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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.
Short Answer Questions
1. What shocking news does the ghost deliver to Hamlet in Act 1, Scene 5?
2. When Claudius reacts to the play, what does Hamlet say in response?
3. After welcoming them to Elsinore, what does Claudius ask Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to do?
4. After the play, Claudius meets with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to discuss Hamlet's condition. Are Rosencrantz and Guildenstern more sympathetic to Claudius, Hamlet, or someone else?
5. Hamlet says "The time is out of joint: O cursed spite/ That ever I was born to set it right!" What does that mean?
Short Essay Questions
1. After the play-within-a-play, Claudius meets with Hamlet's old friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Who are Rosencrantz and Guildenstern loyal to? How can you tell?
2. When Hamlet rants about love and marriage to Ophelia, he is talking about more than just his own relationship with her. What else is Hamlet talking about?
3. Why does Hamlet not kill Claudius when he finds Claudius alone in Act 3?
4. Does the Ghost at the beginning of the play talk to the watchers?
5. Polonius sends Reynaldo to Laertes with very specific instructions. What does Polonius tell Reynaldo to do, and how does Polonius tell him to do it?
6. After talking to the ghost at the end of Act 1, what does Hamlet decide to do about his father's death?
7. Who are Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and why do they go to Elsinore?
8. After hearing Ophelia describe Hamlet's behavior in Act 2, Scene 1, what does Polonius decide is the cause of Hamlet's behavior and what does he decide to do about it?
9. Hamlet says "O, that this too too solid flesh would melt...." This soliloquy in Act 1, Scene 2, is the first introduction of a theme that Hamlet will talk about repeatedly in the play. What does he talk about doing or wanting to do in this soliloquy?
10. Who does the ghost tell Hamlet NOT to seek revenge on?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
The play focuses a lot on death. There is the death of the old king and Hamlet's "excessive" mourning. There is the appearance of the ghost and its description of the afterlife. There is Hamlet's obsession with suicide and Ophelia's apparent suicide. There is the entire graveyard scene, with its varied perspectives on death. Shakespeare puts forth many different perspectives on this topic in the play. Choose one belief or perspective that is presented in the play; explain it and identify two or three instances in the play where that belief is supported or represented.
Essay Topic 2
At one point, Hamlet says "Words, words, words," and while there are a lot of words in this play, people use those words to manipulate or control each other, rather than to tell each other the truth. What theme or lesson can be drawn from this play about the important of words and language? Support your thesis with examples from the text.
Essay Topic 3
Describe how Shakespeare uses foreshadowing to prepare his audience for the very bloody end of the play. Identify specific examples from the first four acts of the script.
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This section contains 933 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
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