Hamlet Act 4 Scene 1 Close Reading Worksheet

Help high school students go beyond basic reading comprehension and support the development of critical thinking and literary craft analysis skills with this close reading worksheet covering Act 4, scene 1, of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. An answer key is included. Materials are delivered in editable Word Document and printable PDF formats. Consider using this resource as an in-class group activity; it may facilitate deeper conversations about characters, plot developments, and literary craft. More specifically, students will do the following:

• Identify what the text states explicitly and implicitly
• Define words and phrases as they are used in the text
• Discern the intended effect of Shakespearean language in context
• Explore how complex characters think, behave, interact, and develop
• Discern the tone of a given passage
• Apply knowledge of literary devices including verbal irony, sibilance, personification, consonance, and inversion
• Support claims and inferences with sound reasoning and relevant textual evidence
• Write about Shakespearean drama with clarity, accuracy, and precision