WorksheetsHamlet- Act 3
Total questions: 85
Worksheet time: 45mins
Who says, “In second husband let one be accursed / None wed the second, but who killed the first"?
Queen Gertrude
The Player Queen
Ophelia
Portia
Who is killed in Act 3?
Rosencrantz
Laertes
Fortinbras
Polonius
In this act, to which character does Hamlet reveal that he is but "mad in craft" and not truly mad?
Polonius
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern
Horatio
Ophelia
What is The Murder of Gonzago?
Shakespeare's source of Hamlet
The play-within-the-play
Book that Hamlet shows Polonius
The1st player’s speech about Heccuba and Phyrrus
What does Hamlet criticize in this act?
Marriage
Ophelia
Women
All of the above
To where does Claudius order Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to take Hamlet?
England
Denmark
Poland
Scotland
What does Claudius do that makes Hamlet hesitate in killing him, at first?
apologizes for the murder
mourns at the grave site
treats Hamlet with great respect
prays for forgiveness
Where does Polonius hide when Hamlet is talking to Gertrude?
between 2 statues
behind a hanging tapestry
under a bed
in a closet
To where does Hamlet tell Ophelia to go?
to a nunnery
to a nursery
to a brothel
to her father's house
In which scene of Act 3 does the climax of the play occur? (Think about the highest action, what the story has been leading to since Hamlet was told the truth.)
Scene 3 – Claudius prays
Scene 1 – before the play begins
Scene 2 – the viewing of the play
Scene 4 – Hamlet talks with his mother
In the soliloquy, "To be or not to be...", Hamlet philosophizes on the nature of:
love & marriage
poverty & wealth
life & death
revenge & acceptance
Since Polonius dies, Laertes has the same reason for revenge as Hamlet. This is the reason to consider him a ____________ for Hamlet.
motive - reason for doing something
foil - an opposing but similar character
motif - a recurring theme
tragic hero - major character whose downfall is brought about by a flaw
When Claudius shouts for "lights!" before the play is over, Hamlet is convinced
That Claudius is really mad
That he will never be able to determine Claudius' guilt
That Claudius is guilty of his father's murder
That the ghost was lying to the trick him
___________ is Hamlet's tone when he speaks to Ophelia.
He crazy in love with her and asks her to marry him.
He respectfully asks her to come with him after the play.
He's angry & tells her to become a nun & not have children.
When Gertrude meets with Hamlet, what does she promise to keep secret from Claudius?
That she knows Claudius killed King Hamlet
That Hamlet is only pretending to be crazy to seek revenge on Claudius
That Hamlet killed Polonius
That Hamlet is going back to school
Why does Gertrude cry out when Hamlet storms into her room?
She wants to warn Polonius
She sees the Ghost of King Hamlet
She is overwhelmed by guilt
She is afraid for her own life
Hamlet is overcome with guilt when he realizes he has murdered Polonius.
true
false - he calls Polonius a "foolish, prating knave" who deserved death
false - he only says he's sorry when he sees the ghost
false - he sees how upset his mother is and only thinks about comforting her
Whom does Hamlet assume is hiding behind the curtain?
Horatio
King Claudius
Ophelia
Polonius
What does Hamlet mean by "To be or not to be, that is the question"?
Should I even exist? Should I end my life?
Should I really kill King Claudius? Does he deserve to live?
Was my father murdered? Should I trust a ghost?
What will come of my revenge? Should I continue with my plan?
What does Hamlet want the players to do?
Leave the Danish court
Put on a play for the king and queen
Only perform comedies
Not have any women in the audience
What is Claudius and Polonius's initial plan?
To have Ophelia report back what Hamlet says.
To hide in the room while Hamlet speaks.
To confront Hamlet directly.
To have Gertrude reason with Hamlet.
What is the meaning of Hamlet asking "Are you honest?"
He is asking if Ophelia is a virgin.
He is asking if she still loves him.
He is asking if she is like every other woman.
He is asking if she thinks herself beautiful.
