Diana L. Eck is an American scholar of religious studies and professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies at Harvard University. She is also the Director of <em>The Pluralism Project</em> at Harvard.
In this excerpt, the order in which she presents the items serves a rhetorical purpose. The items are listed in order of how "accepted" they are in mainstream American society. Christianity (a cross) is well-accepted, while Judaism (yarmulke) is still omnipresent, but more contentious. As she goes on, the list would appear more and more exotic to American readers. The question therefore is successful in testing the limits of religious plurality.
The advice that Ophelia receives from her brother Laertes is extremely different from the advice her father Polonius gives her. Laertes gently reminds Ophelia that Hamlet might really love her, but since he is in line for the throne he and might not actually be able to choose his wife for himself. He warns her to keep her affection "Out of the shot and danger of desire," meaning to not give in to her desires, otherwise she might ruin herself for future potential husbands. Polonius' advice is a little bit more aggressive. He scolds Ophelia for giving Hamlet too much attention, and says that there is no way Hamlet actually loves her. He says that his vows she "<span>must not take for fire", meaning she should not take his words for true passion. The overall difference between Laertes and Polonius is that Laertes is much gentler, and believes Hamlet might actually have feelings for her right now, and Polonius is putting more blame on Ophelia, saying there is no way Hamlet actually likes her.
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Hey im confused what r u trying to ask . i am happyto help but im confused .Where ??
