“Something is rotten in the state of Denmark” is used to
describe corruption or a situation in which something is wrong
.
When Marcellus says Something is rotten in the state of Denmark Why is this significant?
When Marcellus states, ‘Something is rotten in the state of Denmark' he is talking about Denmark's relationship with Norway but
on the symbolic level he is summing up Claudius' corrupting effect on the kingdom
which is intensified by his unpunished crime.
What exactly is rotten in the state of Denmark?
“Something is rotten in the state of Denmark” is used to
describe corruption or a situation in which something is wrong
.
What is rotten in Denmark in Hamlet?
Marcellus, along with Horatio, has tried to get Hamlet not to follow the ghost but Hamlet has done it anyway. Marcellus says that something is rotten in Denmark, meaning
that he does not trust that all is well — that he thinks something is wrong.
In what play would you hear the quote Something is rotten in the state of Denmark?
One of the many famous quotes which have emanated from the various plays of William Shakespeare is from
“Hamlet
,” when an officer of the palace guard, Marcellus, says, “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.” His observation was made after the ghost of the dead king (Hamlet's father) appears to Hamlet.
Where did the phrase something is rotten in Denmark come from?
Origin. This phrase is taken
from William Shakespeare's play Hamlet
. The speaker is Marcellus, a guard, who talks to his philosophical comrade, Horatio, saying, “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark …“ (Act-I, Scene-IV). The reason of saying this is just not that Denmark is facing dirt.
How does Claudius corrupt Denmark?
The old King Hamlet was apparently a stern warrior, but Claudius is a corrupt politician whose
main weapon is his ability to manipulate others through his skillful use of language
. Claudius's speech is compared to poison being poured in the ear—the method he used to murder Hamlet's father.
Who says the following line something is rotten in the state of Denmark?
Something is rotten in the state of Denmark. This line is spoken by
Marcellus
in Act I, scene iv (67), as he and Horatio debate whether or not to follow Hamlet and the ghost into the dark night.
What is one of the reasons that Horatio feels the ghost is a symbol of bad things to come for Denmark?
Horatio believes that the ghost is just their imagination and Bernardo wants him to see it again (to make him believe it is real)
and talk to it. -He is a close friend of Hamlet. He believes the ghost is a bad omen, and knows a lot about the history between Norway and Denmark. You just studied 51 terms!
What does the ghost reveal and request?
The ghost tells
Hamlet that Claudius killed him
. He poured poison into his ear when he was in the garden and he died. … He asks Hamlet to seek revenge and kill Claudius, but not to hurt Gertrude. God and her guilt will take punish her.
What is the political situation in Denmark in Hamlet?
The political situation in Denmark is that
Old King Hamlet killed the King of Norway and now young Fortinbras, King Norway's son, wants to avenge his father's honor and regain the lands that were lost years ago to King Hamlet
. Crisis that have already occurred was King Claudius killing King Hamlet.
Why does Laertes warn his sister not to get too close to Hamlet?
Laertes loves his sister, Ophelia, and in act I scene iii of Hamlet by William Shakespeare he warns her about getting too attached to Hamlet. His primary reason, of course, is that
Hamlet will have to choose his wife based upon political or economic expediency because the future king's first love must be his country
.
Why is Hamlet set in Denmark?
Shakespeare chose Denmark as the setting for Hamlet
because he likely knew about the castle in Helsingør
, which translates to the English spelling Elsinore. This setting provides various details which are significant to the conflicts and mood established in Hamlet.
What is rotten in the state of Denmark as Marcellus tells us quizlet?
What is “rotten in the state of Denmark,” as Marcellus tells us?
The King is dead, his ghost has appeared and we also find out the Queen has married Claudius.
Who speaks this words in Hamlet more matter with less art?
In one of the funniest scenes in Hamlet,
the politician Polonius
, who has declared that “Brevity is the soul of wit” [see BREVITY IS THE SOUL OF WIT], continues to enlarge upon Hamlet's supposed madness. The impatient Queen dryly demands “More matter with less art,” that is, more substance and less rhetoric.
What Hamlet makes Horatio swear?
Shaken and extremely agitated, he refuses to tell them, and he insists that they swear upon
his sword not to reveal what they have seen
. He tells them further that he may pretend to be a madman, and he makes them swear not to give the slightest hint that they know anything about his motives.
