AP Lit Hamlet Act 2 analysis

                    Today I am going to analyze act 2 scene one of William Shakespeare's famous play Hamlet. In the scene Ophelia, visibly upset tells Polonius that Hamlet, unkempt and wild-eyed, has accosted her. Hamlet grabbed her, held her, and sighed heavily, but did not speak to her. Polonius tells her that Hamlet must be mad with his love for Ophelia, since she has distanced herself from him ever since he ordered her to do so. Polonius speculates that this love-sickness might be the cause of Hamlet’s moodiness, and he hurries to tell King Claudius of his idea. I am going to paraphrase what Polonius told Ophelia after she told him about Hamlet's recent actions; he told her, "Come with me. I will go to the king. Hamlet is very deep in love. His love sickness ruins himself. It causes his moodiness, just like any passion does on Earth." Ophelia has just told Polonius about how Hamlet grabbed her arm and did not speak. So, in this section of the scene, Polonius is saying that he will tell the king about Hamlet's love sickness. These lines are important because they clearly establish how people think that Hamlet is not in his right state of mind. Furthermore, the lines are important because they show that Polonius and Ophelia believe that Hamlet's love sickness is causing his abnormal behavior. Moreover,  the lines show that Polonius and Ophelia believe that they need to inform the king about how Hamlet's love with Ophelia is the cause of his abnormal state of mind. With these lines Shakespeare, helps portray to the audience how negatively Hamlet's love is viewed by everybody. These lines connect to another discussion about Ophelia and Hamlet's relationship in act one when Polonius told Ophelia, " You must not take fire. From this time. Be something scanter of your maiden presence" (1.3. 118-200). Polonius was telling Ophelia to avoid Hamlet and to not give him her virginity in act one, while in act two he tells her to avoid Hamlet, because and to come with him to tell the king about the relationship, because it is causing Hamlet's abnormal behavior. In both acts, Ophelia is told to avoid Hamlet, which is how the lines connect to each other. So clearly act two helps reinforce the fact that Polonius does not want Ophelia and Hamlet together. By deciding to discreetly go to the king and queen behind Hamlet's back, Polonius helps reinforce what Hamlet called him earlier in the play, a fish monger. Scene one of act two continues helps continue the negative chain of events on Hamlet's life, since Polonius is planning on telling the royal family about the prince's recent love.