“Taint not thy mind nor let thy soul contrive / Against thy mother aught. Leave her to heaven / And to those thorns that in her bosom lodge / To prick and sting her” (Act I, Scene V, 86-89).

In Act II, Scene IV, Hamlet finally is candid to his mother about the gravity and effect of her sin. His irritation has mounted so that he cannot mask an almost violent delivery—so much so that the Queen fears for her life. Hamlet admonishes Gertrude for demeaning the vows of marriage and debasing King Hamlet’s memory. He says that she has gone against heaven in her sin, making religion a series of meaningless words. Although Hamlet finally spews the disapproval he has withheld from her, in doing so, his fervency begins to violate the Ghost’s request: to let heaven decide Gertrude’s punishment and to let her conscience ration her pain. Hamlet’s mockery of Gertrude’s action undoubtedly uncovers guilt that she has buried deep within her regality; she begs Hamlet to stop speaking because she cannot face the pain of unveiling the “black and grained spots” of her soul. Our sympathy grows as Getrude reveals not only her morality, but also her humanity. Even a Queen has sinned—she, like everyone else, admittedly feels guilty and ashamed, giving her character a depth of complexity and emotion the audience recognizes. Yet, the deed has been done. Gertrude divulges no plan of action to right her wrongs. She shows guilt, but no revelation. She simply asks to hear no more of her sin, without searching for forgiveness, either from Hamlet or from the gods. Thus, as an audience, Shakespeare forces us to question Gertrude’s transformation. Gertrude is trapped perfectly for the following acts: she understands and admits her guilt, yet she has the ability to act on it. Will her conscience “prick” her to act? Or will Gertrude continue to mask from herself the dark spots of her soul? Gertrude faces a key decision in her character that leaves the audience hesitant in judgment, but anxious with uncertainty.