What do Claudius and Polonius decide to do in the end?
Have Gertrude coax Hamlet into revealing his problems.
Let Hamlet and Ophelia get married.
Banish Hamlet from Denmark.
Send Hamlet back to school in order to keep his mind focused.
"The harlot’s cheek, beautied with plastering art,
Is not more ugly to the thing that helps it
Than is my deed to my most painted word.
O heavy burden!"
Who speaks this quote/what does it mean?
Polonius; Ophelia is being dishonest because of her beauty.
Hamlet; He is offended by women wearing makeup.
Claudius; He feels guilt over killing his brother.
Gertrude; She feels guilty for marrying Claudius.
Who does Hamlet ask about the king’s reaction to the play?
Horatio
The actors
Ophelia
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
When Rosencrantz and Guildenstern tell Hamlet that the king is very disturbed, what does Hamlet suggest as the reason?
He feels guilty
He has been poisoned
He has a fever
He is drunk
What does Hamlet compare himself to while speaking with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern?
A pipe
A hawk
An actor
A dog
When Hamlet talks to Polonius, why does he keep changing what he thinks the cloud overhead looks like?
To show how Polonius will change his opinion based on others
To stall because he is afraid to see his mother
To prove that Polonius is planning to spy on him
Because Polonius compared him to one of the clouds
Which of these is an accurate summary of Hamlet’s fifth soliloquy: “tis now the very witching time of night”
He will first take revenge on his mother, then on Claudius
The ghost is trying to trick him into committing murder
Now is the perfect time for murder, but he will not harm Gertrude
He is questioning the truthfulness of the ghost now
What is Polonius going to do while Gertrude talks to Hamlet?
Hide behind a tapestry and listen to them
Write to Laertes that he must return to Denmark
Confront Ophelia about her love for Hamlet
Move the king to a secure location
What is Claudius apparently doing when Hamlet walks by and sees him?
Praying
Plotting to kill Hamlet
Arguing with Gertrude
Writing a letter
Why won’t Hamlet kill Claudius in Scene 3?
He has already poisoned Claudius’s drink
He feels sorry for his mother
He wants to kill him in the act of a ‘sin’ or crime
Why is Act 3, Scene 2 such a complex and difficult scene in the play?
It is the ‘play within the play’ where the acting troupe performs
It features the ghost
It requires detailed, outdoor scenery
It features a complicated sword fight
What is something Ophelia, Rosencrantz, and Guildenstern all have in common?
The king is relying on them to report back about Hamlet’s actions
They have all come back from college to talk to Hamlet
Hamlet warns each of them to stay out of the situation in Denmark
Hamlet plans to kill them all
Why does Claudius say ‘Words without thoughts never to heaven go’?
His petition to Fortinbras’s uncle failed to arrive
He is planning to kill Hamlet personally
His words can doom Hamlet to death
He thinks prayers without true intent are never answered
Why does Claudius want to be left alone?
So that he and Polonius can confer about Fortinbras
So that he and Polonius can watch Hamlet and Ophelia interact
So that he and Polonius can discuss the upcoming play
So that he and Polonius can decide what to do about Hamlet’s moodiness
What do Polonius and Claudius overhear Hamlet discussing?
The life he led at school
Whether or not to commit suicide
Whether or not to marry Ophelia
His feelings of mourning
Why does Hamlet call women dishonest?
Because they only care about money
Because they wear make-up and deceive men
Because he does not trust his mother
Because he believes that women are inferior to men
What does Claudius say he will do about Hamlet?
Kill him
Monitor his behavior closely
Marry him off to Ophelia
Send him to England
In Act III, to whom does Hamlet say, "Give me that man/That is not passion's slave and I will wear him/In my heart's core."?
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
Claudius
Horatio
Laertes
To which characters does Hamlet reveal that he is but "mad in craft" and not truly mad? (hint: not all of them understand his message or pay attention to it.) SELECT ALL THAT APPLY!
Polonius
Horatio
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
Ophelia
Gertrude
“O heavy burden!” Who utters these words?
