🕷️ Crawler Inspector

URL Lookup

Direct Parameter Lookup

Raw Queries and Responses

1. Shard Calculation

Query:

Response:

Calculated Shard: 85 (from laksa102)

2. Crawled Status Check

Query:

curl -X POST \
  'http://laksa085.int.ahrefs:8124/' \
  -H 'Content-Type: text/plain' \
  -H 'X-ClickHouse-Database: crawler3' \
  -H 'Authorization: Basic YXBpOg==' \
  -d 'SELECT getAhrefsURLFromUnparsed(src_unparsed) AS found_url, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(download_stamp), 0) AS crawl_time, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(props_url_first_seen), 0) AS first_indexed_time, download_http_code AS http_code, src_unparsed AS src_unparsed, src_root_hash AS src_root_hash, history_drop_reason AS history_drop_reason, meta_title AS meta_title, meta_descriptions AS meta_descriptions, attrs_boilerpipe_text AS attrs_boilerpipe_text, attrs_markdown AS attrs_markdown, attrs_readable_markdown AS attrs_readable_markdown, meta_canonical AS meta_canonical FROM crawler3.page_info_local FINAL PREWHERE (src_root_hash, src_unparsed) IN ((getAhrefsRootHashFromUnparsed(getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.themarysue.com/distracted-hamlet-meme/\')), getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.themarysue.com/distracted-hamlet-meme/\'))) FORMAT JSONEachRow'

Response:

{"found_url":"https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/distracted-hamlet-meme\/","crawl_time":1774730029,"first_indexed_time":1524679816,"http_code":200,"src_unparsed":"com,themarysue!www,\/distracted-hamlet-meme\/ s443","src_root_hash":"17844733798144582885","history_drop_reason":null,"meta_title":"\"Distracted Hamlet\" Is the Best Take on the Distracted Boyfriend Meme | The Mary Sue","meta_descriptions":["The \"Distracted Boyfriend\" stock photo meme swept the Internet. One artist gave the meme a clever literary twist and it is currently my favorite thing."],"attrs_boilerpipe_text":"This Brilliant\nHamlet\nMeme Means That All the Other “Distracted Boyfriend” Memes Can Go Home\nBy\nSep 6th, 2017, 3:30 pm\nRecommended Videos\nThe “Distracted Boyfriend” stock photo meme swept the Internet recently, resulting in endless iterations (and a triumphant girl-power ending to the memestory). One artist gave the meme a clever literary twist and it is currently my favorite thing.\nTo catch you up if you missed the ascent of Distracted Boyfriend, the original image was a basic stock photo shot to exemplify, well, a man distracted by another woman on the street while ostensibly walking with his lady.\nBusiness Insider\nexplains:\n[Photographer Antonio] Guillem’s photo has been online, on the stock image site Shutterstock, for more than a year. In the past couple of weeks, it’s exploded across the web as a meme. The exaggerated facial expressions and soft focus makes it the prototypical stock image. And the social dynamic captured by Guillem and his models make the photo a metaphor for, well, pretty much anything if you put your mind to it — making it the perfect template for a meme.\nThe denizens of the Internet, as if their wont, ran with the image’s sudden popularity and template that seemed to lend itself to all sorts of situations.\npic.twitter.com\/UeIeiQnFrt\n— Omar Essam LHC (@OmarEssamLHC)\nAugust 19, 2017\nlog me off\npic.twitter.com\/cF9E0kPb4X\n— darcie (@333333333433333)\nAugust 25, 2017\npic.twitter.com\/4Z53MgtXfW\n— edgelord allan poe (@haarleyquin)\nAugust 22, 2017\nIntrepid users even crafted a happier ending to the stock photo’s story based on other pictures featuring the same models:\nTHE CONCLUSION WEVE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR\npic.twitter.com\/48f6s5y9KG\n— *gun* (@wormpire)\nAugust 25, 2017\nThen I saw artist Binah Q., a.k.a. \nbinary-bird\n‘s take on the meme on Tumblr and couldn’t stop laughing—fellow literary nerds, this one is for us. Binah graciously gave me permission to post their Distracted Hamlet Shakespearean meme:\nIf you’re familiar with \nHamlet\n, chances are that you’re morbidly grinning along with me right now. Not to unpack this over-much, but let’s have some English major-y fun. Beyond the evocative art style that ingeniously mirrors the original meme while substituting in the Ghost, a black-suited Hamlet, and his concerned bestie Horatio, this depiction also plays well with the themes of the play.\nThe question of whether the Ghost is real or a figment of Hamlet’s fevered imagination has long been the subject of debate; though other characters also see the Ghost, Hamlet is the only one it speaks to. It’s Hamlet’s interactions with his father’s spirit that send him into a spiral of outrageous behavior and familial tragedy. This ghostly mystery is imparted via “my dad’s ghost(?)” which first got me smiling.\nThen there’s Horatio’s caption, “a friend who thinks the ghost will drive me insane.” Hamlet’s faithful friend stands by him through a lot but, y’know, first begins to worry when his friend wants to follow the Ghost:\nWhat if it tempt you toward the flood, my lord,\nOr to the dreadful summit of the cliff\nThat beetles o’er his base into the sea,\nAnd there assume some other horrible form,\nWhich might deprive your sovereignty of reason\nAnd draw you into madness?\nHoratio is the only sensible person in this entire play, BTW. We can have even more winking fun calling this “Distracted Boyfriend Hamlet” considering there’s a whole lotta subtext in the Hamlet\/Horatio relationship. The author\nMyrlin Hermes\nbreaks this down for us:\nIn Act 3, Hamlet calls Horatio “Damon dear,” a reference to the tale of Damon and Pythias, two Greek gentlemen so famously devoted to one another that each was willing to sacrifice his own life to save his friend’s. … There may be a double meaning, then, in Horatio’s declaration “I am more an antique Roman than a Dane,” as Hamlet lies dying in his arms. The brokenhearted scholar, like Romeo, means to drink from the poisoned cup and follow his beloved into death. It is only after Hamlet begs him “[i]f thou didst ever hold me in thy heart…in this harsh world draw thy breath in pain\/to tell my story,” that Horatio relents, and is spared Romeo’s fate.\nI’ll stop myself before I write an entire academic essay based on Binah Q.’s Hamlet meme but I will continue to insist that this is the finest version of “Distracted Boyfriend” you’re likely to encounter on a windswept night in Denmark. Now will someone do Macbeth?\n(image:\nbinary-bird on Tumblr\n, Shutterstock\/Antonio Guillem)\nWant more stories like this?\nBecome a subscriber and support the site\n!\n—\nThe Mary Sue has a strict comment policy\nthat forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward\nanyone\n, hate speech, and trolling.—\nHave a tip we should know?\ntips@themarysue.com\nAuthor\nKaila Hale-Stern\nKaila Hale-Stern (she\/her) is a content director, editor, and writer who has been working in digital media for more than fifteen years. She started at TMS in 2016. She loves to write about TV—especially science fiction, fantasy, and mystery shows—and movies, with an emphasis on Marvel. Talk to her about fandom, queer representation, and Captain Kirk. Kaila has written for io9, Gizmodo, New York Magazine, The Awl, Wired, Cosmopolitan, and once published a Harlequin novel you'll never find.","attrs_markdown":"[Skip to main content](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/distracted-hamlet-meme\/#wrap)\n\n[Subscribe](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/membership-account\/membership-levels\/)[Login](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/login\/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.themarysue.com%2Fdistracted-hamlet-meme%2F)\n\n- [News](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/news\/)\n- [Movies & TV](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/movies-and-tv\/)\n- [Books](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/books\/)\n- [Big on the