"Hamlet", play summary

ACT I Most of the action of play occurs in and around the castle at Elsinore in Denmark. King Hamlet is dead, and Prince Hamlet has returned to Denmark from school in Wittenberg, Germany, only to discover that Queen Gertrude, his mother, has married his Uncle Claudius. Claudius has had himself crowned king. Hamlet is informed that what is apparently the ghost o f his dead father has appeared to the palace guards (I, ii). …

…and swoons from the effect of the poison, her dying words warning Hamlet of the plot against him. As the duel progresses, Laertes and Hamlet inadvertently exchange swords during a scuffle; consequently, both are mortally wounded, although Hamlet manages to fatally wound Claudius as well. As the play closes, Fortinbras arrives, victorious over Poland, and the dying Hamlet names him as the new king. Fortinbras pays tribute to Hamlet and arranges for an appropriate burial.