Claudius in prayer
Hamlet behind an arras
Gertrude in her chambers
“To be, or not to be? That is the question” Who utters these lines?
Hamlet
Claudius
“To be, or not to be? That is the question” Hamlet's state of mind at the moment in his fourth solilloquy is:
Contemplative
Reflexive
Uncertain
“Thus conscience does make cowards of us all”- Why is Hamlet so conflicted?
He feels a lack of spur to avenge his father's murder
He feels he is cowardice to not challenge Claudius
He is rational, thoughtful man
He is attempting to balance his thoughts, emotions with his actions
“I have remembrances of yours…[t]hat I have longèd long to redeliver.” What things are Ophelia referring to?
Ophelia refers to all the things Hamlet gave her during their relationship
Ophelia refers to the books she wishes to return to Hamlet
“I did love you once.”- Why is Hamlet so harsh towards Ophelia?
He is holding true to his words that he shall put on an antic disposition
Ophelia is used as a pawn by her father and will report anything Hamlet says or does
“Get thee to a nunnery. Why wouldst thou be a
breeder of sinners?” What advice is Hamlet offering Ophelia?
He wishes her to remain pure and virtuous
He does not want her to be tainted with the impurity of man's heart
Implicity he is confessing that he too is a sinner and she would be better off without him
True or False: Claudius is now convinced that Hamlet's madness stems from his inability to be with Ophelia
True
False
True or False: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern discover the cause of Hamlet's madness
True
False
“The lady protests too much, methinks.”- Explain what Gertrude means here.
She is exclaiming that the lady is overacting
The lady is acting out a lie
She is dissatisfied with the play
“The king rises.”- Contrary to Hamlet's request who observes the king's unusual behaviour?
Ophelia
Gertrude
Horatio
“do you think I am easier to be played on than a pipe?”- Why is Hamlet accusing his friends of playing him?
They think he is not aware of their usefulness to the king
They think he is fool to be played on
They think he is unable to see the real reason of their constant display of concern
“do you think I am easier to be played on than a pipe?”- Is Hamlet not guilty of playing puppet master too?
Yes
Hamlet is using the actors in his plan to catch the conscience of the king
Yes
Hamlet is using Horatio to sit an watch the king whereas he can be doing it himself
No
Hamlet is an innocent bystander in all of the drama
No
Hamlet is not a puppet master however he is played upon by the ghost
“O, my offence is rank it smells to heaven;
It hath the primal eldest curse upon 't,
A brother's murder.” What is Claudius exclaiming in these lines?
He is guilty of murder
He makes reference to the first murder in the Bible
Cain and Abel
He is confessing his actions
“Now might I do it…now he is praying,
And now I'll do 't.
And so he goes to heaven…A villain kills my father, and for that,’
I, his sole son, do this same villain send
To heaven.” What is Hamlet's concern?
He is afraid that Claudius will go straight to heaven
His father did not receive the same opportunity to repent
His uncle is guilty however is contemplative and deserves a second chance
“How now, a rat?” Who is Hamlet referring to?
Polonius
Claudius
Gertrude
Ophelia
“How now, a rat?” Is this an accurate description of Polonius?
Yes
He is a spy. He stalks and eavesdrops on conversations not pertaining to him
Yes
He reports each thing to the king that he suspects shall be important
Yes
He reveals private letters Hamlet wrote to Ophelia to the king and queen
Yes
He sends Reynaldo to spy on Laertes in France
“You cannot call it love, for at your age [t]he heyday in the blood is tame” What is Hamlet's argument about his mother's new love?
He explains that love is impossible at her age
It is not love she has for Claudius, however desires
He explains that his mother needs to be more virtuous and honourable
What theme is revealed when Hamlet orders Ophelia to a nunnery?
The role of women
The role of men in women's lives
The gender stereotype that women remain virtuous
“Thou turn’st mine eyes into my very soul”- What is Gertrude feeling at this moment?
