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Hamlet, Act 4, Scene 7 summary

Act 4, Scene 7 of 20 · 8 min to read the scene

In Act 4, Scene 7, the King learns that Hamlet has returned and persuades Laertes to kill him during a fencing match, using a poisoned sword and a poisoned drink as backup. The Queen then reports Ophelia’s drowning, adding fresh grief to Laertes’s anger and making the King fear another outburst.

What happens

  1. The King explains that the Queen’s attachment to Hamlet and the people’s affection for him prevent public punishment.
  2. A messenger brings Hamlet’s letters, and the King reads that Hamlet returns alone and asks to appear before him tomorrow.
  3. The King uses praise of Laertes’s fencing and questions about his love for his father to encourage revenge.
  4. Laertes agrees to use a sharpened, poisoned sword, and the King adds a deadly drink as a backup.
  5. The Queen reports that Ophelia falls into a brook while hanging flowers and drowns after her soaked clothes pull her under.
  6. Laertes leaves in tears, and the King asks Gertrude to follow him because he fears renewed rage.

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In this scene

HamletThe KingGertrudeOpheliaLaertesTheme: Revenge and duty

What to notice

The King encourages Laertes to abandon restraints on revenge. His words support a plot that disguises murder as a harmless contest.

Quick check

What backup does the King propose if Hamlet escapes the poisoned sword?

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