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Act 3, Scene 4 Summary

Polonius hides as Hamlet visits his mother. When she calls for help, Polonius calls out and Hamlet kills him with his sword through the arras. Moments later, he discovers he has killed Polonius. Hamlet bitterly berates Gertrude, saying her blood, with age, should be tame enough to temper her love with wisdom. He dwells on her fiendish, incestuous acts until she herself tells him- enough! She now sees how black her soul is. The Ghost then appears. Gertrude, seeing him talking, thinks that he is mad and asks to whom he speaks. He tells her of the Ghost but she thinks he has contrived it with his mind. He asks her to repent and to refrain from his uncle's bed. No matter what happens, she must not tell the King that Hamlet is not mad. She swears she will not. He drags Polonius' body out of the room.

Act 3, Scene 4 Analysis

In this scene, Hamlet's plans now crystallize into action. His suspicions have now been transformed into certainties. When visits him mother, he tells her she cannot go until he has set up a glass for her to see the deepest part of herself. She misinterprets him, thinking he means to kill her and cries for help, alarming the hidden Polonius. Thinking perhaps Polonius is Claudius, he kills him. In this scene, the murder of Polonius proves that Hamlet is ready to kill to find justice. Polonius is just an accidental outcropping of this intention, which he sees as mostly inconsequential. Hamlet is all about revenge. He does not truly repent of Polonius' death. He is a man obsessed.