What does Hamlet mean when he said " Not so much my lord; I am too much in the sun."? Act 1 scene 2 line 69

Answer 1

Well, yes, he feels that he's too much in the spotlight and he is playing on his role as "son" of a dead king and "adopted" son of his successor/assassin.

But most anytime Shakespeare has a character talk about the sun, he's also using a code word for king. Just as the Sun was the ruler of the sky, the King was the ruler of his kingdom. So Hamlet is saying (as Claudius well knows), I'm too much in the presence of you, the king. Remember he has been out of the country and has wanted to keep his distance from his beloved father's brother/successor.

This use of "sun" as a code word for the king is just as common as the comic use of "horns" to indicated that a man has been cuckolded by his wife.

Answer 2

Yes, as others have noted, Hamlet is commenting he is too much in the spotlight, but it is critical to note that he is making a pun with the words sun and "son": He is expressing his bitterness at his situation: he is the son of the dead king, and Claudious is now his surrogate father by his relationship with Gertrude. In this early scene, we are seeing some of the first of Hamlet's word play, which is symbolic of how he is always seeing the many sides to a situation, which is one of the main reasons he struggle so much with what to do.

Answer 3

oh oh I know this! he says that he is the guy's son too many times, cause the guy's the step-dad, the uncle (I think he's the uncle), and now he's the king, which is like the patriarch of the country, whatever, you get what I mean, so Hamlet is junior to him in too many ways.

Answer 4

Claudius is remarking that he is gloomy, and Hamlet is responding that he is in the spotlight too much.

Answer 5

it is a contrast from his 'dreary' mood. hamlet was the original 'goth kid'.

Answer 6

he is to much in the public eye so his action will be scrutinized