Hamlet — Final Essay

ACT V, SCENE I

 

This seemingly unimportant scene is vital to the rest of the play, even though it is near the end.
In the first Scene of the last Act, we are greeted by two “clowns” (drudges) digging a hole. Upon closer examination, we realize that these men are not digging just any hole – they are digging a grave.
Hamlet and Horatio, who have escaped the ship bound for England (and Hamlet’s certain death) are spying on the gravediggers. When Hamlet determines these men will not recognize him, he approaches them and asks them what they are doing. After hemming and hawing for a while, one of the clowns pulls a skull from the hole, hands it to the prince, and explains that they are digging a grave for a woman who has drowned, though he refuses to tell Hamlet the woman’s name.
And so we have the famous image of Hamlet, a skull clutched in his hand, reciting one of his many soliloquies.

Along comes the funeral procession, led by Ophelia’s brother, Laertes, who despises Hamlet, perhaps rightfully. When Hamlet realizes it is his lover’s body being lowered into the earth, he is seized by a fit of grief and madness. He throws himself into the grave, and challenges Laertes for the place of chief mourner. After this, they dual and are both killed, as are the king and queen.

This simple scene serves the purpose of explaining a few “loose ends” and setting the stage for the death scene.
Perhaps this scene also asks us top find in our hearts a bit of compassion for Laertes. He has lost his father to Hamlet’s hand, and one may blame Hamlet for Ophelia’s death as well, because it was he that brought on the insanity that caused her to lose her mind, and step into the river.
Examining the situation from yet another angle, if Laertes’ thinking was not clouded with the agony of his losses in such quick succession, he may have found pity for Hamlet.
Hamlet is, quite obviously, not well. He is struck with fits of madness because of his father’s death. It was his blind rage that caused him to slit Polonius’ throat, not hate towards the man, and it was the death of Polonius, her father, that caused Ophelia’s downward spiral. 

Cutting this short scene from the play would completely ruin the ending, and leave the spectator with numerous questions. Why are Hamlet and Laertes dueling? Where is Ophelia’s body – did she not receive a proper burial? Why has the wine been poisoned?