She feels as though Hamlet is hitting a nerve
She has to deal with confrontation and Hamlet's anger
She is aware of her role in Hamlet's suffering
“eye on vacancy”- Does Gertrude see the Ghost? Why not?
She does not
She was not loyal to the old king
She does not
She is guilty of turning against her love of the old king
She does not
Hamlet is seeing a figment of his imagination
She does
Hamlet has opened her eyes to the truth of her sin
“And do not spread the compost on the weeds” What is Hamlet requesting his mother to do?
She should not have sexual relations with Claudius
She should not succumb to Claudius' advances
She should not work so much in the garden
“foolish prating knave”- To what extent is Polonius to blame for his death?
Polonius is a spy for Claudius
Polonius uses his daughter so he can observe Hamlet's behaviour
Polonius was always eavesdropping to report something to the king
What is Hamlet’s reaction when he realizes he has killed Polonius rather than Claudius, whom he had
presumed to be the one hiding behind the curtain?
Hamlet is disrespectful to Polonius, and not in the least remorseful about his error.
He “[lugs] the guts” into the next room without respect
or ceremony.
In essence he says
Polonius was a busybody who deserved what he got.
What does Hamlet mean, as he prepares to visit his mother, when he says, “O heart, lose not thy nature”?
He does not wish to forget that she is his mother, whom he does not mean to harm; on the other hand, he
wants to rebuke her for her actions.
He wishes that the ghost did not order him not to harm her
What is the significance of the play’s title, “The Mousetrap”?
The play “is the image of a murder done in Vienna,” and is, in fact, entitled, “The Murder of Gonzago,”
which Hamlet specifically requests the Players to perform with the addition of the lines which he inserts. That
he tells Claudius it is called, “The Mousetrap,” suggests his ulterior motive, especially since he continues,
“Your Majesty, and we that have free souls, it touches us not.” The clear implication is that Claudius does not
have a clear conscience, and will, therefore, be “touched” by the play—as he obviously is.
The play “is the image of a murder done in Vienna,” and is, in fact, entitled, “The Murder of Gonzago,”
which Hamlet specifically requests the Players to perform with the addition of the lines which he inserts. That
he tells Claudius it is called, “The Mousetrap,” suggests his ulterior motive. This is a trap to kill Claudius
What is ironic about Hamlet’s failure to kill Claudius while the King is kneeling in prayer?
Claudius kneels but is unable to pray. Had Hamlet killed him then, as he first intended, Claudius’ soul
would have been damned.
Claudius is not able to pray and Hamlet does not wait to listen to the entire speech. Claudius is not remorseful
What is the apparent purpose of the Ghost’s appearance in the Queen’s bedroom while Hamlet speaks
with his mother?
The Ghost says, “This visitation Is but to whet thy almost blunted purpose.”
Hamlet has been carried away in scolding his mother for her marriage to his father’s brother, a man much inferior to her husband.
The Ghost asks Hamlet to “step between her and her fighting soul!”
The ghost has come to remind Hamlet not to harm his mother. Gertrude concludes that Hamlet has gone insane
Why is Act 3, Scene 2 such a complex and difficult scene in the play?
It features a complicated sword fight
It requires detailed, outdoor scenery
It features the ghost
It is the ‘play within the play’ where the acting troupe performs
What is something Ophelia, Rosencrantz, and Guildenstern all have in common?
Hamlet plans to kill them all
Hamlet warns each of them to stay out of the situation in Denmark
They have all come back from college to talk to Hamlet
The king is relying on them to report back about Hamlet’s actions
Why does Claudius say ‘Words without thoughts never to heaven go’?
He thinks prayers without true intent are never answered
His words can doom Hamlet to death
He is planning to kill Hamlet personally
His petition to Fortinbras’s uncle failed to arrive
What is the meaning of Hamlet's soliloquy in Act 3, Scene 1?
Whether it is better to lie to protect someone or hurt them with truth.
Whether he should be brave or a coward.
Whether to act on revenge and possibly die or to suffer while living.
Whether to be honest about his love or ignore it.
