GOD'S BODYKINS: Hamlet and the THIRD COMMANDMENT (series)

GOD'S BODYKINS: Hamlet and the THIRD COMMANDMENT (series)

What is Hamlet really implying when he says to Polonius,

"God's bodykins, man, better!" (2.2)

Polonius was going to arrange for lodgings for the players, and says he will seek in the castle for some kind of lodgings they deserve. Hamlet says, "better!" 

But "God's bodykins"? 

The etymology of “bodykins” may be read as “God’s little bodies” (from the English word “body” plus the middle dutch “kins” for “little” [1]). 

In other words, Eucharist. Another "minced oath." 

In Shakespeare's time, God's little bodies implies Eucharist, or those who have received it and are members of Christ's mystical body [2]. 

Consider: 

If Hamlet is saying to Polonius, 

"Eucharist, man! Treat the players better than you think they deserve!" 

this is like saying, 

“Polonius, remember Eucharist!

All of us here, including the players, have at one time or another received the Eucharist.

In doing so, Jesus is in all of us: 'God’s little bodies.' 

We’re obligated as Christians to treat one another as if Christ is in each of us,

including the players who may seem lower-class members of society.

What we do to the least of these, we do unto Jesus.

So treat them better than you think they deserve, because Jesus is in them.” 

This idea, contained in “God’s bodykins,” connects the scene to at least two key allusions or echoes in the play:

a) to failed hospitality tales (like the Rich Man and Lazarus [3], and the Owl and the Baker’s Daughter [4]) and also

b) to successful hospitality tales like the biblical tale of the stranger on the road to Emmaus [5], echoed in the Graveyard scene (5.1): 

The Emmaus stranger did for the disciples things like Jesus had done, just as the gravedigger does for Hamlet things Yorick had done. Hamlet greets the gravedigger as he might a witty Yorick. 

A kindred spirit to Yorick, the gravedigger-clown is like Yorick's bodykin (Yorick's little body). 

Alternatively, if the “bodykins” in “God’s bodykins” is related to “bare bodkin” (sharp dagger), “God’s bodykins” could mean the nails used to crucify Christ, implying: Remember the crucifixion, man! Don’t abuse these players! 

So to scold Polonius with “God’s bodykins” is not merely a random curse or minced oath, but a thematically appropriate one. 

INDEX to this series on Hamlet and the Ten Commandments:
https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2026/07/series-index-ten-commandments-in-hamlet.html

NOTES: All references to Shakespeare plays are to the Folger Shakespeare Library online versions: https://shakespeare.folger.edu

[1] Here, it may help to distinguish “bodykins” from “bare bodkin,” used elsewhere by Hamlet (3.1) with a different etymology perhaps of Celtic origins, meaning a small dagger – although the words sound the same, and although it may also have suggested the nails by which Jesus was crucified. 

“God’s bodykins” was a common curse, discouraged in sermons [2] as taking God's name (or other religious persons and things) in vain [3], and perhaps especially discouraged in England because it may likely have been a leftover from Catholic times: cursing by the Eucharist. 

In Tudor England, the First Book of Homilies (1547) had as its seventh homily, “A Sermon Against Swearing and Perjury," which warned against taking God’s name in vain (Second Commandment), abusing holy names and words, and breaking oaths. You can read the entire homily here: https://anglicanheritage.com/homilies/h107/  

See also Munro, Lucy. “Sblood!’: Hamlet’s Oaths and the Editing of Shakespeare’s Plays.” Chapter. In Shakespeare Survey 70: Creating Shakespeare, edited by Peter Holland, 123–34. Shakespeare Survey. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2017.

[2] See Rust, Jennifer R., The Body in Mystery: The Political Theology of the Corpus Mysticum in the Literature of Reformation England, Northwestern University Press, 2013. 

[3] The biblical tale of the rich man (“Dives”) and Lazarus can be found at Luke 16:19–31. For its relevance to Hamlet and the ghost mentioning his “lazar-like” skin, see my series on “The Rich Man and Lazarus – INDEX:

https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2021/02/index-series-on-rich-man-and-beggar.html

[4] The Owl and the Baker’s Daughter is basically a retelling of the Rich Man and Lazarus, with the baker and his daughter rich in bread. Instead of Lazarus as the beggar at the door, the beggar-stranger at the door is Jesus in disguise. The owl says, “Who?” The opening question of the play: “Who’s there?” 

I have posted about this a number of times over the years: 

[4.a.] Inclusivity, and the Owl as a Baker's Daughter - August 02, 2017: See especially the paragraph that begins in bold: “Ophelia's reference to the Owl as a baker's daughter”: 

https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2017/08/being-inclusive-about-religious.html

[4.b.] Part 17: Ophelia's "Owl" and "False Steward" Allusions: Why in that order? - October 03, 2023: https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2023/10/part-17-ophelias-owl-and-false-steward.html 

[4.c.] Part 42: A Living Mousetrap: Ophelia's Owl - April 22, 2024: https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2024/04/part-42-living-mousetrap-ophelias-owl.html 

[4.d.] Part 43: Ophelia's Owl and Hamlet's Mousetrap (cont.) - April 30, 2024: https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2024/04/part-43-ophelias-owl-and-hamlets.html  

IMAGES:

TOP: Hamlet with the players, from Peter Hall's 1965 RSC production of Hamlet. Photo by Reg Wilson, copyright RSC. Fair nonprofit use via RSC: https://cdn2.rsc.org.uk/sitefinity/images/productions/productions-2009-and-before/hamlet/hamlet-1965/hamlet-1965-production-gallery/hamlet_1965_hamlet_and_the_players_1965_photo_by_reg_wilson_c_rsc_208390.tmb-img-1824.jpg?sfvrsn=59fc2821_2

https://www.rsc.org.uk/hamlet/past-productions/peter-hall-1965-production

BOTTOM: The Last Supper (painted 1308-1311), with Jesus sharing Eucharist, or “God’s little bodies,” with the apostles. Duccio di Buoninsegna. the-last-supper-1311.jpg!Large  – Public domain via Wikiart.org

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Disclaimer: If and when I quote or paraphrase bible passages or mention religion in many of my blog posts, I do not intend to promote any religion over another, nor am I attempting to promote religious belief in general; only to explore how the Bible and religion influenced Shakespeare, his plays, and his age.
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Thanks for reading!
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My current project is a book tentatively titled Hamlet’s Bible, about biblical allusions and plot echoes in Hamlet.

Below is a link to a list of some of my top posts (“greatest hits”), including a description of my book project (last item on the list):

https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2019/12/top-20-hamlet-bible-posts.html

I usually post every week.