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HAMLET
Prince of
Denmark
Characters
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Hamlet: son of Old Hamlet and Gertrude. He is the Prince of Denmark,
who must decide whether to kill his uncle Claudius and revenge his father's
death. Hamlet is an indecisive character who does not know whether to
trust the ghost of his father or not. He hates his mother for marrying
Claudius so soon after his father's death, and he is in love with Ophelia
until she rejects him. |
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Old Hamlet: the ghost of the late King of Denmark. The ghost appears
several times, but only speaks to his son Hamlet. He demands that Hamlet
revenge his murder by killing Claudius. |
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Claudius: the brother of the late King of Denmark and the uncle to
Hamlet. He murdered his brother in order to seize the throne, and
subsequently married Gertrude, the Queen of Denmark. |
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Gertrude: the widow of the late King Hamlet, and the current wife of
Claudius. She seems unaware that Claudius killed her former husband until
Hamlet confronts her directly. However, she also believes that Hamlet is mad
after he sees the ghost of his father in her presence, a ghost she cannot
see. |
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Polonius: a lord who is the father of Laertes and Ophelia. He is the
first to believe that Hamlet's madness is the result of Ophelia rejecting
him. Polonius is accidentally killed by Hamlet while eavesdropping on a
conversation between Hamlet and Gertrude. |
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Laertes: the son of Polonius, he is at school in France when he
learns that his father has been killed. He fights Hamlet in a fencing match
at the end, and kills Hamlet by slashing him with a poisoned sword. |
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Ophelia: the daughter of Polonius, she is in love with Hamlet but
rejects him after her father orders her to do so. She later goes mad after
Polonius is killed, and commits suicide by drowning
herself. |
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Horatio: a friend of Hamlet who is the first to inform him about the
ghost of Old Hamlet. He is the only friend Hamlet trusts by the end of the
play, and he is ordered to reveal the true story of why Hamlet killed
Claudius. |
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Guildenstern: a friend of Hamlet who is invited to the court by
Claudius. He and Rosencrantz try to find out what is wrong with Hamlet at
Claudius' request, and they later serve as escorts for Hamlet to England.
Hamlet discovers that he should be killed in England, and instead puts Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
to death. |
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Rosencrantz: a friend of Hamlet who is invited to the court by
Claudius. He and Guildenstern try to find out what is wrong with Hamlet at Claudius' request, and
they later serve as escorts for Hamlet to England. Hamlet discovers that he
should be killed in England, and instead puts Rosencrantz and Guildenstern
to death. |
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Fortinbras: the Prince of Norway. In order to revenge his father's
death at the hands of Old Hamlet, he is marching an army through Denmark
pretending to go to Poland. Instead, he attacks the Danish palace and
conquers Denmark. |
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