Summary and Analysis of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead

·         The author is this play is Tom Stoppard. He is a British playwright who left Czechoslovakia as a child refugee and then settled in Britain.

·         The setting of the story is the same as Hamlet, because this story is intertwined with that one. It’s following Ros and Guil’s perspective through the story of Hamlet. So it takes place in a forest at first, while Ros and Guil are on their way to Elsinore. Then at Elsinore, then finally ends in England.

·         Plot:

o   Ros and Guil are in the wilderness travelling, although they have forgotten why.

o    They flip coins and are questioning the laws of probability because all the coins end up heads.

o   They meet a group of actors travelling, and the actors start to put on a play for them, but Ros and Guil leave.

o   The scene changes and Ros and Guil are suddenly at Elsinore. They talk to the King and are told to spy on their friend Hamlet to see why he has gone crazy. So now, Ros and Guil are just watching scenes that we have already read in Hamlet, such Hamlet and Ophelia’s scene where she tries to return his belongings, and when Hamlet stabs Polonius.

o   After Hamlet kills Polonius, he is put on a ship to England with Ros and Guil. The two friends are supposed to turn Hamlet over to the King of England with a letter given to them by the King of Denmark. However, when they are sleeping, Hamlet switches the letter, so that instead of saying that they are turning Hamlet over, they say they are turning themselves over.

o    The Tragedians (actors from before) turn up on the ship too.

o   Pirates attack the ship and Hamlet flees.

o   The Tragedians act out different types of death, and then Ros and Guil realize they are going to die soon. They “exit” and then the final scene of this play is the final scene of Hamlet where Claudius, Gertrude, Hamlet, and Laertes are all dead and Horatio gives a final speech.

·         Main Characters:

o   Rosencrantz: the dumber one of the two, one of the friends that betrays Hamlet, has no original thoughts, dies at end, represents “everyman”

o   Guildenstern: the sharper of the two, still always confused with Ros by others, isn’t as knowledgeable as he thinks so his dialogue has a malapropism of ideas, opposite of Ros, dies at end, represents “everyman”

o   Player: surrounded by an air of mystery and uncertainty, it’s as if he knows more than Ros and Guil on what’s going on, as if he has the answers and knows what’s going to happen in the future

·         Since this is a play, there isn’t much to say about author style or narrative voice because each character has their own style of talking. Many of the actions are given in the stage directions.

·         Symbols:

o   The coins represent randomness and chance.

o   The boat represents living life, and how we can’t control it, it’s on a predetermined track.

·         Quotes:

o   “Life is a gamble, at terrible odds—if it was a bet you wouldn’t take it.” This quote is said by the Player and it’s really quite sad because he’s saying that life is a risk and there isn’t a big chance that you will win. It seems like he’s speaking from experience, like he finally got this realization of this harsh reality of the real world.

o   “Look on every exit as being an entrance somewhere else.” This is yet another witty, deep thought by the Player, however this time, it’s an optimistic thought. This is the same idea as the common saying that if one door closes, another door opens. It’s similar in that the Player is saying opportunities will always come.

·         Theme: Life is unexpected and impossible to completely understand.

o   The unexpectedness is shown by the symbol of the coin and how it represents randomness and the Pirates suddenly attacking the ship when everything seemed to be winding down.  

o   It’s impossible to understand because Ros and Guil never know what’s going on.  They are always caught up in something they don’t know started. They often times forget their names and don’t know why things are happening.