Internet](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/big-on-the-internet\/)\n- [Comics](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/comics\/)\n- [Space](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/space\/)\n- [Gaming](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/gaming\/)\n- [About](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/about\/)\n- [Store](https:\/\/shop.spreadshirt.com\/TheMarySue)\n\n[Subscribe](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/membership-account\/membership-levels\/)[Login](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/login\/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.themarysue.com%2Fdistracted-hamlet-meme%2F)\n\n- [News](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/news\/)\n- [Movies & TV](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/movies-and-tv\/)\n- [Books](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/books\/)\n- [Big on the Internet](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/big-on-the-internet\/)\n- [Comics](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/comics\/)\n- [Space](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/space\/)\n- [Gaming](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/category\/gaming\/)\n- [About](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/about\/)\n- [Store](https:\/\/shop.spreadshirt.com\/TheMarySue)\n\n- [![Jack Reacher (Alan Ritchson) stands outside 'Reacher.'](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Alan-Ritchson-in-Reacher-season-2-e1740068473620.jpg?resize=288%2C162)](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/reacher-alan-ritchson-fight-neighbor-explained\/)\n  ### [A Man Decided to Fight Jack Reacher. And It Went About As Well As You’d Think](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/reacher-alan-ritchson-fight-neighbor-explained\/)\n- [![the pitt's doctor robby standing](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/noah-wyle_0.jpg?resize=288%2C162)](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/ice-maga-the-pitt-episode-controversy-explained\/)\n  ### [MAGA Is Furious About The Pitt This Week: Here’s Why](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/ice-maga-the-pitt-episode-controversy-explained\/)\n- [![Melbourne man witnesses the barista mishear a customer’s coffee order and just lets him mess up.](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Melbourne-man-witnesses-the-barista-mishear-a-customers-coffee-order-and-just-lets-him-mess-up.jpg?resize=288%2C162)](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/melbourne-man-witnesses-the-barista-mishear-a-customers-coffee-order-and-just-lets-him-mess-up-but-why-is-everyone-calling-it-a-good-decision\/)\n  ### [Melbourne man witnesses the barista mishear a customer’s coffee order and just lets him mess up. But why is everyone calling it a good decision?](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/melbourne-man-witnesses-the-barista-mishear-a-customers-coffee-order-and-just-lets-him-mess-up-but-why-is-everyone-calling-it-a-good-decision\/)\n- [![Dallas woman’s ‘spray tan dress’ flew over her head and she wasn’t wearing an underwear underneath.](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Dallas-womans-%E2%80%98spray-tan-dress-flew-over-her-head-and-she-wasnt-wearing-an-underwear-underneath.jpg?resize=288%2C162)](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/dallas-woman-walks-out-of-a-spray-tan-appointment-on-the-windiest-day-and-her-dress-suddenly-flew-above-her-head-i-dont-wear-underwear-underneath\/)\n  ### [Dallas woman walks out of a spray tan appointment on the windiest day and her dress suddenly flew above her head: ‘I don’t wear underwear underneath’](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/dallas-woman-walks-out-of-a-spray-tan-appointment-on-the-windiest-day-and-her-dress-suddenly-flew-above-her-head-i-dont-wear-underwear-underneath\/)\n- [![Las Vegas girl gets a DM from someone married to a man from her gym. She found photos of the girl in her husband’s phone.](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Las-Vegas-girl-gets-a-DM-from-someone-married-to-a-man-from-her-gym.-He-had-photos-of-her.jpg?resize=288%2C162)](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/las-vegas-girl-gets-a-random-dm-from-a-woman-and-finds-out-shes-being-stalked-by-a-rude-regular-at-her-gym-theres-photos-of-you-in-his-phone\/)\n  ### [Las Vegas girl gets a random DM from a woman and finds out she’s being stalked by a rude regular at her gym: ‘There’s photos of you in his phone’](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/las-vegas-girl-gets-a-random-dm-from-a-woman-and-finds-out-shes-being-stalked-by-a-rude-regular-at-her-gym-theres-photos-of-you-in-his-phone\/)\n\n# This Brilliant *Hamlet* Meme Means That All the Other “Distracted Boyfriend” Memes Can Go Home\n##\nBy\n\nKaila Hale-Stern\n\nSep 6th, 2017, 3:30 pm\n\n[![submit to reddit](<data:image\/png;base64, iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAADoAAAAUCAMAAADrw95cAAAA1VBMVEWwNyywOC3puLD+\/v67Jw+DRT+Jh4a5KRKBRD+9hnzIkIbLy8vRmY9wPTf+MjD+pqT+srD+w8H+zsyNVUuOTkg+PDqQUEuSUk2VU06VXFOZVlOoqaqurq6zfHFtPDW6KBGGSUOGTUSPT0qKUEjS0tLT0c\/z9vT69\/R1PzmaV1ONUUqNU0r+EA+BgYF+fn6ESEGUU06kYFylYV2ART2hYVuTWFGITkZQLSybV1ObWVWdZVyqcWjZ19Xw8PCtdWuKSkWxa2eKTEa0dW20s7KBSkCMSkaMTUfAtLxEAAAAA3RSTlO9vb3TS7ZZAAAA5ElEQVR4XqXUhYrDQBQF0Enui3uq7u6y7v7\/n9QmKTRDWbqZvQx3wsDhQYzJTCOBtA6QkWAkpolSjRuq56\/eO\/d\/tWm6ef34\/hqNRWjxjWi92wrQu9tqDLLRdql88\/Dy+VhZlUttOg+OhTM6tQvqEFGGasGe\/krj5inl6vDmAYK5h3ruOgEAojpdgeIFnjYB3w0Ruj7QTE2KSKqS5ukMp8zSFLhEdROo9Z\/7NcDU+al0gZJjwFosFxYMh781AFfxOU9J6TUGT4NGTyHK\/kpMuj\/dCVEWKhzWEpXafz51WRL7wUjyHmbmHRgO5t96AAAAAElFTkSuQmCC>)](https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/submit)\n\n![](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/hamletposstop.jpg?resize=640%2C297)\n\n![](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/distracted-boyfriend-meme-2.jpg?resize=640%2C427)\n\nRecommended Videos\n\nThe “Distracted Boyfriend” stock photo meme swept the Internet recently, resulting in endless iterations (and a triumphant girl-power ending to the memestory). One artist gave the meme a clever literary twist and it is currently my favorite thing.