[Footnote 8: Emphasis on Be, which I take for the imperative mood.]
[Footnote 9: The moment it is uttered, he recognizes and confesses to the rant, ashamed of it even under the cover of his madness. It did not belong altogether to the madness. Later he expresses to Horatio his regret in regard to this passage between him and Laertes, and afterwards apologizes to Laertes. 252, 262.
Perhaps this is the speech in all the play of which it is most difficult to get into a sympathetic comprehension. The student must call to mind the elements at war in Hamlet's soul, and generating discords in his behaviour: to those comes now the shock of Ophelia's death; the last tie that bound him to life is gone—the one glimmer of hope left him for this world! The grave upon whose brink he has been bandying words with the sexton, is for her! Into such a consciousness comes the rant of Laertes. Only the forms of madness are free to him, while no form is too strong in which to repudiate indifference to Ophelia: for her sake, as well as to relieve his own heart, he casts the clear confession of his love into her grave. He is even jealous, over her dead body, of her brother's profession of love to her—as if any brother could love as he loved! This is foolish, no doubt, but human, and natural to a certain childishness in grief. 252.
Add to this, that Hamlet—see later in his speeches to Osricke—had a lively inclination to answer a fool according to his folly (256), to outherod Herod if Herod would rave, out-euphuize Euphues himself if he would be ridiculous:—the digestion of all these things in the retort of meditation will result, I would fain think, in an understanding and artistic justification of even this speech of Hamlet: the more I consider it the truer it seems. If proof be necessary that real feeling is mingled in the madness of the utterance, it may be found in the fact that he is immediately ashamed of its extravagance.]
[Page 244]
Kin.[1] This is meere Madnesse: [Sidenote: Quee.[1]
And thus awhile the fit will worke on him: [Sidenote: And this]
Anon as patient as the female Doue,
When that her golden[2] Cuplet[3] are disclos'd[4];
[Sidenote: cuplets[3]
His silence will sit drooping.[5]
Ham. Heare you Sir:[6] What is the reason that you vse me thus? I loud' you euer;[7] but it is no matter:[8] Let Hercules himselfe doe what he may, The Cat will Mew, and Dogge will haue his day.[9] Exit. [Sidenote: Exit Hamlet and Horatio.]
Kin. I pray you good Horatio wait vpon him,
[Sidenote: pray thee good]
Strengthen you patience in our last nights speech, [Sidenote: your]
[Sidenote: 254] Wee'l put the matter to the present push:[10]
Good Gertrude set some watch ouer your Sonne,
This Graue shall haue a liuing[11] Monument:[12]
An houre of quiet shortly shall we see;[13]
[Sidenote: quiet thirtie shall]
Till then, in patience our proceeding be. Exeunt.
[Footnote 1: I hardly know which to choose as the speaker of this speech. It would be a fine specimen of the king's hypocrisy; and perhaps indeed its poetry, lovely in itself, but at such a time sentimental, is fitter for him than the less guilty queen.]
[Footnote 2: 'covered with a yellow down' Heath.]