Understanding Shakespeare: Hamlet Act I Scene III

Summary: (In my opinion, this can be one of the harder plays to start with.) 

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Act ISCENE III. A room in Polonius' house.

Enter LAERTES and Ophelia




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ACT 1
SCENE 3: A room in the house of Polonius who's son has just asked for permission to return to France.
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BACKGROUND: Laertes was in town for the king's coronation and the old king's funeral. He got permission to return to Paris where he lives. He is at his father's house, preparing to leave, and talking to his sister, Ophelia. Ophelia is Hamlet's age and likes him. Laertes does not approve of them being together.

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Enter LAERTES and OPHELIA
LAERTES
My necessaries are embark'd: farewell:
And, sister, as the winds give benefit
And convoy is assistant, do not sleep,
But let me hear from you.

OPHELIA
Do you doubt that?

LAERTES
For Hamlet and the trifling of his favour,
Hold it a fashion and a toy in blood,
A violet in the youth of primy nature,
Forward, not permanent, sweet, not lasting,
The perfume and suppliance of a minute; No more.

OPHELIA
No more but so?

LAERTES
Think it no more;
For nature, crescent, does not grow alone
In thews and bulk, but, as this temple waxes,
The inward service of the mind and soul
Grows wide withal. Perhaps he loves you now,
And now no soil nor cautel doth besmirch
The virtue of his will: but you must fear,
His greatness weigh'd, his will is not his own;
For he himself is subject to his birth:
He may not, as unvalued persons do,
Carve for himself; for on his choice depends
The safety and health of this whole state;
And therefore must his choice be circumscribed
Unto the voice and yielding of that body
Whereof he is the head. Then if he says he loves you,
It fits your wisdom so far to believe it
As he in his particular act and place
May give his saying deed; which is no further
Than the main voice of Denmark goes withal.
Then weigh what loss your honour may sustain,
If with too credent ear you list his songs,
Or lose your heart, or your chaste treasure open
To his unmaster'd importunity.
Fear it, Ophelia, fear it, my dear sister,
And keep you in the rear of your affection,
Out of the shot and danger of desire.
The chariest maid is prodigal enough,
If she unmask her beauty to the moon:
Virtue itself 'scapes not calumnious strokes:
The canker galls the infants of the spring,
Too oft before their buttons be disclosed,
And in the morn and liquid dew of youth
Contagious blastments are most imminent.
Be wary then; best safety lies in fear:
Youth to itself rebels, though none else near.

OPHELIA
I shall the effect of this good lesson keep,
As watchman to my heart. But, good my brother,
Do not, as some ungracious pastors do,
Show me the steep and thorny way to heaven;
Whiles, like a puff'd and reckless libertine,
Himself the primrose path of dalliance treads,
And recks not his own rede.

LAERTES
O, fear me not.
I stay too long: but here my father comes.
Enter POLONIUS
A double blessing is a double grace,
Occasion smiles upon a second leave.

LORD POLONIUS
Yet here, Laertes! aboard, aboard, for shame!
The wind sits in the shoulder of your sail,
And you are stay'd for. There; my blessing with thee!
And these few precepts in thy memory
See thou character. Give thy thoughts no tongue,
Nor any unproportioned thought his act.
Be thou familiar, but by no means vulgar.
Those friends thou hast, and their adoption tried,
Grapple them to thy soul with hoops of steel;
But do not dull thy palm with entertainment
Of each new-hatch'd, unfledged comrade. Beware
Of entrance to a quarrel, but being in,
Bear't that the opposed may beware of thee.
Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice;
Take each man's censure, but reserve thy judgment.
Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy,
But not express'd in fancy; rich, not gaudy;
For the apparel oft proclaims the man,
And they in France of the best rank and station
Are of a most select and generous chief in that.
Neither a borrower nor a lender be;
For loan oft loses both itself and friend,
And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.
This above all: to thine ownself be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.
Farewell: my blessing season this in thee!

LAERTES
Most humbly do I take my leave, my lord.

LORD POLONIUS
The time invites you; go; your servants tend.

LAERTES
Farewell, Ophelia; and remember well
What I have said to you.

OPHELIA
'Tis in my memory lock'd,
And you yourself shall keep the key of it.

LAERTES
Farewell.
Exit

LORD POLONIUS
What is't, Ophelia, be hath said to you?

OPHELIA
So please you, something touching the Lord Hamlet.

LORD POLONIUS
Marry, well bethought:
'Tis told me, he hath very oft of late
Given private time to you; and you yourself
Have of your audience been most free and bounteous:
If it be so, as so 'tis put on me,
And that in way of caution, I must tell you,
You do not understand yourself so clearly
As it behoves my daughter and your honour.
What is between you? give me up the truth.

OPHELIA
He hath, my lord, of late made many tenders
Of his affection to me.

LORD POLONIUS
Affection! pooh! you speak like a green girl,
Unsifted in such perilous circumstance.
Do you believe his tenders, as you call them?

OPHELIA
I do not know, my lord, what I should think.

LORD POLONIUS
Marry, I'll teach you: think yourself a baby;
That you have ta'en these tenders for true pay,
Which are not sterling. Tender yourself more dearly;
Or--not to crack the wind of the poor phrase,
Running it thus--you'll tender me a fool.