\n\nTo catch you up if you missed the ascent of Distracted Boyfriend, the original image was a basic stock photo shot to exemplify, well, a man distracted by another woman on the street while ostensibly walking with his lady. [Business Insider](http:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/distracted-boyfriend-meme-photographer-interview-2017-8) explains:\n\n> \\[Photographer Antonio\\] Guillem’s photo has been online, on the stock image site Shutterstock, for more than a year. In the past couple of weeks, it’s exploded across the web as a meme. The exaggerated facial expressions and soft focus makes it the prototypical stock image. And the social dynamic captured by Guillem and his models make the photo a metaphor for, well, pretty much anything if you put your mind to it — making it the perfect template for a meme.\n\nThe denizens of the Internet, as if their wont, ran with the image’s sudden popularity and template that seemed to lend itself to all sorts of situations.\n\n> [pic.twitter.com\/UeIeiQnFrt](https:\/\/t.co\/UeIeiQnFrt)\n> \n> — Omar Essam LHC (@OmarEssamLHC) [August 19, 2017](https:\/\/twitter.com\/OmarEssamLHC\/status\/898878505672466432)\n\n> log me off [pic.twitter.com\/cF9E0kPb4X](https:\/\/t.co\/cF9E0kPb4X)\n> \n> — darcie (@333333333433333) [August 25, 2017](https:\/\/twitter.com\/333333333433333\/status\/900931462593163264)\n\n> [pic.twitter.com\/4Z53MgtXfW](https:\/\/t.co\/4Z53MgtXfW)\n> \n> — edgelord allan poe (@haarleyquin) [August 22, 2017](https:\/\/twitter.com\/haarleyquin\/status\/899935787227262976)\n\nIntrepid users even crafted a happier ending to the stock photo’s story based on other pictures featuring the same models:\n\n> THE CONCLUSION WEVE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR [pic.twitter.com\/48f6s5y9KG](https:\/\/t.co\/48f6s5y9KG)\n> \n> — \\*gun\\* (@wormpire) [August 25, 2017](https:\/\/twitter.com\/wormpire\/status\/900923334799622144)\n\nThen I saw artist Binah Q., a.k.a. [binary-bird](https:\/\/binary-bird.tumblr.com\/post\/164915066209\/ill-stop-making-hamlet-memes-when-im-dead)‘s take on the meme on Tumblr and couldn’t stop laughing—fellow literary nerds, this one is for us. Binah graciously gave me permission to post their Distracted Hamlet Shakespearean meme:\n\n![](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/tumblr_ovok79YB4t1rc6u3wo1_540.jpg?resize=640%2C450)\n\nIf you’re familiar with *Hamlet*, chances are that you’re morbidly grinning along with me right now. Not to unpack this over-much, but let’s have some English major-y fun. Beyond the evocative art style that ingeniously mirrors the original meme while substituting in the Ghost, a black-suited Hamlet, and his concerned bestie Horatio, this depiction also plays well with the themes of the play.\n\nThe question of whether the Ghost is real or a figment of Hamlet’s fevered imagination has long been the subject of debate; though other characters also see the Ghost, Hamlet is the only one it speaks to. It’s Hamlet’s interactions with his father’s spirit that send him into a spiral of outrageous behavior and familial tragedy. This ghostly mystery is imparted via “my dad’s ghost(?)” which first got me smiling.\n\nThen there’s Horatio’s caption, “a friend who thinks the ghost will drive me insane.” Hamlet’s faithful friend stands by him through a lot but, y’know, first begins to worry when his friend wants to follow the Ghost:\n\n> What if it tempt you toward the flood, my lord,  \n>  Or to the dreadful summit of the cliff  \n>  That beetles o’er his base into the sea,  \n>  And there assume some other horrible form,  \n>  Which might deprive your sovereignty of reason  \n>  And draw you into madness?\n\nHoratio is the only sensible person in this entire play, BTW. We can have even more winking fun calling this “Distracted Boyfriend Hamlet” considering there’s a whole lotta subtext in the Hamlet\/Horatio relationship. The author [Myrlin Hermes](http:\/\/www.myrlinhermes.com\/2010\/01\/was-hamlet-gay-textual-evidence.html) breaks this down for us:\n\n> In Act 3, Hamlet calls Horatio “Damon dear,” a reference to the tale of Damon and Pythias, two Greek gentlemen so famously devoted to one another that each was willing to sacrifice his own life to save his friend’s. … There may be a double meaning, then, in Horatio’s declaration “I am more an antique Roman than a Dane,” as Hamlet lies dying in his arms. The brokenhearted scholar, like Romeo, means to drink from the poisoned cup and follow his beloved into death. It is only after Hamlet begs him “\\[i\\]f thou didst ever hold me in thy heart…in this harsh world draw thy breath in pain\/to tell my story,” that Horatio relents, and is spared Romeo’s fate.\n\nI’ll stop myself before I write an entire academic essay based on Binah Q.’s Hamlet meme but I will continue to insist that this is the finest version of “Distracted Boyfriend” you’re likely to encounter on a windswept night in Denmark. Now will someone do Macbeth?\n\n(image: [binary-bird on Tumblr](https:\/\/binary-bird.tumblr.com\/post\/164915066209\/ill-stop-making-hamlet-memes-when-im-dead), Shutterstock\/Antonio Guillem)\n\n***Want more stories like this? [Become a subscriber and support the site](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/membership-account\/membership-levels\/)\\!***\n\n*—[The Mary Sue has a strict comment policy](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/comment-policy\/) that forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward **anyone**, hate speech, and trolling.—*\n\n*Have a tip we should know? [tips@themarysue.com](mailto:tips@themarysue.com)*\n\nAuthor\n\nClose\n\n![Image of Kaila Hale-Stern](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/kaila-profile.jpeg?resize=96%2C96)\n\n[Kaila Hale-Stern](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/author\/kaila-hale-stern\/%20)\n\nKaila Hale-Stern (she\/her) is a content director, editor, and writer who has been working in digital media for more than fifteen years. She started at TMS in 2016. She loves to write about TV—especially science fiction, fantasy, and mystery shows—and movies, with an emphasis on Marvel. Talk to her about fandom, queer representation, and Captain Kirk. Kaila has written for io9, Gizmodo, New York Magazine, The Awl, Wired, Cosmopolitan, and once published a Harlequin novel you'll never find.