Act 2, Scene 1 — Hamlet — Study Shakespeare

The argument Polonius dispatches his servant Reynaldo to Paris with instructions that amount to a master class in surveillance by rumor. Then Ophelia arrives, shaken: Hamlet came to her in silence, looked at her like a man undone, and left without a word.

Enter Polonius and Reynaldo.

POLONIUS [giving money for Laertes]

Give him this money and these notes, Reynaldo.

Give Laertes this money and these letters.

Take this money and these letters to Laertes in France.

money letters for laertes

REYNALDO [Reynaldo agrees]

I will, my lord.

Yes, sir.

yes i will

POLONIUS ≋ verse [Polonius gives elaborate spying instructions]

You shall do marvellous wisely, good Reynaldo,

Before you visit him, to make inquiry

Of his behaviour.

You'll do very wisely, Reynaldo, before you visit him — do this: find out what Laertes is doing, who he spends time with, what his behavior is. But don't ask directly — hint at what he might be doing.

Before you give him the money, find out how he's behaving. Who's he with? What's he doing? But don't ask directly — just hint around.

spy on him find out what he does hint around

REYNALDO [Reynaldo says he understood]

My lord, I did intend it.

I understand, my lord.

I get it, sir.

understood

POLONIUS ≋ verse [Polonius elaborates on the spying technique]

Marry, well said; very well said. Look you, sir,

Enquire me first what Danskers are in Paris;

And how, and who, what means, and where they keep,

What company, at what expense; and finding

By this encompassment and drift of question,

That they do know my son, come you more nearer

Than your particular demands will touch it.

Take you as ’twere some distant knowledge of him,

As thus, ‘I know his father and his friends,

And in part him’—do you mark this, Reynaldo?

Good. Specifically: find out if he's involved in any vices — then spread that rumor slightly to make him seem partly guilty so he admits to the rest.

If you find out he's doing something bad, pretend you know more than you do. That'll make him confess everything.

pretend know more make him confess

"cast a slight, loose lie against him" Polonius is openly instructing his servant to slander his own son as a method of intelligence gathering. The casualness is the point — this is standard operating procedure for him, not an exception.

Why it matters Polonius's surveillance instructions to Reynaldo establish the dominant metaphor of Acts 2-3: Denmark is a surveillance state in which everyone is watching everyone else. Polonius watches Laertes; Claudius watches Hamlet via Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, and Polonius; Hamlet watches Claudius via the play. The trap is: everyone becomes entangled in their own nets.

🎭 Dramatic irony Polonius instructs Reynaldo in the arts of indirection and surveillance — methods he considers wise and prudent. He will die because he applies the same methods to Hamlet, hiding behind Gertrude's arras to spy one time too many.

REYNALDO [Reynaldo agrees]

Ay, very well, my lord.

Yes, my lord.

Good idea.

yes

POLONIUS ≋ verse [Polonius gives examples of vices to accuse him of]

‘And in part him, but,’ you may say, ‘not well;

But if’t be he I mean, he’s very wild;

Addicted so and so;’ and there put on him

What forgeries you please; marry, none so rank

As may dishonour him; take heed of that;

But, sir, such wanton, wild, and usual slips

As are companions noted and most known

To youth and liberty.

Say: 'I've heard he's somewhat bad, but not entirely bad. There's a rumor about him—'

Say something like: 'I hear he has some vices, but not too many.'

hint rumor accuse

REYNALDO [Reynaldo asks — like gambling?]

As gaming, my lord?

Gambling, my lord?

What kind of vices? Gambling?

gambling what kind

POLONIUS ≋ verse [Polonius lists vices]

Ay, or drinking, fencing, swearing,

Quarrelling, drabbing. You may go so far.

Gambling, drinking, fencing, swearing, fighting, or anything else. Whatever fits your story.

Yes — gambling, drinking, fighting, whatever seems to fit.

drinking fighting swearing anyything

REYNALDO [Reynaldo worries this will shame Laertes]

My lord, that would dishonour him.

But my lord, that would shame him.

Won't that damage his reputation?

shame reputation honor

POLONIUS ≋ verse [Polonius explains it's about the method, not the accusation]

Faith no, as you may season it in the charge.

You must not put another scandal on him,

That he is open to incontinency;

That’s not my meaning: but breathe his faults so quaintly

That they may seem the taints of liberty;

The flash and outbreak of a fiery mind,

A savageness in unreclaimed blood,

Of general assault.

No — you can soften it. The key is: by admitting to something minor, he'll reveal the bigger truth. And it keeps him aware that people are watching him.

Not if you're clever about it. Make the accusation seem small so he admits to the real things he's doing.

small accusation he confesses to the real thing

REYNALDO [Reynaldo wants clarification]

But my good lord—

But my lord—

But—

but

POLONIUS [Polonius asks — don't you understand the strategy?]

Wherefore should you do this?

Why would you do this? Don't you understand?

Do you understand the strategy?

understand strategy

REYNALDO [Reynaldo confesses he's confused]

Ay, my lord, I would know that.

