Summary

In Hamlet by William Shakespeare, the king has died. Prince Hamlet, heir to the Danish throne, returns to Elsinore Castle from his university studies in Wittenberg. The king died unexpectedly from a snakebite, and his brother Claudius now sits on the throne.

Claudius publicly mourns his brother’s death, but has also married his brother’s widow, Queen Gertrude. Hamlet is shocked that his mother has remarried so quickly. Unlike the others, he sincerely mourns his father’s death.

One evening, guards of the castle spot a ghost that looks like the deceased king. Hamlet decides to see it for himself. He learns from his father’s ghost that he was poisoned by Claudius while he slept. The ghost demands that Hamlet take revenge, but asks him to spare his mother.

Hamlet decides to pretend to be insane to carry out his revenge plan undisturbed. He can confide in no one but his college friend Horatio. Hamlet’s beloved Ophelia...