\n\n[twitter](https:\/\/twitter.com\/kailahalestern)\n\n### Filed Under:\n[artists](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tag\/artists\/)[binah q.](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tag\/binah-q\/)[binary-bird](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tag\/binary-bird\/)[distracted boyfriend](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tag\/distracted-boyfriend\/)[english majors forever](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tag\/english-majors-forever\/)[fanart](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tag\/fanart\/)[Hamlet](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tag\/hamlet\/)[LGBTQ](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tag\/lgbtq\/)[memes](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tag\/memes\/)[Shakespeare](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tag\/shakespeare\/)[Tumblr](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tag\/tumblr\/)\n### Follow The Mary Sue:\n\nJoin the Conversation\n\n![Close Icon](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/themes\/m2019-tms\/images\/close-icon.svg)\n\nMost Popular\n\n1. [![two women standing in an elevator](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/devil-wears-prada.jpg?resize=432%2C243)](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/devil-wears-prada-2-anne-hathaway-meryl-streep-models\/?utm_source=mostpopular)\n   ### [Anne Hathaway Is Trying to Stop the Return of the 2000s Diet Culture With a Pivotal Move for 'The Devil Wears Prada 2'](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/devil-wears-prada-2-anne-hathaway-meryl-streep-models\/?utm_source=mostpopular)\n2. ### ['Daredevil: Born Again' Didn't Pull Its Punches Against Real World Issues: \"Sometimes things just take on a life of their own\"](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/daredevil-born-again-ice-anti-vigilante-task-force-explained\/?utm_source=mostpopular)\n3. ### [Ryan Gosling Has an Important Message to Hollywood: Make Movies Audiences Want to See](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/ryan-gosling-project-hail-mary-box-office-movie-theaters\/?utm_source=mostpopular)\n4. ### [Do You Need to Watch the 'Daredevil' Shows to Watch 'Spider-Man: Brand New Day'? How New York's Heroes Are Connected.](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/spider-man-brand-new-day-trailer-daredevil-born-again-spoilers-punisher\/?utm_source=mostpopular)\n\nYou may also like:\n\n- [![](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Woman-walks-into-Hermes-.jpg?resize=432%2C243)](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/hermes-birkin-bag-appointment\/)\n  ### [Woman walks into Hermès without an appointment. She can’t believe the response when she asks for a Birkin: ‘Begging to spend 10s of thousands is wild’](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/hermes-birkin-bag-appointment\/)\n- [![](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Blanca-in-Pose.jpeg?resize=432%2C243)](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/the-10-most-influential-trans-characters-in-tv-history\/)\n  ### [The 10 Most Influential Trans Characters in TV History](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/the-10-most-influential-trans-characters-in-tv-history\/)\n- [![](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/woman-uses-little-known-return-hack-to-get-T.J.-Maxx-.jpg?resize=432%2C243)](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tj-maxx-return-hack-boston\/)\n  ### [Boston woman uses little-known return hack to get T.J. Maxx items for less. People think it’s genius—but is it ethical?: ‘My kind of gambling’](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tj-maxx-return-hack-boston\/)\n- [![](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/MixCollage-28-Mar-2026-05-07-AM-9156.jpg?resize=432%2C243)](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/woman-flying-delta-to-the-usa-confronts-man-repeatedly-visiting-bathroom-then-gets-threatened-with-no-fly-list-they-rewarded-him-for-his-behavior\/)\n  ### [Woman flying Delta to the USA confronts man repeatedly visiting bathroom, then gets threatened with no-fly list: ‘they rewarded him for his behavior’](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/woman-flying-delta-to-the-usa-confronts-man-repeatedly-visiting-bathroom-then-gets-threatened-with-no-fly-list-they-rewarded-him-for-his-behavior\/)\n- [![](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Woman-walks-into-Staples.webp?resize=432%2C243)](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/staples-woman-swings-purse\/)\n  ### [Woman walks into Staples. Then a woman swings a bag at her head—all because of what she was wearing: ‘I wouldn’t leave the house dressed like that’](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/staples-woman-swings-purse\/)\n- [![](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Melbourne-man-witnesses-the-barista-mishear-a-customers-coffee-order-and-just-lets-him-mess-up.jpg?resize=432%2C243)](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/melbourne-man-witnesses-the-barista-mishear-a-customers-coffee-order-and-just-lets-him-mess-up-but-why-is-everyone-calling-it-a-good-decision\/)\n  ### [Melbourne man witnesses the barista mishear a customer’s coffee order and just lets him mess up. But why is everyone calling it a good decision?](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/melbourne-man-witnesses-the-barista-mishear-a-customers-coffee-order-and-just-lets-him-mess-up-but-why-is-everyone-calling-it-a-good-decision\/)\n\nTips\n\n[![Tips](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/themes\/m2019-tms\/images\/promo-gossip.jpg?v=1)](mailto:tips@themarysue.com)\n\n[Have a tip or story idea? Email us.](mailto:tips@themarysue.com)  [Or to keep it anonymous, click here](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/tips\/).\n\n© 2026 The Mary Sue\n\n[About Us](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/about\/)\n\n[Advertise](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/contact\/)\n\n[Privacy](https:\/\/gamurs.group\/privacy-policy)\n\n[Terms of Service](https:\/\/gamurs.group\/terms)\n\n[Accessibility](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/accessibility\/)\n\n[User Agreement](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/user-agreement\/)\n\n[Ethics & Diversity Policy](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/ethics-diversity-policy\/)\n\n[Corrections Policy](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/corrections-policy\/)\n\n[Fact Checking Policy](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/fact-checking-policy\/)\n\n[Ownership](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/ownership-policy\/)\n\n[Contact](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/contact\/)\n\n![](https:\/\/sb.scorecardresearch.com\/p?c1=2&c2=36750692&cv=3.6.0&cj=1)","attrs_readable_markdown":"## This Brilliant *Hamlet* Meme Means That All the Other “Distracted Boyfriend” Memes Can Go Home\nBy     Sep 6th, 2017, 3:30 pm\n\n![](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/hamletposstop.jpg?resize=640%2C297)\n\n![](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/distracted-boyfriend-meme-2.jpg?resize=640%2C427)\n\nRecommended Videos\n\nThe “Distracted Boyfriend” stock photo meme swept the Internet recently, resulting in endless iterations (and a triumphant girl-power ending to the memestory). One artist gave the meme a clever literary twist and it is currently my favorite thing.