Prince Hamlet devotes himself to avenging the death of his father, but, because he is of a contemplative and reflective nature, he delays, entering into deep melancholy and even apparent madness. Claudius and Gertrude become concerned about the prince's erratic behavior and attempt to discover the cause. They employ two of Hamlet's friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, to watch over him. When Polonius, the pompous Lord Chamberlain, suggests that Hamlet might be madly in love with his daughter, Ophelia, Claudius agrees to spy on Hamlet in conversation with the girl. But although Hamlet certainly seems crazy, he does not seem to like Ophelia: he orders her to enter a convent and declares that he wants to prohibit marriages. A group of traveling actors arrive in Elsinore, and Hamlet seizes on an idea to test his uncle's abilities. guilt. He will have players play a scene very similar to the sequence in which Hamlet imagines his uncle having murdered his father, so that if Claudius is guilty, he will surely react. When the moment of murder arrives in the room, Claudius jumps up and leaves the room. Hamlet and Horatio agree that this proves his guilt. Hamlet goes to kill Claudius but finds him praying. Since he believes that killing Claudius while he is praying would send Claudius' soul to heaven, Hamlet considers this to be insufficient revenge and decides to wait. Claudius, now frightened by Hamlet's madness and fearing for his own safety, orders that Hamlet be sent to England immediately. Hamlet goes to confront his mother, in whose bedroom Polonius has hidden behind a tapestry. Hearing a noise behind the tapestry, Hamlet believes that the king is hiding there. He draws his sword and pierces the fabric, killing Polonius. For this crime he was immediately sent to England with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. However, Claudius' plan for Hamlet includes more than banishment, as he has given sealed orders to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern for the King of England demanding that Hamlet be put to death. The day after her father's death, Ophélie goes mad with grief and drowns in the river. Polonius' son, Laertes, who was staying in France, returns to Denmark in anger. Claudius convinces him that Hamlet is responsible for the deaths of his father and sister. When Horatio and the king receive letters from Hamlet stating that the prince has returned to Denmark after pirates attacked his ship en route to England, Claudius concocts a plan to use Laertes' desire for revenge to ensure death from Hamlet..