Hamlet Act 1, Scene 4 Summary & Analysis | LitCharts
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That night, Hamlet, Horatio, and Marcellus stand on the ramparts of Elsinore in the bitter cold, waiting for the ghost to appear. Sounds of Claudius and his courtiers feasting and drinking merrily echo from inside the castle, and Hamlet tells his friends that Claudius’s constant revelry is “soil[ing
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Summary
Hamlet, Horatio, and Marcellus stand on the ramparts of Elsinore in the cold, waiting for the ghost of Hamlet's father to appear. The ghost appears and motions for Hamlet to follow it. Horatio and Marcellus try to restrain Hamlet, but he orders them to let him go. They follow close behind in case danger befalls Hamlet. Marcellus remarks that something is rotten in the state of Denmark. Hamlet follows the ghost, unsure of what awaits him.
Top Highlights
- That night, Hamlet, Horatio, and Marcellus stand on the ramparts of Elsinore in the bitter cold, waiting for the ghost to appear.
- Sounds of Claudius and his courtiers feasting and drinking merrily echo from inside the castle, and Hamlet tells his friends that Claudius’s constant revelry is “soil[ing]” Denmark’s reputation, blotting out all that is good in the country.
- The ghost suddenly appears, and Horatio urges Hamlet to address it.
- Hamlet begins speaking to the apparition, begging to know if it truly is the ghost of his father.
- He asks the ghost to tell him why it has chosen to leave its tomb and wander the grounds of Elsinore in full armor. In response, the ghost motions for Hamlet to follow it. Though Marcellus and Horatio urge Hamlet not to go with the ghost, Hamlet says he will follow it—he doesn’t value his life in the first place, he says, and thus has nothing to lo...
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