\n\nTo catch you up if you missed the ascent of Distracted Boyfriend, the original image was a basic stock photo shot to exemplify, well, a man distracted by another woman on the street while ostensibly walking with his lady. [Business Insider](http:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/distracted-boyfriend-meme-photographer-interview-2017-8) explains:\n\n> \\[Photographer Antonio\\] Guillem’s photo has been online, on the stock image site Shutterstock, for more than a year. In the past couple of weeks, it’s exploded across the web as a meme. The exaggerated facial expressions and soft focus makes it the prototypical stock image. And the social dynamic captured by Guillem and his models make the photo a metaphor for, well, pretty much anything if you put your mind to it — making it the perfect template for a meme.\n\nThe denizens of the Internet, as if their wont, ran with the image’s sudden popularity and template that seemed to lend itself to all sorts of situations.\n\n> [pic.twitter.com\/UeIeiQnFrt](https:\/\/t.co\/UeIeiQnFrt)\n> \n> — Omar Essam LHC (@OmarEssamLHC) [August 19, 2017](https:\/\/twitter.com\/OmarEssamLHC\/status\/898878505672466432)\n\n> log me off [pic.twitter.com\/cF9E0kPb4X](https:\/\/t.co\/cF9E0kPb4X)\n> \n> — darcie (@333333333433333) [August 25, 2017](https:\/\/twitter.com\/333333333433333\/status\/900931462593163264)\n\n> [pic.twitter.com\/4Z53MgtXfW](https:\/\/t.co\/4Z53MgtXfW)\n> \n> — edgelord allan poe (@haarleyquin) [August 22, 2017](https:\/\/twitter.com\/haarleyquin\/status\/899935787227262976)\n\nIntrepid users even crafted a happier ending to the stock photo’s story based on other pictures featuring the same models:\n\n> THE CONCLUSION WEVE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR [pic.twitter.com\/48f6s5y9KG](https:\/\/t.co\/48f6s5y9KG)\n> \n> — \\*gun\\* (@wormpire) [August 25, 2017](https:\/\/twitter.com\/wormpire\/status\/900923334799622144)\n\nThen I saw artist Binah Q., a.k.a. [binary-bird](https:\/\/binary-bird.tumblr.com\/post\/164915066209\/ill-stop-making-hamlet-memes-when-im-dead)‘s take on the meme on Tumblr and couldn’t stop laughing—fellow literary nerds, this one is for us. Binah graciously gave me permission to post their Distracted Hamlet Shakespearean meme:\n\n![](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/tumblr_ovok79YB4t1rc6u3wo1_540.jpg?resize=640%2C450)\n\nIf you’re familiar with *Hamlet*, chances are that you’re morbidly grinning along with me right now. Not to unpack this over-much, but let’s have some English major-y fun. Beyond the evocative art style that ingeniously mirrors the original meme while substituting in the Ghost, a black-suited Hamlet, and his concerned bestie Horatio, this depiction also plays well with the themes of the play.\n\nThe question of whether the Ghost is real or a figment of Hamlet’s fevered imagination has long been the subject of debate; though other characters also see the Ghost, Hamlet is the only one it speaks to. It’s Hamlet’s interactions with his father’s spirit that send him into a spiral of outrageous behavior and familial tragedy. This ghostly mystery is imparted via “my dad’s ghost(?)” which first got me smiling.\n\nThen there’s Horatio’s caption, “a friend who thinks the ghost will drive me insane.” Hamlet’s faithful friend stands by him through a lot but, y’know, first begins to worry when his friend wants to follow the Ghost:\n\n> What if it tempt you toward the flood, my lord,  \n>  Or to the dreadful summit of the cliff  \n>  That beetles o’er his base into the sea,  \n>  And there assume some other horrible form,  \n>  Which might deprive your sovereignty of reason  \n>  And draw you into madness?\n\nHoratio is the only sensible person in this entire play, BTW. We can have even more winking fun calling this “Distracted Boyfriend Hamlet” considering there’s a whole lotta subtext in the Hamlet\/Horatio relationship. The author [Myrlin Hermes](http:\/\/www.myrlinhermes.com\/2010\/01\/was-hamlet-gay-textual-evidence.html) breaks this down for us:\n\n> In Act 3, Hamlet calls Horatio “Damon dear,” a reference to the tale of Damon and Pythias, two Greek gentlemen so famously devoted to one another that each was willing to sacrifice his own life to save his friend’s. … There may be a double meaning, then, in Horatio’s declaration “I am more an antique Roman than a Dane,” as Hamlet lies dying in his arms. The brokenhearted scholar, like Romeo, means to drink from the poisoned cup and follow his beloved into death. It is only after Hamlet begs him “\\[i\\]f thou didst ever hold me in thy heart…in this harsh world draw thy breath in pain\/to tell my story,” that Horatio relents, and is spared Romeo’s fate.\n\nI’ll stop myself before I write an entire academic essay based on Binah Q.’s Hamlet meme but I will continue to insist that this is the finest version of “Distracted Boyfriend” you’re likely to encounter on a windswept night in Denmark. Now will someone do Macbeth?\n\n(image: [binary-bird on Tumblr](https:\/\/binary-bird.tumblr.com\/post\/164915066209\/ill-stop-making-hamlet-memes-when-im-dead), Shutterstock\/Antonio Guillem)\n\n***Want more stories like this? [Become a subscriber and support the site](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/membership-account\/membership-levels\/)\\!***\n\n*—[The Mary Sue has a strict comment policy](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/comment-policy\/) that forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward **anyone**, hate speech, and trolling.—*\n\n*Have a tip we should know? [tips@themarysue.com](mailto:tips@themarysue.com)*\n\nAuthor\n\n![Image of Kaila Hale-Stern](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/kaila-profile.jpeg?resize=96%2C96)\n\n[Kaila Hale-Stern](https:\/\/www.themarysue.com\/author\/kaila-hale-stern\/)\n\nKaila Hale-Stern (she\/her) is a content director, editor, and writer who has been working in digital media for more than fifteen years. She started at TMS in 2016. She loves to write about TV—especially science fiction, fantasy, and mystery shows—and movies, with an emphasis on Marvel. Talk to her about fandom, queer representation, and Captain Kirk. Kaila has written for io9, Gizmodo, New York Magazine, The Awl, Wired, Cosmopolitan, and once published a Harlequin novel you'll never find.","meta_canonical":null}

