🎭 I must be cruel, only to be kind - Learn English vocabulary & idioms with 'Shakespeare Speaks'

It was a windy November day. William Shakespeare is at the palace of King James I. He's having

dinner with the King and Queen.

Mr Shakespeare, have some more wine. What's this? Water? Where's my wine?!

Now dear, you know you mustn't drink too much wine. The doctor says it's bad for your health!

No wine?! Madam, you are very cruel to me. Don't you agree, Mr Shakespeare?

Your Majesty, the Queen is being cruel, only to be kind, like my character Hamlet,

the Prince of Denmark.

Does Hamlet take away the King's wine?

No, no, your Majesty: Hamlet says cruel and terrible things to his mother, the Queen.

He's angry because she married his uncle Claudius, very soon after his father's death.

Hamlet suspects that his mother, or his uncle, or both of them, killed his father,

so that they could marry each other.

Well! No wonder he's saying cruel things. But how is he going to be kind, I wonder?

Go on, go on!

Your Majesty. Hamlet tells his mother that he said these cruel and terrible things

to shock her into realising that this marriage is wrong - it's a sin. But he says she can

begin to make up for the sin and be a better person if she leaves her new husband.

That's why he says 'I must be cruel, only to be kind'.

So, again, good night.

I must be cruel, only to be kind: Thus bad begins and worse remains behind.

One word more, good lady.

We'll leave them there for now.

I know I upset her when I told her to get a haircut, but it was such a mess:

I had to be cruel to be kind.

Tell me Mr Shakespeare, does the Queen follow Hamlet's advice?

I'm afraid not, your Majesty.

She should have listened to him.

Quite right, quite right.

And you should listen to me dear. No more wine!

Hmmm. To listen, or not to listen: that is the question.