OPHELIA
My lord, he hath importuned me with love
In honourable fashion.

LORD POLONIUS
Ay, fashion you may call it; go to, go to.

OPHELIA
And hath given countenance to his speech, my lord,
With almost all the holy vows of heaven.

LORD POLONIUS
Ay, springes to catch woodcocks. I do know,
When the blood burns, how prodigal the soul
Lends the tongue vows: these blazes, daughter,
Giving more light than heat, extinct in both,
Even in their promise, as it is a-making,
You must not take for fire. From this time
Be somewhat scanter of your maiden presence;
Set your entreatments at a higher rate
Than a command to parley. For Lord Hamlet,
Believe so much in him, that he is young
And with a larger tether may he walk
Than may be given you: in few, Ophelia,
Do not believe his vows; for they are brokers,
Not of that dye which their investments show,
But mere implorators of unholy suits,
Breathing like sanctified and pious bawds,
The better to beguile. This is for all:
I would not, in plain terms, from this time forth,
Have you so slander any moment leisure,
As to give words or talk with the Lord Hamlet.
Look to't, I charge you: come your ways.

OPHELIA
I shall obey, my lord.
Exeunt

LAERTES AND OPHELIA ENTER THE ROOM
Laertes:
I'm all ready to go. 
Please write to me. 
Don't leave me hanging. I want to hear from you.


Ophelia:
Of course I will!

Laertes:
And about Hamlet - don't take him seriously. He isn't for real.
He just thinks he is in love but it isn't going to last. He is going to move on. Don't trust him. His love won't last.



Ophelia:
You don't think so?

Laertes:
I don't. 
The thing is with princes his love is not the only issue.
He may love you now, today, or think he does.
It may even be true love for now.
But his life is not his own.
He is subject to the obligations of being a Prince.
He can't decide who he is going to marry. He must marry whom he is told for the health and safety of the whole country. 


Look, when he says he loves you, I know you want to believe it. 
But think about what will happen in the future if you give yourself to him and then he has to marry someone else. 

If you fall in love with him you will only be hurt. He cannot marry you.

Don't go too far with him. Keep him at arm's length. Because eventually he will have to leave you no matter what he says he feels.

And besides, as a man I can tell you that this is just a fling for him. He is not truly and fully in love.













Ophelia:
​Okay, I will heed what you say but only remember this:
Don't go telling me to be good and 
walk a straight path
while you are out doing everything you please
with anyone you want.



Laertes:
Don't worry about it!
But here comes father, I have to get going!
ENTER POLOMIUS
What a treat to get to say goodbye to you twice!


Polonius:
Oh get going, Laertes! Get going!
Everything is ready for you to leave
and you are still here saying goodbye.
May your journey be safe and good.
And now I will send you off with these pieces of advice:
See that you are a man of good character.
Don't speak unless you have really thought through what you are going to say, nor act rashly.
Be friendly to everyone but not too friendly. 
Be true and loyal to those friends you have that are long time friends whom have proven themselves
but don't be too quick to trust new aquantences even though they act like old friends. 
Don't get in fights easily but if you are in a fight, fight hard so that people respect you.
Listen to everyone but speak only when you truly need to.
Accept criticism but don't criticize others.
Buy good quality clothes but not gaudy ones. Let people know that you are of good quality but not a fop.
Don't borrow money or loan money. 
Loaning will loose you a friend and borrowing will make you dependent on others.
And this most of all: to thine own self be true
If you are true to yourself, then you will be sure to others. 
​I love you and farewell!



Laertes:
I love you too, father.

Polonius:
get going now.

Laertes:
Goodbye sister, and remember what I said.


Ophelia:
I won't forget. You don't forget either.

Laertes:
Goodbye!
LAERTES EXISTS


Polonius:
What did Laertes say to you?

Ophelia:
Something about Prince Hamlet.

Polonius:
Good thinking.
Now that I think on it, I have noticed him paying attention to you lately
and you have allowed it and granted him time often.
I'm not sure you are acting wisely.
So tell me, what is going on between you and Hamlet? Tell me the truth now.


Ophelia:
Lately he's been acting like he likes me and wants to court me.


Polonius:
Likes you! You speak like an innocent who is caught up beyond her ability to handle. 
Do you think he likes you?


Ophelia:
I don't know what to think.

Polonius:
Just be careful. You are acting like an innocent child and could end up looking like a fool and making me look like a fool.



Ophelia:
But he has been very honorable and spoken directly to me saying that he loves me!

Polonius:
Yes, but how will he feel tomorrow? Get on with you now.


Ophelia:
But he swore on all the Gods that he loves me!


Polonius:
Yes, but boys do that when it isn't love they want but something else. They do it to trap you and make you believe them, then they leave you. 
Don't believe everything a boy tells you.
They speak of love when their passions are up but it is not their passions for love they are thinking of but they passions of the body. 
Don't fall for it. 

Hamlet is a great guy, don't get me wrong, but he is young and he will be married to someone who is his equal, not you. 

He just wants to get you into bed.

So let me make this plane: I don't approve of Hamlet and don't want you spending time with him. And I order you to try and avoid talking to him more than you have to.




Ophelia:
I will obey your command.

BOTH EXIT

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On to Act I Scene IV

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