Discuss lines 90-136 from Act 1 Scene 3 of ‘Hamlet’. Explore Shakespeare’s use of language and it’s dramatic effects.

In Act 1, Scene 3 of ‘Hamlet’, Polonius is warning Ophelia to distance herself from Hamlet, to avoid risking the family’s honourby losing her chastity. Shakespeare uses blank verse to ennoblehis Polonius and Ophelia, as it is the closest rhythm to human speech, suggesting their high status (as close associates of the King), and a refinement in character. However, his use of blank verse and Polonius’ didactic tone in the extract work in harmony to create an ironic effect; Polonius is instructing Ophelia to avoid being tendered “a fool”, which is comedic for the audience who recognise Polonius as a verbose and witless sycophant. Shakespeare uses metaphors throughout this extract to create dramatic effect; his labelling of Hamlet’s vows as “springes to catch woodcocks” is dramatic as the metaphor creates a vivid visual image in the audience of a small, feminine, helpless bird trapped by the falseness of Hamlet’s declarations. In literature, birds symbolise freedom and privilege, due to their ability to escape through flight, therefore, the image of the bird’sconfinement is emotive for the audience, emphasising Ophelia’s vulnerability, lack of freedom and repression in a patriarchal world. The metaphor is also dramatic as it highlights Polonius’ grave fear about loss of reputation, which is disguised by his fatherly ‘wisdom’, and aligns women and nature to highlight the theme of oppression in ‘Hamlet’; just as nature is abused and tamed by men, women in Denmark are too. Similarly, Shakespeare uses the metaphor of Hamlet’s love as a fire which “blazes” to dramatically highlight the fear Polonius’ has about his daughter’s reputation; the ability of fire to both warm and cause destruction symbolises the ambiguity of Hamlet’s love, evoking curiosity in the audience as to whether Hamlet feels temporary lust which will soon burn out like a fire, or genuine devotion.Shakespeare also uses the metaphor of Ophelia’s virginity as a castle to create a violent and dramatic image of her being under attack; she must not merely “command a parley”, which creates dramatic tension as it emphasises Ophelia’s struggle and pressureto protect her reputation. Shakespeare additionally uses the language techniques of alliteration, personification and repetition to dramatically evoke empathy in the audience for Ophelia and apathy for Polonius. Shakespeare’s personification of the soul, which “lends the tongue vows”, creates dramatic tension in the scene by suggesting the dominance of appearance vs. reality in the play; it creates an image of the mischievous and deceitful tongue cunningly tricking Ophelia into sacrificing her chastity, instilling an unsettling feeling of uncertainty and suspense in the audience… no one can be trusted. Ophelia’s repetition of “my lord” throughout the extract dramatically emphasises her obedience to her father and his dominance and superiority over her, due to being an elder male, which creates sympathy for Ophelia’s restrictive position in the patriarchal hierarchy. Similarly, the fact that Polonius’ speech dominates the page, implying his loquacious and selfish nature, while Ophelia speaks using monosyllabics “I do not know, my lord, what I should think” and simple sentences “I shall obey, my lord”, creates empathy for Ophelia due to her silencing- the audience see the clear juxtaposition of a young, repressed woman who is denied of a voice and a self-centred, power and attention craving man. Shakespeare dramatically insinuates Polonius’ dominance and power in the scene through alliteration; the plosive alliteration of “blood burns” creates a heavy and disgusted tone, scorning Hamlet’s lust, creating tension in the scene alongside Shakespeare’s use of the negative modal verb “would not” and negative imperatives “do not”, which portray Polonius as an aggressive and forceful character in comparison to Ophelia’s obedience and submissiveness, suggested by the modal verb “I shall”. Act 1 Scene 3 is valuable to ‘Hamlet’ as a whole as Shakespeare’s use of language dramatically provokes thought in the audience about the predominant themes in ‘Hamlet’ such as patriarchal oppression and dysfunctional families. The creation of tension, empathy, apathy, emotion, irony and suspense contribute to the audience’s perception of Ophelia as a wounded, victimised and confined young woman and Polonius as a corrupt and repressive father.