1. Who is the story's protagonist? Who is the antagonist?

Who are the other major

characters?
 Hamlet is the protagonist of the play. He is a Prince of Denmark studying at
the University of Wittenberg
 Claudius is the primary antagonist in Hamlet. He thwarts Hamlet by killing his
father. And when he usurps the Danish throne, Claudius denies Hamlet the
future that rightfully belongs to him.
 The other major character Gertrude, Queen of Denmark Prince Hamlet's
mother, King Hamlet's widow, King Claudius' wife. The Ghost of King
Hamlet is the spirit of Hamlet's deceased father who appears to Hamlet and
informs him that he was murdered by Claudius. Fortinbras is the prince of
Norway and serves as a foil to Hamlet. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are
childhood friends of Hamlet who are summoned by Claudius to spy on
Hamlet.
2. Who are the minor characters? What roles do they play in story? How would the story
be different without them?
Polonius - Polonius is the chief counselor to King Claudius and the father of Ophelia
and Laertes.
Ophelia - Ophelia is Polonius's daughter and Hamlet's love interest. She is depicted as
a young and innocent character who becomes entangled in the political and personal
intrigues of the play.
Laertes - Laertes is Polonius's son and Ophelia's brother. He plays a key role in the
latter part of the play as a foil to Hamlet.
Horatio - Horatio is Hamlet's loyal friend and confidante. He serves as a sounding
board for Hamlet's thoughts and emotions and provides a level-headed perspective.
The story of "Hamlet" would be very different without this minor character. Polonius
sets the plot in motion with his interference and ends up meeting a tragic end.
Ophelia's madness and death lend emotional weight to Hamlet's actions and
motivations. Laertes serves as a foil to Hamlet, contributing to themes of revenge and
the final climactic duel. And Horatio provides the voice of reason and witness to the
events of the play. These minor characters contribute to plot development, themes,
and conflict in "Hamlet" and play an important role in shaping the overall narrative.
3. What's the main character like? Does their physical appearance matter?
- Hamlet is an indecisive and indecisive person. On the one hand, he is an
educated and ambitious young man. He studied at university and absorbed progressive
views and ideas. On the other hand, his doubts were killing him from within. Lost in
his doubts, Hamlet suffers throughout the game and makes many rash and impulsive
decisions.
In terms of physical appearance, Hamlet's looks are not a central focus in the play.
Shakespeare does not provide extensive descriptions of Hamlet's physical attributes.
Instead, Hamlet's character is primarily defined by his actions, words, and
psychological state. He is known for his deep contemplation and soliloquies, in which
he reflects on the nature of existence, morality, and the human condition.
It is worth noting that in the play, Hamlet's internal struggles, including his quest for
revenge and his inner conflicts, take precedence over his physical appearance.
4. What are the major characters most noticeable personality traits?
  Hamlet is depressed, clever and indecisive.
-Hamlet's depression once again speaks of suicide. He said he wanted to get
rid of his endless problems by killing himself, because in death he could sleep
and not have to worry.
Hamlet is clever in his plan to expose Claudius as his father's killer. In the
plan, the players visiting the castle will re-enact the murder of Hamlet's father
as Hamlet wrote it for them. This plan works because when Claudius sees the
reenactment, he runs out of the room in terror, revealing to Hamlet and
everyone else that Claudius did kill Hamlet I.
Hamlet also hesitates in this play. This is seen when Hamlet is about to kill
Claudius. Hamlet wants to kill Claudius, but decides against it when he sees
Claudius repenting of his sins.
 King Claudius: Claudius is portrayed as a cunning and ambitious character. He
is manipulative, calculating, and willing to go to great lengths to maintain his
power, including committing murder.
 Gertrude, She is portrayed as emotional, impulsive, and often in denial about
the situation at hand. She also exhibits traits of ambiguity as her true feelings
and motivations are sometimes unclear.
 The Ghost of King Hamlet is portrayed as a vengeful spirit seeking justice for
his murder. He is authoritative, intense, and solemn, urging Hamlet to seek
revenge and revealing the truth about his murder.
 Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are often portrayed as sycophantic and
opportunistic characters. They are willing to betray Hamlet for their own gain
and exhibit traits of deceit, manipulation, and duplicity.
 Fortinbras is portrayed as a determined and proactive character. He is
ambitious, assertive, and action-oriented, seeking to reclaim lost territory and
assert his authority.
5. What are the major characters likes and dislikes? Their strengths and weaknesses?
Hamlet is a complex character with a range of likes, dislikes, strengths, and
weaknesses.
Likes:
 Hamlet enjoys the company of his friend Horatio, whom he trusts and confides
in throughout the play.
 He has a deep love and respect for his father, King Hamlet, and mourns his
death deeply.
 Hamlet is drawn to the idea of justice, and wants to avenge his father's murder
by killing his uncle, King Claudius.
Dislikes:
 Hamlet dislikes his uncle Claudius, whom he sees as a usurper and a murderer.
 He is also distrustful of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, whom he sees as spies
for Claudius.
 Hamlet is generally disillusioned with the world around him, and expresses a
distaste for the superficiality of court life.
Strengths:
 Hamlet is intelligent and well-educated, with a keen mind and a deep
understanding of human nature.
  He is also a skilled actor, able to feign madness and deceive those around him
in order to achieve his goals.
 Hamlet has a strong sense of morality and justice, and is willing to take bold
action to right wrongs.
Weaknesses:
 Hamlet is plagued by indecision and procrastination, which prevent him from
taking action quickly and decisively.
 He is also prone to fits of melancholy and despair, which lead him to
contemplate suicide and question the meaning of life.
 Hamlet can be impulsive and reckless, as evidenced by his murder of Polonius
and his confrontation with Laertes at Ophelia's funeral.
6. What are we told about the major characters backgrounds and prior experiences?
What can we infer?
About thirty years old at the start of the play, Hamlet is the son of Queen Gertrude and
the late King Hamlet, and the nephew of the present king, Claudius. Hamlet is
melancholy, bitter, and cynical, full of hatred for his uncle's scheming and disgust for
his mother's sexuality. So Major Conflict Hamlet feels a responsibility to avenge his
father's murder by his uncle Claudius, but Claudius is now the king and thus well
protected. Moreover, Hamlet struggles with his doubts about whether he can trust the
ghost and whether killing Claudius is the appropriate thing to do
7. Are the main characters developed along the story?
Hamlet becomes increasingly more bitter and resentful towards Claudius and his
mother. Hamlet also transforms from a more insane and erratic person to having a
more logical and sane state of mind. Hamlet transforms from a peaceful, remorsing
son to a murderous beast full of hateful vengeance. As Hamlets rage is released
toward other characters in the play, such as Claudius and his mother, his mind
becomes increasingly diluted. His anger takes over him and begins to influence his
actions and decisions.
8. Are the main characters dynamic or static?
Throughout the play, Hamlet is worried about life and death, and it is this
apprehension that makes him a dynamic character
9. Who are the round and flat characters?
- Hamlet is a round and dynamic character that changes and evolves throughout the
course of the play. He is also the protagonist of the story. Hamlet is a round
character because he shows a range of emotions and changes his mind, just like a
real person. Even though he wants revenge, he talks himself out of killing
Claudius while Claudius is praying. He is uncertain about how and whether to
avenge his father's death.
- Claudius is a round character and the antagonist in the story. For example he is not
as heartless as his behaviour suggests and we get an insight into his remorse for
the bad things he has done. He is aware that all those things – murdering his
brother, marrying his widow, and plotting against Hamlet – are terrible.
- The Ghost of King Claudius is a flat character who does not change or evolve
througout the story.
- Polonius is a flat character who can be easily summed up in a few words. He is a
sneaky, and foolish old man who doesn't change from the moment we meet him to
 the moment he dies. While he speaks in cliches, Polonius is a concerned father
who offers sound advice to his children
- Ophelia is a flat character who really doesn't change much throughout the story.
Ophelia is presented as a flat character with no true emotional security or
depthwhy

