Shakespeare immediately conveys the sense of cold and apathy in the opening scene. As the play opens in the cool, black night, Barnardo and Francisco are high atop the looming walls of Elsinore, keeping watch for the impending revenge of enemy Fortinbras (I.1). Midnight strikes and Barnardo notes, subtly referring to the sentiment of Denmark, that "tis bitter cold, and I am sick at heart" (I.1.8). Since the beloved King Hamlet has died and the Queen remarried, the morale of the people is low, and cold.

The act continues, and the Ghost appears out of the dark shadows (I.1). Horatio, who had doubted the men's earlier details of sightings, now contemplates the reasons for the Ghost's visit as the spirit disappears into the

Some topics in this essay:
Hamlet England, Laertes Ophelia, Claudius Fortinbras, Denmark Hamlet, Guildenstern Claudius, I1120 Horatio, I490 Shakespeare, Denmark III474, Gertrude Laertes, King Hamlet, poison claudius, king hamlet, future events, rotten denmark, infants spring, smooth body, disease ophelia, plaguing denmark,