Hamlet+5.1

5. Laertes's attitude towards his sister's death seems to have changed from Act 4 to Act 5 Scene 1. Initially he did not seem extremely upset. He was upset to a certain extent and pitied her; however he does say, "Too much water hast thou, poor Ophelia./And therefore I forbid my tears" (4.7.211-212). He says that he has tried to get through to her and to help her for so long, but that it never did any good anyway; she still met her demise. He does not have the reaction that the reader expects. The reader would expect a protective older brother to be distraugh and overcome with grief over the death of his sister, but initially that does not seem the case. However, in Act 5 Scene 1, his attitude seems to have shifted. When the family processes to the grave yard to bury Ophelia, Laertes seems overcome with grief, even jumping into the grave after her so that he might hold her one more time.

7.For Hamlet, the misery just keeps coming and coming. It would be difficult for anyone to keep their sanity after all that has happened to him. No one can blame him for being mad. In this scene Hamlet discovers that Ophelia, his lover has passed away, drowning herself. Additionally, Laertes curses Hamlet for the loss of his father and his sister, although Ophelia's death was on indirectly caused by or related to the death of Polonius. No one can blame him for his insanity because most of the misery thrust upon him is not his own doing or own fault; he just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

9. (Staging the Scene) The graveyard would be dark or dimly lit and quiet with only the sound being the singing of the gravedigger, the conversation of the actors present and the sound of the shovel hitting the earth. When the funeral procession enters they should bring torches as another light source; and when they enter, the scene should become more chaotic and noisy, gradually building until the climax of the scene when Hamlet and Laertes have a brawl in the middle of graveyard during the funeral.