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O Gertrude, Gertrude, When sorrows come, they come not single spies But in battalions. First, her father slain. Next, your son gone, and he most violent author Of his own just remove.
What's the origin of the phrase 'When sorrows come, they come not single spies, but in battalions'? From Shakespeare’s Hamlet , 1602: Claudius: O, this is the poison of deep grief; it springs All from her father’s death.
Jun 2, 2020 · When Hamlet himself enters, he is confronted first by Polonius and then by Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, whom he quickly identifies as Claudius’s spies. As they talk, a company of touring actors enters.
Jun 26, 2016 · The quote “ When sorrows come, they come not single spies, but in battalions ” was used by Claudius in Shakespeare play, Hamlet, Act IV, Scene V. Claudius meant that, when bad incidents occur, they do not happen alone and many other bad happenings occur simultaneously to contribute to human tragedy.
The Meaning Within Context. In this passage, King Claudius observes the cascade of tragedies affecting Ophelia. Her father’s murder at the hands of Hamlet, her tumultuous relationship with her brother Laertes, and the general unrest within the Danish court all contribute to her emotional disintegration.
O Gertrude, Gertrude, When sorrows come, they come not single spies But in battalions.
O Gertrude, Gertrude, When sorrows come, they come not single spies, But in battalions.