Yes, my lord, I would like to know.

I'd like to understand.

explain please

POLONIUS ≋ verse [Polonius explains his spying logic]

Marry, sir, here’s my drift,

And I believe it is a fetch of warrant.

You laying these slight sullies on my son,

As ’twere a thing a little soil’d i’ th’ working,

Mark you,

Your party in converse, him you would sound,

Having ever seen in the prenominate crimes

The youth you breathe of guilty, be assur’d

He closes with you in this consequence;

‘Good sir,’ or so; or ‘friend,’ or ‘gentleman’—

According to the phrase or the addition

Of man and country.

The plan is this: by accusing him of small things, you make him defend himself. When someone is questioned about their behavior, they naturally reveal more than they intend. That's how we learn the truth.

My point is: when you hint that someone is doing bad things, they naturally start defending themselves and admitting to more than you asked about.

hint they defend they admit more than expected

REYNALDO [Reynaldo understands]

Very good, my lord.

I understand.

got it

POLONIUS ≋ verse [Polonius continues his instructions]

And then, sir, does he this,—

He does—What was I about to say?

By the mass, I was about to say something. Where did I leave?

And then, sir, when he reacts — watch what you've learned and remember. What were we saying?

And when he responds, pay attention to everything.

watch remember pay attention

REYNALDO ≋ verse [Reynaldo reminds him of the key phrase]

At ‘closes in the consequence.’

At ‘friend or so,’ and ‘gentleman.’

At 'when he reacts' or 'at friend or so—'

Something about 'a friend or'—

friend or so

POLONIUS ≋ verse [Polonius confirms]

At ‘closes in the consequence’ ay, marry!

He closes with you thus: ‘I know the gentleman,

I saw him yesterday, or t’other day,

Or then, or then, with such and such; and, as you say,

There was he gaming, there o’ertook in’s rouse,

There falling out at tennis’: or perchance,

‘I saw him enter such a house of sale’—

_Videlicet_, a brothel, or so forth. See you now;

Your bait of falsehood takes this carp of truth;

And thus do we of wisdom and of reach,

With windlasses, and with assays of bias,

By indirections find directions out.

So by my former lecture and advice

Shall you my son. You have me, have you not?

Yes! 'When he reacts'—he'll naturally give himself away. Pay attention to his nature, his inclinations.

Right. When he responds, he'll reveal his real nature.

reveals nature inclinations

"by indirections find directions out" This becomes one of the defining phrases of the whole play. Hamlet, Claudius, and Polonius all operate by indirection. The tragedy is that indirection generates collateral damage — Ophelia, Gertrude, Polonius himself — because once everyone is running misdirection, no one can see clearly.

REYNALDO [Reynaldo confirms understanding]

My lord, I have.

I understand, my lord.

Yes, sir.

understood

POLONIUS [Polonius bids him goodbye]

God b’ wi’ you, fare you well.

God be with you. Farewell.

Go on then. Goodbye.

go farewell

REYNALDO [Reynaldo bids goodbye]

Good my lord.

Sir.

sir

POLONIUS [final instruction — watch his behavior]

Observe his inclination in yourself.

Watch his inclinations yourself — observe everything.

Pay attention to everything he does.

observe watch evything

REYNALDO [Reynaldo confirms]

I shall, my lord.

I will.

yes

POLONIUS [another instruction — let him play music]

And let him ply his music.

And let him practice his music.

Let him enjoy himself.

music enjoy

REYNALDO [Reynaldo agrees]

Well, my lord.

I will, my lord.

Yes.

yes

POLONIUS [Polonius says farewell]

Farewell.

Goodbye.

go farewell

[_Exit Reynaldo._]

Enter Ophelia.

How now, Ophelia, what’s the matter?

OPHELIA [Ophelia is frightened]

Alas, my lord, I have been so affrighted.

Oh my lord, I've been so terrified!

Oh Father, I'm so scared!

scared terrified frightened

POLONIUS [Polonius demands to know why]

With what, in the name of God?

Frightened? Of what, in God's name?

Of what?

of what

OPHELIA ≋ verse [Ophelia describes Hamlet's visit — strange and wild]

My lord, as I was sewing in my chamber,

Lord Hamlet, with his doublet all unbrac’d,

No hat upon his head, his stockings foul’d,

Ungart’red, and down-gyved to his ankle,

Pale as his shirt, his knees knocking each other,

And with a look so piteous in purport

As if he had been loosed out of hell

To speak of horrors, he comes before me.

As I was sewing in my chamber, Hamlet came to me with his clothes torn, his face pale, his behavior disordered — everything about him was madness.

I was in my room sewing, and Hamlet came in looking crazy. His clothes were torn, his face was pale, everything about him was wrong.

hamlet crazy torn clothes pale mad

"pale as his shirt, his knees knocking each other" This is the only eyewitness account of Hamlet's state between Act 1 (the Ghost's revelation) and Act 2 (his performance of madness in public). Whether this is real breakdown or calculated performance is left open — the ambiguity is the point of the play.

POLONIUS [Polonius asks — is he mad from love?]

