Act IV - Scene VI
[Elsinore.] |
Enter Horatio and others. |
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Enter Sailors. |
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Exeunt. |
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— Sinead, Owl Eyes Contributor
That is, they knew who Hamlet was and thought it would be prudent to take care of the prince and ransom him for a hefty sum. No doubt the "letters" these men carry are in fact ransom demands that Hamlet has forged in order to confuse Horatio and lay the foundation for his early return.
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— Sinead, Owl Eyes Contributor
Notice how Shakespeare's use of meter breaks down in this passage and allows Hamlet to write in longer, less poetic lines. We know, from his love letter to Ophelia, that Hamlet is perfectly capable of writing in metrical feet, but here he elects not to for expediency's sake (and also, we assume, to maintain the lie that he's in a harried situation).
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— Sinead, Owl Eyes Contributor
Notice how this construction figures Hamlet as a "part of the world," like Denmark. Horatio means that he can't think of anyone who would write to him except Hamlet and that, because Hamlet is on his way to England, the letter must come from that part of the world, but equating Hamlet with a place has the (perhaps unintended) effect of enhancing his isolation.