ACT V - Scene I Practice Quiz — Hamlet
by William Shakespeare — tap or click to flip
Practice Quiz: ACT V - Scene I
What are the gravediggers debating at the start of Act 5, Scene 1?
They debate whether Ophelia deserves a Christian burial, since her death appears to be a suicide and Church law forbids burying suicides in consecrated ground.
What riddle does the First Gravedigger pose to his companion?
He asks who builds stronger than a mason, a shipwright, or a carpenter. The answer is a grave-maker, because the houses he builds last until doomsday.
Whose skull does the gravedigger hand to Hamlet?
The skull of Yorick, the old king’s jester, who has been dead for twenty-three years.
How does Hamlet learn that the funeral procession is for Ophelia?
He notices the "maimed rites" (reduced ceremony) and realizes it is Ophelia when Queen Gertrude scatters flowers on the coffin, saying "Sweets to the sweet."
What happens when Laertes leaps into Ophelia’s grave?
Hamlet reveals himself, leaps in after Laertes, and declares his love for Ophelia. The two men grapple before attendants separate them.
How long has the First Gravedigger been working at the churchyard?
Thirty years—since the day King Hamlet defeated Fortinbras in battle, which was also the day Prince Hamlet was born.
What does the gravedigger unknowingly tell Hamlet about himself?
He tells Hamlet that "young Hamlet" was sent to England because he was mad, not realizing he is speaking to Hamlet himself. This is an example of dramatic irony.
How does Queen Gertrude react to Ophelia’s burial?
She scatters flowers on the grave and says she had hoped Ophelia would have been Hamlet’s wife, wishing she were decorating a bride-bed rather than strewing a grave.
What does the King say to Laertes after the graveyard confrontation?
He tells Laertes to be patient, references their previous night’s conversation (the plot against Hamlet), and ominously promises the grave "shall have a living monument."
What is the "democracy of death" theme in the graveyard scene?
Death is the great equalizer: politicians, lawyers, jesters, Alexander the Great, and Caesar all become dust. No amount of wealth, power, or status can prevent bodily decay.
How does the scene explore the theme of social class?
The gravediggers note that Ophelia receives Christian burial only because she is a gentlewoman—a commoner who drowned herself would be buried outside consecrated ground, showing class privilege extends beyond death.
What is a memento mori, and how does Yorick’s skull exemplify it?
A memento mori is an object that serves as a reminder of death’s inevitability. Yorick’s skull is the most famous memento mori in literature, forcing Hamlet to confront mortality in tangible, personal terms.
How does Shakespeare use comic relief in this scene?
The gravediggers’ bawdy wordplay, riddles, and songs provide humor that paradoxically deepens the scene’s meditation on death, giving the audience a break before Ophelia’s tragic funeral.
What dramatic irony occurs during Hamlet’s conversation with the gravedigger?
The gravedigger discusses Prince Hamlet’s madness without recognizing that he is speaking to Hamlet himself. The audience also knows the grave is for Ophelia before Hamlet discovers this.
Who says: "Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio"?
Hamlet, upon receiving Yorick’s skull from the gravedigger. He then reflects on Yorick’s jests, songs, and the lips he kissed as a child—all now vanished in death.
Who says: "I lov’d Ophelia. Forty thousand brothers / Could not, with all their quantity of love, / Make up my sum"?
Hamlet, after leaping into Ophelia’s grave to confront Laertes. It is his most direct declaration of love for Ophelia in the entire play.
Who says: "Sweets to the sweet! Farewell"?
Queen Gertrude, as she scatters flowers on Ophelia’s coffin. She expresses her wish that Ophelia could have been Hamlet’s wife.
What does Hamlet say about Alexander the Great?
He traces Alexander’s body from death to burial to dust to loam, concluding that the clay of Alexander might be used to "stop a beer barrel"—illustrating how death reduces all greatness to common matter.
What does "se offendendo" mean, and why is it humorous?
The gravedigger means "se defendendo" (in self-defense), a legal term. His malapropism—"se offendendo" (self-offense)—is comic because it accidentally makes his point: Ophelia "offended" against herself by drowning.
What does "argal" mean in the gravedigger’s speech?
It is the gravedigger’s corruption of "ergo" (therefore). His misuse of Latin legal terms creates humor while showing that even uneducated laborers engage with questions of law and morality.