3. Robots.txt Check

Query:

Response:

4. Spam/Ban Check

Query:

Response:

5. Seen Status Check

ℹ️ Skipped - page is already crawled

📄

INDEXABLE

✅

CRAWLED

9 days ago

🤖

ROBOTS ALLOWED

Page Info Filters

Filter	Status	Condition	Details
HTTP status	PASS	`download_http_code = 200`	HTTP 200
Age cutoff	PASS	`download_stamp > now() - 6 MONTH`	0.3 months ago
History drop	PASS	`isNull(history_drop_reason)`	No drop reason
Spam/ban	PASS	`fh_dont_index != 1 AND ml_spam_score = 0`	ml_spam_score=0
Canonical	PASS	`meta_canonical IS NULL OR = '' OR = src_unparsed`	Not set

Page Details

Property	Value
URL	https://www.themarysue.com/distracted-hamlet-meme/
Last Crawled	2026-03-28 20:33:49 (9 days ago)
First Indexed	2018-04-25 18:10:16 (7 years ago)
HTTP Status Code	200
Meta Title	"Distracted Hamlet" Is the Best Take on the Distracted Boyfriend Meme \| The Mary Sue
Meta Description	The "Distracted Boyfriend" stock photo meme swept the Internet. One artist gave the meme a clever literary twist and it is currently my favorite thing.
Meta Canonical	null
Boilerpipe Text	This Brilliant Hamlet Meme Means That All the Other “Distracted Boyfriend” Memes Can Go Home By Sep 6th, 2017, 3:30 pm Recommended Videos The “Distracted Boyfriend” stock photo meme swept the Internet recently, resulting in endless iterations (and a triumphant girl-power ending to the memestory). One artist gave the meme a clever literary twist and it is currently my favorite thing. To catch you up if you missed the ascent of Distracted Boyfriend, the original image was a basic stock photo shot to exemplify, well, a man distracted by another woman on the street while ostensibly walking with his lady. Business Insider explains: [Photographer Antonio] Guillem’s photo has been online, on the stock image site Shutterstock, for more than a year. In the past couple of weeks, it’s exploded across the web as a meme. The exaggerated facial expressions and soft focus makes it the prototypical stock image. And the social dynamic captured by Guillem and his models make the photo a metaphor for, well, pretty much anything if you put your mind to it — making it the perfect template for a meme. The denizens of the Internet, as if their wont, ran with the image’s sudden popularity and template that seemed to lend itself to all sorts of situations. pic.twitter.com/UeIeiQnFrt — Omar Essam LHC (@OmarEssamLHC) August 19, 2017 log me off pic.twitter.com/cF9E0kPb4X — darcie (@333333333433333) August 25, 2017 pic.twitter.com/4Z53MgtXfW — edgelord allan poe (@haarleyquin) August 22, 2017 Intrepid users even crafted a happier ending to the stock photo’s story based on other pictures featuring the same models: THE CONCLUSION WEVE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR pic.twitter.com/48f6s5y9KG — gun (@wormpire) August 25, 2017 Then I saw artist Binah Q., a.k.a. binary-bird ‘s take on the meme on Tumblr and couldn’t stop laughing—fellow literary nerds, this one is for us. Binah graciously gave me permission to post their Distracted Hamlet Shakespearean meme: If you’re familiar with Hamlet , chances are that you’re morbidly grinning along with me right now. Not to unpack this over-much, but let’s have some English major-y fun. Beyond the evocative art style that ingeniously mirrors the original meme while substituting in the Ghost, a black-suited Hamlet, and his concerned bestie Horatio, this depiction also plays well with the themes of the play. The question of whether the Ghost is real or a figment of Hamlet’s fevered imagination has long been the subject of debate; though other characters also see the Ghost, Hamlet is the only one it speaks to. It’s Hamlet’s interactions with his father’s spirit that send him into a spiral of outrageous behavior and familial tragedy. This ghostly mystery is imparted via “my dad’s ghost(?)” which first got me smiling. Then there’s Horatio’s caption, “a friend who thinks the ghost will drive me insane.” Hamlet’s faithful friend stands by him through a lot but, y’know, first begins to worry when his friend wants to follow the Ghost: What if it tempt you toward the flood, my lord, Or to the dreadful summit of the cliff That beetles o’er his base into the sea, And there assume some other horrible form, Which might deprive your sovereignty of reason And draw you into madness? Horatio is the only sensible person in this entire play, BTW. We can have even more winking fun calling this “Distracted Boyfriend Hamlet” considering there’s a whole lotta subtext in the Hamlet/Horatio relationship. The author Myrlin Hermes breaks this down for us: In Act 3, Hamlet calls Horatio “Damon dear,” a reference to the tale of Damon and Pythias, two Greek gentlemen so famously devoted to one another that each was willing to sacrifice his own life to save his friend’s. … There may be a double meaning, then, in Horatio’s declaration “I am more an antique Roman than a Dane,” as Hamlet lies dying in his arms. The brokenhearted scholar, like Romeo, means to drink from the poisoned cup and follow his beloved into death. It is only after Hamlet begs him “[i]f thou didst ever hold me in thy heart…in this harsh world draw thy breath in pain/to tell my story,” that Horatio relents, and is spared Romeo’s fate. I’ll stop myself before I write an entire academic essay based on Binah Q.’s Hamlet meme but I will continue to insist that this is the finest version of “Distracted Boyfriend” you’re likely to encounter on a windswept night in Denmark. Now will someone do Macbeth? (image: binary-bird on Tumblr , Shutterstock/Antonio Guillem) Want more stories like this? Become a subscriber and support the site ! — The Mary Sue has a strict comment policy that forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward anyone , hate speech, and trolling.— Have a tip we should know? tips@themarysue.com Author Kaila Hale-Stern Kaila Hale-Stern (she/her) is a content director, editor, and writer who has been working in digital media for more than fifteen years. She started at TMS in 2016. She loves to write about TV—especially science fiction, fantasy, and mystery shows—and movies, with an emphasis on Marvel. Talk to her about fandom, queer representation, and Captain Kirk. Kaila has written for io9, Gizmodo, New York Magazine, The Awl, Wired, Cosmopolitan, and once published a Harlequin novel you'll never find.
