Read the excerpt from Hamlet.Hamlet: No, faith, not a jot; but to follow him thither with modesty enough, and likelihood to lead it; as thus: Alexander died, Alexander was buried, Alexander returneth into dust; the dust is earth; of earth we make loam, and why of that loam, whereto he was converted, might they not stop a beer-barrel?Imperious Caesar, dead and turn’d to clay,Might stop a hole to keep the wind away
Answer
c
contrast the deaths of Alexander and Caesar.
s
show how kings should behave around death.
c
compare Hamlet to two rulers who died.
e
emphasize that everyone eventually dies.
Explanation
Hamlet traces Alexander’s body from death to burial, dust, and earth, then imagines it used to plug a beer barrel. He makes the same point about Caesar, whose clay could stop a hole against the wind. The images emphasize that even powerful rulers die and return to the earth, so the passage’s main idea is that everyone eventually dies.
AI-written and checked against the verified answer.