ACT III - Scene I Practice Quiz — Hamlet
by William Shakespeare — tap or click to flip
Practice Quiz: ACT III - Scene I
What are Rosencrantz and Guildenstern asked to report at the opening of Act III, Scene 1?
King Claudius and Queen Gertrude ask them to report the cause of Hamlet's erratic behavior. They say Hamlet admits feeling distracted but will not reveal why.
What news about the players do Rosencrantz and Guildenstern share with the King and Queen?
They report that a troupe of traveling players has arrived at court and that Hamlet has arranged for them to perform that night, which seems to have given him joy.
What trap do Claudius and Polonius set for Hamlet in Act III, Scene 1?
They position Ophelia in Hamlet's path with a prayer book while they hide behind a curtain to observe the encounter and determine whether love is the cause of his madness.
What does Hamlet contemplate in the "To be, or not to be" soliloquy?
He weighs whether it is nobler to endure life's suffering or to end it through death, ultimately concluding that fear of the unknown afterlife prevents people from choosing death.
What does Ophelia attempt to return to Hamlet, and how does he respond?
She tries to return his love tokens (remembrances). Hamlet denies ever giving them and claims he never loved her.
What does Hamlet repeatedly tell Ophelia to do during their confrontation?
He repeatedly tells her to "get thee to a nunnery," urging her to enter a convent and avoid becoming "a breeder of sinners."
What does Claudius conclude about Hamlet after observing the encounter with Ophelia?
Claudius concludes that Hamlet's behavior is not caused by love. He senses something dangerous in Hamlet's soul and decides to send him to England.
What alternative plan does Polonius propose at the end of the scene?
Polonius suggests that after the play, Queen Gertrude should confront Hamlet privately while Polonius hides and eavesdrops on their conversation.
How does Claudius inadvertently reveal his guilt in this scene?
In an aside, he compares his guilt to a harlot's painted cheek, admitting that he uses pious appearances to disguise his sinful deeds.
How does Ophelia describe the Hamlet she once knew in her lament?
She calls him "the courtier's, scholar's, soldier's, eye, tongue, sword" and "th' expectancy and rose of the fair state" -- the ideal Renaissance prince.
What role does Queen Gertrude express hope for regarding Ophelia?
Gertrude hopes Ophelia's beauty and virtue are the cause of Hamlet's wildness and that she can bring him back to his normal self.
What suspicious question does Hamlet ask Ophelia during their confrontation?
He asks "Where's your father?" -- suggesting he suspects Polonius is hiding nearby and listening to their conversation.
How does Ophelia describe Hamlet's transformation using a musical metaphor?
She compares his once-noble reason to "sweet bells jangled, out of tune and harsh," suggesting his mind has become discordant and broken.
How does Act III, Scene 1 develop the theme of appearance versus reality?
Nearly every character is performing: Ophelia pretends to read devotionally, Claudius and Polonius spy from hiding, Claudius masks guilt with piety, and Hamlet may be feigning madness for his hidden audience.
What philosophical theme does the "To be, or not to be" soliloquy explore?
The soliloquy explores existential questions about the value of life versus the release of death, and how fear of the unknown afterlife traps people in inaction.
How does the theme of surveillance and entrapment function in this scene?
Claudius and Polonius stage a meeting and spy on Hamlet, turning Elsinore into a place where every conversation is a performance observed by hidden watchers.
How does Hamlet's treatment of Ophelia connect to his broader misogyny in the play?
His bitter accusations about women's dishonesty and use of cosmetics reflect his disillusionment with his mother Gertrude's hasty remarriage, which he projects onto all women.
What extended metaphor does Hamlet use to describe death in his soliloquy?
He compares death to sleep, then extends the metaphor by wondering whether that sleep might bring dreams -- representing the unknown terrors of the afterlife.
What is the dramatic irony in Claudius and Polonius's eavesdropping plan?
The audience knows Hamlet suspects the trap (or is performing madness strategically), while Claudius and Polonius believe they are secretly observing genuine behavior.
What simile does Claudius use in his guilty aside?
He compares his disguised guilt to "the harlot's cheek, beautied with plast'ring art" -- a painted face that is ugly beneath its cosmetics.
What metaphor does Claudius use to describe the danger he senses in Hamlet?
He compares Hamlet's melancholy to a bird sitting "on brood" over an egg, fearing what dangerous thing will "hatch" from it.
What does "bodkin" mean in Hamlet's soliloquy?
A bodkin is a small, pointed dagger. Hamlet uses it to suggest that anyone could end their own life with such a simple instrument.
What are "fardels" as used in the "To be, or not to be" soliloquy?
Fardels are burdens or heavy loads. Hamlet asks who would "grunt and sweat under a weary life" bearing such fardels if death offered certain rest.
What does "contumely" mean in Hamlet's list of life's hardships?
Contumely means insulting language or treatment, especially from someone in a position of power. It appears in the phrase "the proud man's contumely."
Who says: "Thus conscience does make cowards of us all"?
Hamlet says this near the end of his "To be, or not to be" soliloquy, meaning that awareness of consequences (conscience) paralyzes people from taking action.
Who says: "O, what a noble mind is here o'erthrown!"?
Ophelia says this in her lament after Hamlet exits. She mourns the destruction of a mind she considered the finest in Denmark.
Who says: "Madness in great ones must not unwatch'd go"?
King Claudius says this as the scene's closing line, resolving to keep Hamlet under surveillance because madness in powerful people is too dangerous to ignore.