When the first act opens, Bernardo appears to relieve Francisco from duty, but it is so dark they both fearfully call out "who's there?" until they realize it's just guardsmen. We find out that the guardsmen have been spotting the ghost of King Hamlet.
Figurative - the channels are not literal or physical.
<span>One of the most oppressive physical elements about Esperanza's situation that she reacts to is actually the poverty that she and her family faces, and the way that this traps them in their house which Esperanza feels so ashamed of and also gives Esperanza such an intense desire to improve herself and study so that she can escape and buy her own house.</span>
