Question

read the excerpt from act ii of hamlet. polonius: well be with you, gentlemen! hamlet: hark you, guildenstern; and you too; at each ear a hearer: that great baby you see there is not yet out of his swaddling - clouts. what is the effect of hamlet’s use of metaphor in this excerpt? the metaphor reveals that hamlet respects polonius. the metaphor shows that hamlet wants polonius’s help. the metaphor portrays polonius as foolish and weak. the metaphor establishes polonius as angry and mean.

Explanation:

To determine the effect of Hamlet's metaphor, we analyze the metaphor "that great baby you see there is not yet out of his swaddling - clouts". A baby in swaddling - clouts is inexperienced, dependent, and somewhat foolish in its inability to act independently. Hamlet uses this to describe Polonius.

• Option 1: Hamlet's tone and the metaphor do not show respect. He is being sarcastic, so this is incorrect.
• Option 2: Hamlet is not seeking Polonius's help; his tone is mocking, so this is wrong.
• Option 3: The metaphor of a baby (who is not out of swaddling - clouts, meaning still dependent and inexperienced) portrays Polonius as foolish (like a helpless baby) and weak (needing to be swaddled, not self - sufficient), so this is correct.
• Option 4: The metaphor does not suggest anger or meanness in Polonius. It focuses on his foolish and weak - like (incompetent) nature, so this is incorrect.

Answer:

C. The metaphor portrays Polonius as foolish and weak.