William Shakespeare (1564-1616)
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to Synopsis of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead
Hamlet Synopsis:
Connections to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead are in Bold
Act I
The Ghost of Hamlet's father appears to Horatio and the soldiers on the ramparts of Elsinore Castle. Hamlet's uncle Claudius and Gertrude, Hamlet's mother, who got married to each other shortly after the death of Hamlet's father, persuade Hamlet to stay in Denmark. Ophelia's brother Laertes and her father, Polonius, give her advice about her relationship with Hamler. Polonius gives Laertes some words of wisdom. Laertes leaves for France. Hamlet speaks with the Ghost, who tells him that Claudius is a murderer.
Act II
Claudius and Gertrude meet with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern and ask them to spy on Hamlet, who is pretending to be insane. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern interview Hamlet, but understand very little of what he says. A group of Players arrives at Elsinore, and Hamlet asks them to perform The Murder of Gonzago, which he calls The Mousetrap because the story is about the murder of a King. He wants to see how Claudius will react to the play.
Act III
Hamlet meets with Ophelia, while Claudius and Polonius spy on them. After watching Hamlet's interaction with Ophelia, Claudius resolves to send Hamlet away. The Players perform The Murder of Gonzago, and Claudius becomes upset when he sees Lucianus poison King Gonzago and seduce his wife. Hamlet comes to believe that Claudius is guilty of the murder. Claudius, feeling guilty about having murdered his brother, kneels to pray but cannot. Hamlet sees Claudius praying and decides not to kill him. Hamlet meets his mother in her bedroom, where Polonius is hiding behind a curtain to spy on them. Hamlet mistakenly kills Polonius, because he believes that Claudius is hiding behind the curtain. Hamlet sees the Ghost of his father again. Gertrude comes to believe that Hamlet is crazy.
Act IV
Hamlet refuses to disclose the location of Polonius' body. Claudius decides that Hamlet must be sent to England and killed. Hamlet meets with a soldier from Fortinbras' army. Ophelia loses her mind. Laertes comes back from France and watns to avenge the death of his father. Horatio gets a letter from Hamlet. The letter informs him that the ship was attacked by Pirates and that Hamlet will tell Horatio something about Rosencrantz and Guildenstern when he comes back. Claudius and Laertes plot to kill Hamlet. Gertrude tells them that Ophelia has drowned.
Act V
Two gravediggers discuss life and death with Hamlet and Horatio just before Ophelia's funeral begins. Hamlet tells Horatio about the letter from Claudius asking King of England to execute Hamlet, and about his replacing that letter with one that asked the King of England to execute Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Hamlet and Laertes duel; both are cut with a poisoned sword. Gertrude drinks a cup of poison that Claudius has prepared for Hamlet. Laertes tells Hamlet that Claudius is responsible for their deaths. Hamlet kills Claudius. Hamlet dies. An Ambassador from England comes in and announces that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead. Fortinbras arrives and sees the stage littered with bodies, and Horatio tells him the story.
This is the official Web site for Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, produced by the Dramaturgy Program of the Department of Theater at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
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