Hamlet: Setting and world
13 lenses on setting and world for Hamlet by William Shakespeare. Count lenses are exact for our text. AI lenses are our reading and cite only quotes that passed a word for word check.
Jump to: I1 I2 I3 I4 I5 I6 I7 I8 I9 I10 I11 I12 I13
I1. Places named and how often each appears. Count
heaven is the place named most, 45 times.
| Place | Mentions | Chapters |
|---|---|---|
| heaven | 45 | 14 |
| Denmark | 23 | 10 |
| England | 21 | 7 |
| nunnery | 5 | 1 |
| Elsinore | 4 | 2 |
| Poland | 3 | 2 |
| platform | 2 | 1 |
| Vienna | 1 | 1 |
| Paris | 1 | 1 |
I2. Setting by chapter, as a map. Both
The place named most in each chapter. A rough setting map. (rough estimate from word lists)
| Chapter | Place named most |
|---|---|
| 1 | heaven |
| 2 | Denmark |
| 3 | heaven |
| 4 | heaven |
| 5 | heaven |
| 6 | Paris |
| 7 | Denmark |
| 8 | nunnery |
| 9 | Denmark |
| 10 | heaven |
| 11 | heaven |
| 12 | |
| 13 | |
| 14 | England |
Settings move from castle platform (1 to 2, 4) to Polonius's house (3, 6) to castle rooms (7 to 14, 16 to 18, 20) to churchyard (19) and back to castle hall (20). Most action occurs indoors in Elsinore.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 4, Scene 6, Scene 7
I3. Setting shown in blocks or woven into action? AI
Settings are shown in scene headings and woven into action through dialogue and movement. Characters reference locations but rarely describe them; the stage itself reveals the setting.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 4, Scene 5, Scene 6
I4. Weather and light used for mood. Both
Weather and light words: 1.51 per 1,000 words.
Weather and light words, chapter by chapter
Light and darkness frame the ghost scenes (1, 4, 5). The ghost vanishes at dawn. Darkness suggests moral corruption and hidden truth. The final duel occurs in daylight, bringing all secrets to light.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 4, Scene 5, Scene 20
This bodes some strange eruption to our state. (Ch 1, para 51)
And then it started, like a guilty thing Upon a fearful summons. (Ch 1, para 67)
Something is rotten in the state of Denmark. (Ch 4, para 37)
I5. The social world: class, money, rules. AI
The play is set in a royal court with strict hierarchy. Claudius is King, Hamlet is Prince, Polonius is counsellor, Ophelia is pawn. Class determines who spies on whom and who obeys orders.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 6, Scene 7, Scene 12, Scene 16
This above all: to thine own self be true; And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man. (Ch 3, para 13)
I shall obey, my lord. (Ch 3, para 31)
This must be known, which, being kept close, might move More grief to hide than hate to utter love. (Ch 6, para 41)
I6. Rules of the world (magic, science) and when each is shown. AI
The ghost operates by supernatural rules: it appears, speaks, and vanishes. No magic system is explained; the ghost's existence is accepted as real and its word as truth about Claudius's crime.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 4, Scene 5, Scene 11
This spirit, dumb to us, will speak to him. (Ch 1, para 69)
Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder. (Ch 5, para 13)
The serpent that did sting thy father’s life Now wears his crown. (Ch 5, para 17)
I7. Lore: dripped in or dumped? AI
Lore is minimal. The play references classical figures (Nemean lion, Yorick) but does not dwell on them. The ghost's rules are shown through action rather than explained.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 4, Scene 5, Scene 19
My fate cries out, And makes each petty artery in this body As hardy as the Nemean lion’s nerve. (Ch 4, para 28)
A pestilence on him for a mad rogue! A pour’d a flagon of Rhenish on my head once. This same skull, sir, was Yorick’s skull, the King’s jester. (Ch 19, para 80)
Alas, poor Yorick. I knew him, Horatio, a fellow of infinite jest, of most excellent fancy. He hath borne me on his back a thousand times; and now, how abhorred in my imagination it is! (Ch 19, para 83)
I8. Real history used, and how. AI
The play references real Danish history and Fortinbras's actual military campaign. Hamlet's father was a real king; Fortinbras's threat is based on historical conflict between Denmark and Norway.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 15, Scene 20
I9. Journeys: distance and time taken. Both
Hamlet travels to England (off-stage) and returns via pirate capture (17). Fortinbras marches to Poland (15). Most action stays in Elsinore. Time spans weeks from ghost's appearance to final duel.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 12, Scene 15, Scene 17, Scene 20
Ere we were two days old at sea, a pirate of very warlike appointment gave us chase. Finding ourselves too slow of sail, we put on a compelled valour, and in the grapple I boarded them. (Ch 17, para 11)
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern hold their course for England: of them I have much to tell thee. Farewell. He that thou knowest thine, HAMLET. (Ch 17, para 11)
I10. Objects that matter, where they appear. Both
play is the object named most.
| Object | Mentions | Chapters |
|---|---|---|
| play | 41 | 7 |
| ghost | 32 | 5 |
| sword | 16 | 7 |
| poison | 10 | 4 |
| skull | 10 | 1 |
| flowers | 5 | 4 |
| cup | 4 | 1 |
| letter | 1 | 1 |
Key objects: the ghost (1 to 5, 11), poison (5, 9, 10, 18, 20), Hamlet's sword (20), the poisoned cup (18, 20), love letters (7), and Yorick's skull (19). Each object carries symbolic weight.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 5, Scene 7, Scene 9, Scene 10, Scene 18
Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder. (Ch 5, para 13)
The serpent that did sting thy father’s life Now wears his crown. (Ch 5, para 17)
The Mousetrap. Marry, how? Tropically. This play is the image of a murder done in Vienna. (Ch 9, para 87)
I11. Density of period detail. AI
Period detail is sparse. The play names Danish locations and court roles but avoids costume or food description. Focus is on dialogue and action, not historical texture.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 2, Scene 3, Scene 6, Scene 7
I12. Setting as an enemy. AI
The castle becomes a prison of spying and secrets. Hamlet cannot move freely; he is watched by Claudius, Polonius, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. The setting traps him.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 6, Scene 7, Scene 12, Scene 13, Scene 14
By indirections find directions out. (Ch 6, para 20)
This must be known, which, being kept close, might move More grief to hide than hate to utter love. (Ch 6, para 41)
I13. Indoors against outdoors. Both
Indoor words outnumber outdoor words 53 to 23. (rough estimate from word lists)
Indoor share %, chapter by chapter
Most scenes occur indoors in castle rooms. The platform (1, 4) and churchyard (19) are outdoor exceptions. Indoors emphasises confinement and surveillance; outdoors brings relief and perspective.
Scenes (numbered through the play): Scene 1, Scene 4, Scene 15, Scene 19, Scene 20
Ask Hamlet a question about its craft (free beta)
Answers cite chapter and paragraph, and every quote is checked against the text. (3 free questions a day).
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