10. Does the story include any stock characters? Any caricatures?
Polonius is largely a stock character: he has no interior life. He is a jealously
authoritarian parent who demands absolute obedience from his children, of whom he
is groundlessly suspicious.

11. With which characters are readers likely to be most sympathetic? Least
sympathetic?

- Readers may be most sympathetic towards the following characters in "Hamlet":

the ghost
King Hamlet's murder makes the Ghost a most sympathetic character. No one would
have questioned the existence of that Ghost, and few would have believed — even for
a moment, as Hamlet does — that the Ghost could be a devil. He seems to care
greatly for his son, both before and after death, and still loves Gertrude, despite her
marrying Claudius nearly immediately after his own death.

Hamlet is also a sympathetic character, as the idea of revenge drives him while his
morality and Christian inclinations simultaneously urge him to charity. The fact that
her mother's lover was also her husband's killer further exacerbated the situation.
Least sympathetic
- On the other hand, readers may be least sympathetic towards the following
characters in "Hamlet":

Claudius: The main antagonist of the play, Claudius, is responsible for the murder of
King Hamlet and the subsequent usurpation of the throne. His deceitful actions and
manipulative nature may make him less sympathetic to readers as they see him
scheming to maintain his power at the expense of others.

Polonius: Polonius is a courtier in Elsinore and the father of Ophelia and Laertes. He
is often portrayed as a meddling, conniving character who contributes to the tragic
events in the play through his scheming and spying. Readers may find him less
sympathetic due to his duplicitous nature and role in the unfolding tragedy.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern: These characters are Hamlet's childhood friends who
are manipulated by Claudius into spying on Hamlet. Readers may view them as
disloyal and opportunistic, as they betray Hamlet's trust and become pawns in
Claudius' plot against Hamlet.