William Heffner Log 2 Act 2, Scene 1

1. Polonius sends his servant, Reynaldo, to bring a message and some money to Laertes. Polonius recites instructions aloud for Reynaldo, telling him to spy on Laertes in a discreet fashion, and in the process of doing so loses his train of thought (which may be a sign that he is beginning to decay from old age). Polonius sends Reynaldo on his way, and is then confronted by his daughter, who is shocked by Hamlets affectionate gestures towards her. She proceeds to describe how crazy Hamlet looked when approaching her, and that she was a bit disturbed by the situation. Polonius is angry that Hamlet is trying to court his daughter, and demands that Ophelia stay away from him and reject his advances. Polonius runs to tell Claudius about Hamlets love for Ophelia, and the scene closes on that image.

2. This is the scene where Ophelia and Polonius become aware of Hamlets love for Ophelia, and a second major source of conflict is brought into the play for Hamlet (the first being the murder of his father by Claudius).

5. One thing I found interesting about the scene was the discovery that Hamlet became pale and acted nervous around Ophelia, who he feels affection for. The same Hamlet who a scene before was declaring that he would exact vengeance on his uncle for the murder of his father cannot speak to the girl he likes with any confidence at all. In fact,

Hamlet cannot even speak to her. He simply grabs her by the arms, and lets out a deep sigh. Shakespeares inclusion of Hamlets relationship with Ophelia adds an insecure and weak dimension to Hamlets character that conflicts with the strong, angry young rebel without a cause that is painted in the first act. I am curious to see what Shakespeare does with this relationship as the play continues, and whether Hamlets inability to talk to Ophelia has anything to do with the relationship between his mother and his uncle.

7. That Hamlet. Ew. That is all that can be said. Who comes up to a woman in that kind of a state? As white as a ghost and as disheveled as a town drunk, he came up to me and grabbed me by the wrist! No words, just a sigh and a grab! He is normally very handsome, but he showed me his worst. Laertes was right: Hamlet is a man to stay away from. Roses would have done well, even a daisy would have done fine, but all I got was a cold, clammy, hand grab. A more bizarre attempt at courtship I have yet to experience.