tainted by the thought of his mother’s incestuous marriage.

Key Ideas in Act 3, Scene 1 - Suicide

In his “To be, or not to be” soliloquy, Hamlet considers how suicide could release him from the “slings and arrows” of a troubled life.

The State's response to suicide

In Shakespeare’s society, suicide was considered a crime against God, the King and Nature.
The State severely punished those who attempted to take their own life. For those who succeeded in taking their own life, the State was able to seize their property and other wealth which would have otherwise passed to descendants.

The Church's response to suicide

The Church taught that suicide was a Mortal Sin, for which no forgiveness would ever be granted and those that had committed suicide were denied Christian burial. Those that attempted suicide condemned their souls to eternal damnation.

Hamlet's conclusions on suicide

Hamlet’s soliloquy concludes with his realisation that his uncertainty about what might await him in the afterlife - the “undiscover’d country” from which “no traveller returns” - prevents him from ending his own life.
An audience is likely to have the Ghost’s account of its own punishment and suffering in the afterlife fresh in its minds. This makes Hamlet’s fears even more plausible.

1Introduction

1.1Introduction & Background to Hamlet

1.1.1Introduction to Hamlet

1.1.2The Literary Tradition of the Hamlet Story

1.1.3Introduction to the Settings in Hamlet

1.1.4Introduction to Social Issues Raised

2Plot Summary

2.1Act 1: Key Events & Ideas

2.1.1Act 1, Scene 1

2.1.2Act 1, Scene 2

2.1.3Act 1, Scene 3

2.1.4Act 1, Scenes 4-5

2.2Act 2: Key Events & Ideas

2.2.1Act 2, Scene 1

2.2.2Act 2, Scene 2

2.3Act 3: Key Events & Ideas

2.3.1Act 3, Scene 1: Key Events

2.3.2Act 3, Scene 1: Key Ideas

2.3.3Act 3, Scene 2

2.3.4Act 3, Scene 3

2.3.5Act 3, Scene 4

2.4Act 4: Key Events & Ideas

2.4.1Act 4, Scene 1

2.4.2Act 4, Scenes 2-3

2.4.3Act 4, Scene 4

2.4.4Act 4, Scene 5: Key Events

2.4.5Act 4, Scene 5: Key Ideas

2.4.6Act 4, Scene 6

2.4.7Act 4, Scene 7

2.5Act 5: Key Events & Ideas

2.5.1Act 5, Scene 1: Key Events

2.5.2Act 5, Scene 2: Key Events

2.5.3Act 5, Scene 2: Key Ideas

3Character Profiles

3.1Hamlet

3.1.1Hamlet's Speech & Mind

3.1.2Hamlet's Heroic Status

3.1.3Hamlet's State of Mind

3.1.4Hamlet's Indecision/Action Taking

3.2Claudius

3.2.1Claudius' Crime

3.2.2Changing Impressions of Claudius

3.3Gertrude

3.3.1Mystery & Hamlet's View of Gertrude

3.3.2Gertrude's Character

3.3.3Gertrude's Relationship with Hamlet

3.4Ophelia

3.4.1Ophelia

3.5Polonius

3.5.1Portrayal of Polonius & Treatment of Ophelia

3.5.2Polonius' Spying & Death

3.6Laertes

3.6.1Laertes' Popularity & Relationship with Ophelia

3.6.2Laertes' Character Traits

4Key Themes

4.1Regicide in Hamlet

4.1.1Regicide in Hamlet

4.2Madness in Hamlet

4.2.1Madness in Hamlet

4.3Guilt & Punishment in Hamlet

4.3.1Guilt in Hamlet

4.3.2Punishment in Hamlet

4.4Settings in Hamlet

4.4.1Physical Settings & Historical Setting of Hamlet

5Writing Techniques

5.1Structure

5.1.1Structure of Hamlet

5.1.2'Play Within a Play' Structure

5.1.3Play-Acting Motif

5.2Form

5.2.1Soliloquy

5.2.2Comedy

5.3Imagery

5.3.1Imagery of Corruption & Decay

5.3.2Imagery: Healing, Performance & Costume

5.4Language

5.4.1Word Usage & Hendiadys

5.4.2Questions & Classical Allusions

6Context

6.1Social & Historical Context

6.1.1Elizabeth I & Succession

6.1.2Cosmic & Social Hierarchy

6.1.3Renaissance & Emergence of Humanism

6.1.4Regicide

6.1.5The Reformation

6.2Literary Context

6.2.1Seneca Tragedy

6.2.2The Revenge Tragedy

6.3Performance & Textual History

6.3.1Performance History of Hamlet

6.3.2Textual History of Hamlet

7Critical Debates

7.118-19th Century Responses to Hamlet

7.1.1Introduction to Critical Debates

7.1.218th Century Commentary on Hamlet

7.1.3Romantic Commentary on Hamlet

7.220th Century Responses to Hamlet

7.2.1Freudian Response to Hamlet

7.2.2Other Early 20th Century Responses to Hamlet

7.3Feminist Readings of Hamlet

7.3.1Introduction to Feminist Criticism

7.3.2Feminist Readings of Hamlet

7.3.3Presentation of Ophelia

7.4Marxist/Political Readings of Hamlet

7.4.1Introduction to Marxist Criticisms

7.4.2Marxist Readings of Hamlet

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