Part 37: Sts. Gertrude, pilgrim's lovers, & mousetraps (Interlude D.4)
Gertrude is more associated with “mousetrap” than many scholars have allowed. Previously [1], I argued that Gertrude suspects a poison cup but doesn’t know for certain, so she signals publicly that she will drink in order to mousetrap Claudius. He tells her not to drink; she replies, “I will, my lord; I pray you pardon me.” [2] Hamlet said he would catch the conscience of the king, but first, his playlet sought to catch Gertrude’s conscience. I am grateful to Federico La Sala for mentioning saints by the name of Gertrude whose legends were familiar in the middle ages and Shakespeare’s time. These included Gertrude the Great from the monastery of Helfta, a mystic who, with other sisters, explored a spirituality in which they believed they were “brides of Christ.” In The Herald of Divine Love, she speaks of paying a debt, [3] which sounds like the widow helped by the prophet Elijah (2 Kings 4:1-7), which Hamlet associated with his mother. [4] Gertrude as a “bride of Christ” also rel...