Her obsequies have been as far enlarg’d / As we have warranties. Her death was doubtful; / And but that great command o’ersways the order, / She should in ground unsanctified have lodg’d / Till the last trumpet.
Act V, Scene 1
Context
The priest explains to Laertes why Ophelia's funeral rites are limited: her death was suspicious (likely suicide), and only royal intervention allowed her Christian burial at all.
Analysis
The priest's syntax is careful and evasive: 'Her death was doubtful' uses a mild adjective where 'suicide' would be direct, and the passive construction 'great command o'ersways the order' avoids naming who gave the command (King Claudius). The conditional 'but that' (if it weren't for) makes the exception explicit—this burial breaks rules. The phrase 'ground unsanctified' and 'Till the last trumpet' frame the alternative in theological terms: Ophelia would have been buried in unconsecrated earth to await Judgment Day among the damned.
Essay Tip
Support a thesis that the priest's euphemistic language reveals the Church's complicity in power structures—he won't name the king who overruled doctrine, and his genteel phrasing ('doubtful,' 'warranties') disguises an institution bending its eternal rules for political convenience.