Thy state is the more gracious; for 'tis a vice to know him. He hath much land, and fertile: let a
It's really hard to tell if Hamlet is switching between prose and iambic pentameter on purpose. I know that switching to prose implies madness, and that he was switching intentionally earlier, but it seems more out of control know. Is that supposed to play into the uncertainty of the situation? Or is it just showing that Hamlet is actually mad now?
O good Horatio, I'll take the ghost's word for a thousand pound. Didst perceive?
I wonder if Horatio is going along with Hamlet because he has seen the ghost before or if he's just worried about his friend and wants to support him. By all means the ghost is pretty unreliable, and Horatio had not seen it speak, so how would he believe it?
Ay, truly; for the power of beauty will sooner transform honesty from what it is to a bawd than the
I think this is really playing into Hamlet's general distrust of women (after his mother's betrayal). He's essentially saying that because Ophelia is beautiful she's not telling the truth. I don't know why he groups all of women together like this, but I think it's interesting to point out for his character.
Thanks, Guildenstern and gentle Rosencrantz: And I beseech you instantly to visit My too much changed son.
This makes me wonder if Gertrude knows the depth of the kings plan or if she's just worried about her son. I think that the king wants something to happen to Hamlet, but I'm unsure if Gertrude knows or not.
thou that usurp'st this time of night,
It is interesting that Horatio addresses the ghost this way. He addresses it like a familiar, implying that he was either close to the king during his life or that he doesn't know if this is the true king or not.