Read the excerpt from Act IV of Hamlet.Claudius: Not that I think you did not love your father, But that I know love is begun by time, And that I see, in passages of proof, Time qualifies the spark and fire of it . . . That we would do, We should do when we would, for this 'would' changes, And hath abatements and delays as many As there are tongues, are hands, are accidents; And then this 'should' is like a spendthrift sigh, That hurts by easing. But, to the quick o' the ulcer; Hamlet comes back
Answer
e
encourages Laertes to seek revenge against Hamlet.
o
offers forgiveness for Laertes’s impulsive action.
s
suggests a peaceful resolution to Laertes’s conflict.
a
accepts the blame for Polonius’s death.
Explanation
Claudius argues that people should act while they still have the will to do so, because time brings delays and weakens resolve. He then turns to the “quick o’ the ulcer,” meaning the urgent heart of the matter: Hamlet’s return. In context, Claudius is pushing Laertes to take revenge on Hamlet, not offering forgiveness or accepting blame for Polonius’s death.
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