ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on dramatic literature and theatrical performance of Shakespearian play. It is true that there are some who deny that Hamlet procrastinates. They point out that to kill a king surrounded by guards is not a simple matter or that once Hamlet has dispelled a reasonable doubt of the Ghost's story he is given no opportunity. A different explanation is given by Waldock, who, in his brilliant little book on the critical reactions to Hamlet, holds that the self-reproach of these soliloquies, although indicative of delay, is only a minor motif of the play. Polonius continues as a butt for Hamlet's wit, and the jest about the brute part of killing him in a play is another of the little previews of what will later happen in earnest. This speech of the Player King is but one of many things which, in the shaping of Hamlet, demand and receive a central place.
