The Mouse Trap

Send us Fan Mail Up to now, Hamlet has lived inside questions. “Did my uncle really do it?” “Can I trust the Ghost?” “Am I being manipulated?” “Am I losing my mind—or pretending to?” Act 3 Scene 2 is the moment Hamlet says, in effect: “I’m done being uncertain. I’m going to test the truth.” In other words, Hamlet creates a situation where Claudius either sits calmly… or cracks. What makes this scene so powerful is that Hamlet is doing two things at once. One: He wants evidence. Two: He want...