You are here

All Site ContentHamletAct 5Scene 1
Back to the Play
"unyoke"
Metaphor
Act 5,
Scene 1
Lines 48-52

An explanation of the metaphorical use of the word “unyoke” in Act 5, Scene 1 of myShakespeare’s Hamlet.

Second Gravedigger

Who builds stronger than a mason, a shipwright, or a carpenter?

First Gravedigger   

Ay, tell me that, and unyoke.    

Second Gravedigger   

Marry, now I can tell.

First Gravedigger   

To't.

Second Gravedigger   

Mass, I cannot tell.

To unyoke the oxen means to stop work and rest the oxen. Here, the First Gravedigger is telling his colleague that after he has answered this question he can quit laboring his brain and give it a rest.