Repetition

In the Act 1 scene 1 Shakespeare uses repetition to show the emotion. Repetition is a tool used to emphasize something that is important for readers’ attention. When Horatio, Marcellus and Bernardo see the ghost for the first time, they want it to speak. In line 51 Horatio says: “Stay! speak, speak! I charge thee, speak!” They come to the conclusion that the ghost looks like their dead king. They want to make the ghost to speak, but ghost stays silent.

By repeating the word “speak” three times in a row, Shakespeare wants readers to pay attention to the emotion with which the person is saying it. Each time the word has to be pronounced with a different intonation. Such intonation leads readers to the conclusion of desperation and fear that Horatio experiences by talking to the ghost. Shakespeare emphasizes that the ghost is an important figure in the play and that the information it carries is very significant to the characters.