Act 1, Scene 5
King Hamlet's tormented spirit reveals that a hidden crime of foul murder condemns it to walk the earth and roast in hell. Tricked by a lie, Denmark believes that a poisonous serpent fatally stung King Hamlet as he slept in his orchard. However, as the spirit tells Hamlet, "'The serpent that did sting thy father's life / Now wears his crown.'" Act 1, Scene 5, lines 39-40. King Hamlet was actually murdered by his brother Claudius, who poured a vial of poisonous hebenon into the slumbering King's ear. Claudius stole King Hamlet's crown, his queen, and worst of all, his soul's peace. Murdered without the chance for confession, King Hamlet died with an unburdened conscience. He must now pay for his unpurged earthly sins by roasting in Hell's sulfurous pits.
The spirit begs Hamlet to avenge the foul murder, but to leave Queen Gertrude unharmed.
Gertrude's guilty conscience and Heaven's judgment are punishment enough for her disloyalty. The ghost departs, beseeching Hamlet to remember his father's poor murdered spirit. Hamlet resolves to think of nothing besides avenging King Hamlet's unjust death. The Prince adopts a disguise of mental insanity. He will act like a madman to conceal his bloody motive. Hamlet instructs Horatio and Marcellus to keep the night's events a secret. The ghost cries out from under the stage, urging them to swear their secrecy. Obeying the spirit's demands, Horatio and Marcellus pledge upon the cross of Hamlet's sword that they will never speak a word of what they have seen and heard.
Topic Tracking: Suicide 2
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