"Cruel to be kind" Place this extracted quote in context
Hamlet, who has just been given an opportunity to kill Claudius in the chapel, goes to see his mother to beg her to give up Claudius. Their exchange is fiery and angry. Hamlet
murders Polonius, who is hiding behind the arras and sees his father’s Ghost again.
Hamlet has caught Claudius' conscience. He will not allow him to live and carry on with his use of people. He will defend his mother's honour and go to her room to warn her about Claudius
"With turbulent and dangerous lunacy?"
Claudius to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
First sign that Claudius believes that Hamlet is actually crazy
Claudius to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
The king believes that Hamlet needs to go to a mental facility
"Nor do we find him forward to be sounded, but with a crafty madness keeps aloof" What does Rosencrantz and Guildenstern inform the king about Hamlet?
Hamlet will not let them in
"crafty madness" = oxymoron because Hamlet actually is being crafty about his madness
Hamlet will let them in
He wants them to give him an opportunity to explain his side
“I hope your virtues, Will bring him to his wanted way again, To both your honours.”- What does the queen think Ophelia can do?
The queen here first justifies and sanctifies the relationship And love between Hamlet and Ophelia. She is the only one who seems to realise that if Hamlet is truly mad due to rejection then the way to end it is to sanctify their bond.
She believes Ophelia's love for Hamlet will bring him back to his senses. Like Polonius, she believes Hamlet is mad in love.
A major theme revealed in Hamlet's 4th soliloquy is:
Action vs Inaction
Life vs Death
What does Polonius' speech: "'Tis too much proved, that with devotion’s visage
And pious action we do sugar o'er
The devil himself.'" reveal?
In Claudius’s first admission of guilt in the play—he is clearly triggered or affected by the piles of lies building up all around him. Polonius’s comment about false displays of piety again underscores the Christian morality in Elsinore that makes the dishonest, manipulative, and even murderous actions of its inhabitants more dishonourable.
Claudius feels a sense of guilt. It reveals he is able to feel a semblance of morality. Albeit he does not say it aloud, he does show a bit of honesty.
How do you think Hamlet feels about characters such as Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, Polonius and Ophelia.
Hamlet delights in ordering around the very people he most hates—he knows they’re scheming against him, but also knows they have no choice but to listen to royalty.
Hamlet abhors the behaviour displayed by these characters. He thinks they are gullible and it infuriates him further when they think he can be manipulated as they are being manipulated.
What does the following quote reveal? “I like him not, nor stands it safe with us To let his madness range."
Claudius is fearful of Hamlet’s temperament and states it is no longer safe as Hamlet is out of control.
Claudius has gone mad and is fearful Hamlet might kill him.
Claudius refers to madness once again. He becomes paranoid the seemingly "closer" Hamlet gets to the truth.
What prominent theme is revealed in Hamlet's reasoning for not killing Claudius in prayer?
Religion
Morality
Inactivity
"Hamlet, thou hast thy father much offended. Mother, you have my father much offended..." What is Hamlet finally capable of doing?
Hamlet here denies any relation to Claudius as a son and instead tells his mother that she has done an injustice to Old Hamlet.
Hamlet finally laments his feelings towards his mother in this short line.
He feels his mother is dishonourable.
"You cannot call it love; for at your age the hey- day in the blood is tame..."- What is Hamlet criticizing in this exclamation to his mother?
Hamlet mocks his mother and emphasizes that her age cannot permit passion.
He mocks her lack of wit and inability to withstand Claudius' advances.
Why is Hamlet able to kill Polonius in Act 3, Scene 4?
He has successfully killed someone odious and unlikable—but when it comes to the complex code of revenge, honour, and religion required to take out Claudius, Hamlet cannot bring himself to act decisively.
Hamlet can kill Polonius because he is unseen. There is no reflection of guilt in the eyes of the victim.
Hamlet dubbed Polonius a "prating knave", he never liked Polonius for his conniving ways.
Hamlet never deemed Polonius as an important individual. He was a mere advisor, whereas Hamlet was a Prince.
