RALPH: Small birds were caught by coating branches with a sticky substance called lime. Claudius's soul is like one of these birds — the more it tries to get free, the more trapped it becomes.

SARAH: This metaphor of a trapped bird whose very struggles make it more difficult to escape suggests that Claudius's own reflections in this speech, his struggles with his conscience, are actually making the situation worse — perhaps because it's becoming clearer to him that he is unwilling to truly repent.

RALPH: As a last resort, Claudius appeals to the angels to help him, since he seems to be unable to help himself.