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Act 1 Hamlet Dialectical Journal

Decent Essays

Hamlet's Journal : Act III
My mother and Claudius have agreed to see my play this evening, hopefully I get a reaction from Claudius. I was so anxious, I lectured the actors on how to perform. Then I saw Horatio, I followed him because I wanted him to do me a favor by watching Claudius carefully during the play so that we could compare his facial expression and behavior. Horatio agreed, saying that if Claudius shows any signs of guilt, he will detect them. I then warned Horatio that I would be acting strange and he noticed it when Claudius asked me me how I was I grew mad. Before I sat down next to Ophelia I asked Polonius if he has ever acted in a play he told me he had as Caesar who literally got stabbed in the back by his friends with a knife and I tormented Ophelia …show more content…

The actors then entered and acted in silent version of the play to come called a “dumbshow.” In the dumbshow, a king and queen display their love. The queen leaves the king to sleep, and while he is sleeping, a man murders him (Claudia's) by pouring poison into his ear. The murderer tries to seduce the queen, who gradually accepts his advances (Hamlet's mother marrying Claudius). Throughout, the play I had to continuously remind the actors how to act I mostly had to tell them to be more dramatic and I continued to tease Ophelia with oblique sexual references. When the murderer pours the poison into the sleeping king’s ear, Claudius rose and cried out for light. Then Claudius fled the room, followed by the audience. Horatio and I were left alone and we both agreed that Claudius reacted suspiciously. Which made me thrilled not because my father is dead but because I now know who murdered him. My mother sent Rosencrantz and Guildenstern for me to meet her in her chamber. I wanted Rosencrantz and guildenstern to stop acting like my friends so I asked them to play the flute for me but they said they couldn’t so I replied to can’t play a flute but you can play

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