I.i
After Francisco and Bernardo have a conversation and Francisco leaves to rest, Marcellus and
Horatio start speaking to Bernardo about the ghost they have seen. Horatio and Marcellus have
seen the ghost twice and are with Bernardo in the castle to see if it is going to appear again.
The ghost is in the form of King Hamlet and Horatio tries to speak to him but the ghost does not
respond. Horatio decides that he is going to tell Prince Hamlet about what he saw.
Quote Observation about the quote
1. “It harrows me with fear and wonder”
(line 51, I.i, page 11)
Both a hyperbole and type of imagery.
Horatio is speaking in this quote, using one
descriptive word to describe how he feels
during that moment. The imagery of harrow is
to show how scared he feels, since harrows
are use to break up the ground). The image
of a harrow used on a person is one that
provokes fear, showing how he is
exaggerating his fear and describing it by the
image he talks about.
I.ii
After Claudius and Gertrude announce their wedding, Laertes asks the new king permission to
return to France and he is allowed to. Hamlet shows his distaste at the idea of Claudius
marrying Gertrude and then gets questioned for mourning his fathers death. King Hamlet has
been dead for 2 months and Hamlet, who is using black to show his mourning, receives a
speech about his “useless” mourning. The first soliloquy of Hamlet happens in this scene where
he expresses his anger about his uncles and mothers marriage. Hamlet contemplates suicide
and Horatio tells him about the ghost of King Hamlet he saw the other night. Hamlet decides to
wait that night and see if Horatio’s story is true.
Quote Observation
2. “A little more than kin and less than
kind” (I.ii, page 25, line 67)
Hamlet says this.
“More than kin”: are related in two ways
(Claudius and Hamlet) they are uncle-nephew
AND father-son because Claudius is now
married to Gertrude (Hamlet's mother) and it
makes him his father through the marriage
but at the same time he is still his nephew.
“Less than kind”: “in a less-than-natural
relationship” (page 24 of Hamlet updated
edition). Since Claudius marrying Gertrude
makes him both Hamlet's uncle and son, it is