Mad for thy love?

Mad from love for you?

Is he going crazy because of you?

love crazy for you

OPHELIA [Ophelia is unsure but fears it]

My lord, I do not know, but truly I do fear it.

I don't know, Father, but I truly fear it is.

I don't know, but I think so.

i think so i'm scared

POLONIUS [Polonius asks what Hamlet said]

What said he?

What did he say to you?

What did he do?

what did he do say

OPHELIA ≋ verse [Ophelia describes his wild behavior]

He took me by the wrist and held me hard;

Then goes he to the length of all his arm;

And with his other hand thus o’er his brow,

He falls to such perusal of my face

As he would draw it. Long stay’d he so,

At last,—a little shaking of mine arm,

And thrice his head thus waving up and down,

He rais’d a sigh so piteous and profound

As it did seem to shatter all his bulk

And end his being. That done, he lets me go,

And with his head over his shoulder turn’d

He seem’d to find his way without his eyes,

For out o’ doors he went without their help,

And to the last bended their light on me.

He grabbed my wrist and held me hard. Then he looked at me with an intense stare — like he was trying to memorize my face. Finally he sighed deeply and left without speaking.

He grabbed my arm and just stared at me — like he was studying me. Then he sighed and walked away without saying a word.

grabbed stared intense sighed left

"a sigh so piteous and profound that it did seem to shatter all his bulk" Elizabethan medicine held that sighing literally shortened life — each sigh was believed to drain blood from the heart. Hamlet's sigh is not a figure of speech here; it describes something that looks like a person coming apart.

Why it matters Ophelia's description gives us the only unmediated view of Hamlet after the Ghost. By the time we see him again in 2-2, he is already performing. This scene is the gap — what happened when the performance hadn't started yet, or when it slipped.

POLONIUS ≋ verse [Polonius determines this is important — the King must know]

Come, go with me. I will go seek the King.

This is the very ecstasy of love,

Whose violent property fordoes itself,

And leads the will to desperate undertakings,

As oft as any passion under heaven

That does afflict our natures. I am sorry,—

What, have you given him any hard words of late?

Come with me. I must tell the King immediately. This is serious — he may be truly mad, and we must know why.

We have to tell the King right now. This is serious.

tell the king serious right now

OPHELIA ≋ verse [Ophelia reminds him — I obeyed your command to avoid Hamlet]

No, my good lord; but as you did command,

I did repel his letters and denied

His access to me.

But Father, remember? You commanded me to avoid Hamlet, and I've been doing exactly that.

But remember — you told me to stay away from him, and I did.

i obeyed avoided him your command

POLONIUS ≋ verse [Polonius realizes his own advice may have caused this]

That hath made him mad.

I am sorry that with better heed and judgement

I had not quoted him. I fear’d he did but trifle,

And meant to wreck thee. But beshrew my jealousy!

It seems it is as proper to our age

To cast beyond ourselves in our opinions

As it is common for the younger sort

To lack discretion. Come, go we to the King.

This must be known, which, being kept close, might move

More grief to hide than hate to utter love.

Ah — that's what's made him mad! I'm sorry I gave such bad advice. This rejection, combined with his love for you, has driven him to madness. We must tell the King.

That's why he's acting crazy! My advice about rejecting him has hurt him. This is serious.

my advice caused this madness rejection

"beshrew my jealousy" Polonius briefly acknowledges his error — for about two seconds. His suspicion caused this, his surveillance of his daughter's love life helped drive Hamlet here. Then he immediately pivots to action and uses her experience as a political tool. This is character in miniature.

Why it matters Polonius's closing speech converts Ophelia's traumatic encounter into an administrative problem — something to be reported to the King, managed, turned to advantage. This is his essential quality: everything is information, and information is power. The tragedy is that Ophelia has no equivalent framework — she is simply frightened.

[_Exeunt._]

The Reckoning

The scene does two things at once. In the first half, Shakespeare shows us exactly how Polonius's mind works — he is not just a foolish old courtier, he is a professional spy, and the instructions he gives Reynaldo (spread rumors, watch for reactions, catch the truth in the nets of lies) reveal that this is simply how he moves through the world. It is comic because Polonius loses his own thread; it is chilling because it is second nature to him. Then Ophelia enters and everything shifts: her description of Hamlet — disheveled, pale, holding her wrist, staring, sighing, leaving in silence — is the only window we get into what has happened to Hamlet between the Ghost's revelation and now. We don't see him; we see his aftermath in the face of a woman he's frightened half to death. Polonius immediately processes it through his framework: love-madness, and a political asset. He will tell the King.

If this happened today…

A mid-level intelligence operative sends a junior analyst to a foreign city with instructions to befriend someone's acquaintances, drop subtle rumors about that person's habits, and see who flinches. Somewhere between instructions three and four, the operative loses his own thread. Meanwhile his daughter arrives, visibly shaken: her ex-boyfriend had appeared at her door, looked through her like a ghost, and left without speaking. The operative's immediate response is not concern. It is: 'I can use this.'

Continue to 2.2 →