Characters in Hamlet He is the courtier sent by Claudius to invite Hamlet to participate in the duel with Laertes. (This character is called "Ostricke" in the Second Quarto.) Osric, as well as Polonius, attempts to engage with Hamlet in the elaborate, witty discourse, fully consistent with Baldassare Castiglione's 1528 work, "The Courtier". This work outlines several courtly rules, specifically advising royal retainers to amuse their masters with inventive language. The Players are a company of actors who arrive at Elsinore Castle. Friends of Hamlet, they had earlier performed in "the city" (presumably Copenhagen), but faced stiff competition from boy performers, so they
Hamlet (Thomas) Hamlet to a duel. They fight, and Hamlet is wounded. 23. Funeral march and chorus. A funeral march is heard (Hamlet: "Écoute! Quel est ce bruit de pas?" – "Listen! What noise is that?"). He asks Laërte: "Who has died?" Laërte, in an aside, is amazed that Hamlet still does not know. The funeral procession appears, led by a choir of men and women (Choir: "Comme la fleur, comme la fleur nouvelle" – "Like a flower, like a fresh flower"). Ophélie's body is carried in; the King and Queen, Polonius, Marcellus, Horatio and the courtiers follow behind. 24. Finale. Hamlet