Markdown	[Skip to main content](https://www.themarysue.com/distracted-hamlet-meme/#wrap) [Subscribe](https://www.themarysue.com/membership-account/membership-levels/)[Login](https://www.themarysue.com/login/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.themarysue.com%2Fdistracted-hamlet-meme%2F) - [News](https://www.themarysue.com/category/news/) - [Movies & TV](https://www.themarysue.com/category/movies-and-tv/) - [Books](https://www.themarysue.com/category/books/) - [Big on the Internet](https://www.themarysue.com/category/big-on-the-internet/) - [Comics](https://www.themarysue.com/category/comics/) - [Space](https://www.themarysue.com/category/space/) - [Gaming](https://www.themarysue.com/category/gaming/) - [About](https://www.themarysue.com/about/) - [Store](https://shop.spreadshirt.com/TheMarySue) [Subscribe](https://www.themarysue.com/membership-account/membership-levels/)[Login](https://www.themarysue.com/login/?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.themarysue.com%2Fdistracted-hamlet-meme%2F) - [News](https://www.themarysue.com/category/news/) - [Movies & TV](https://www.themarysue.com/category/movies-and-tv/) - [Books](https://www.themarysue.com/category/books/) - [Big on the Internet](https://www.themarysue.com/category/big-on-the-internet/) - [Comics](https://www.themarysue.com/category/comics/) - [Space](https://www.themarysue.com/category/space/) - [Gaming](https://www.themarysue.com/category/gaming/) - [About](https://www.themarysue.com/about/) - [Store](https://shop.spreadshirt.com/TheMarySue) - [![Jack Reacher (Alan Ritchson) stands outside 'Reacher.'](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Alan-Ritchson-in-Reacher-season-2-e1740068473620.jpg?resize=288%2C162)](https://www.themarysue.com/reacher-alan-ritchson-fight-neighbor-explained/) ### [A Man Decided to Fight Jack Reacher. And It Went About As Well As You’d Think](https://www.themarysue.com/reacher-alan-ritchson-fight-neighbor-explained/) - [![the pitt's doctor robby standing](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/noah-wyle_0.jpg?resize=288%2C162)](https://www.themarysue.com/ice-maga-the-pitt-episode-controversy-explained/) ### [MAGA Is Furious About The Pitt This Week: Here’s Why](https://www.themarysue.com/ice-maga-the-pitt-episode-controversy-explained/) - [![Melbourne man witnesses the barista mishear a customer’s coffee order and just lets him mess up.](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Melbourne-man-witnesses-the-barista-mishear-a-customers-coffee-order-and-just-lets-him-mess-up.jpg?resize=288%2C162)](https://www.themarysue.com/melbourne-man-witnesses-the-barista-mishear-a-customers-coffee-order-and-just-lets-him-mess-up-but-why-is-everyone-calling-it-a-good-decision/) ### [Melbourne man witnesses the barista mishear a customer’s coffee order and just lets him mess up. But why is everyone calling it a good decision?](https://www.themarysue.com/melbourne-man-witnesses-the-barista-mishear-a-customers-coffee-order-and-just-lets-him-mess-up-but-why-is-everyone-calling-it-a-good-decision/) - [![Dallas woman’s ‘spray tan dress’ flew over her head and she wasn’t wearing an underwear underneath.](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Dallas-womans-%E2%80%98spray-tan-dress-flew-over-her-head-and-she-wasnt-wearing-an-underwear-underneath.jpg?resize=288%2C162)](https://www.themarysue.com/dallas-woman-walks-out-of-a-spray-tan-appointment-on-the-windiest-day-and-her-dress-suddenly-flew-above-her-head-i-dont-wear-underwear-underneath/) ### [Dallas woman walks out of a spray tan appointment on the windiest day and her dress suddenly flew above her head: ‘I don’t wear underwear underneath’](https://www.themarysue.com/dallas-woman-walks-out-of-a-spray-tan-appointment-on-the-windiest-day-and-her-dress-suddenly-flew-above-her-head-i-dont-wear-underwear-underneath/) - [![Las Vegas girl gets a DM from someone married to a man from her gym. She found photos of the girl in her husband’s phone.](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Las-Vegas-girl-gets-a-DM-from-someone-married-to-a-man-from-her-gym.-He-had-photos-of-her.jpg?resize=288%2C162)](https://www.themarysue.com/las-vegas-girl-gets-a-random-dm-from-a-woman-and-finds-out-shes-being-stalked-by-a-rude-regular-at-her-gym-theres-photos-of-you-in-his-phone/) ### [Las Vegas girl gets a random DM from a woman and finds out she’s being stalked by a rude regular at her gym: ‘There’s photos of you in his phone’](https://www.themarysue.com/las-vegas-girl-gets-a-random-dm-from-a-woman-and-finds-out-shes-being-stalked-by-a-rude-regular-at-her-gym-theres-photos-of-you-in-his-phone/) # This Brilliant Hamlet Meme Means That All the Other “Distracted Boyfriend” Memes Can Go Home ## By Kaila Hale-Stern Sep 6th, 2017, 3:30 pm [![submit to reddit](<data:image/png;base64, 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>)](https://www.reddit.com/submit) ![](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/hamletposstop.jpg?resize=640%2C297) ![](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/distracted-boyfriend-meme-2.jpg?resize=640%2C427) Recommended Videos The “Distracted Boyfriend” stock photo meme swept the Internet recently, resulting in endless iterations (and a triumphant girl-power ending to the memestory). One artist gave the meme a clever literary twist and it is currently my favorite thing. To catch you up if you missed the ascent of Distracted Boyfriend, the original image was a basic stock photo shot to exemplify, well, a man distracted by another woman on the street while ostensibly walking with his lady. [Business Insider](http://www.businessinsider.com/distracted-boyfriend-meme-photographer-interview-2017-8) explains: > \[Photographer Antonio\] Guillem’s photo has been online, on the stock image site Shutterstock, for more than a year. In the past couple of weeks, it’s exploded across the web as a meme. The exaggerated facial expressions and soft focus makes it the prototypical stock image. And the social dynamic captured by Guillem and his models make the photo a metaphor for, well, pretty much anything if you put your mind to it — making it the perfect template for a meme. The denizens of the Internet, as if their wont, ran with the image’s sudden popularity and template that seemed to lend itself to all sorts of situations. > [pic.twitter.com/UeIeiQnFrt](https://t.co/UeIeiQnFrt) > > — Omar Essam LHC (@OmarEssamLHC) [August 19, 2017](https://twitter.com/OmarEssamLHC/status/898878505672466432) > log me off [pic.twitter.com/cF9E0kPb4X](https://t.co/cF9E0kPb4X) > > — darcie (@333333333433333) [August 25, 2017](https://twitter.com/333333333433333/status/900931462593163264) > [pic.twitter.com/4Z53MgtXfW](https://t.co/4Z53MgtXfW) > > — edgelord allan poe (@haarleyquin) [August 22, 2017](https://twitter.com/haarleyquin/status/899935787227262976) Intrepid users even crafted a happier ending to the stock photo’s story based on other pictures featuring the same models: > THE CONCLUSION WEVE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR [pic.twitter.com/48f6s5y9KG](https://t.co/48f6s5y9KG) > > — \gun\ (@wormpire) [August 25, 2017](https://twitter.com/wormpire/status/900923334799622144) Then I saw artist Binah Q., a.k.a. [binary-bird](https://binary-bird.tumblr.com/post/164915066209/ill-stop-making-hamlet-memes-when-im-dead)‘s take on the meme on Tumblr and couldn’t stop laughing—fellow literary nerds, this one is for us. Binah graciously gave me permission to post their Distracted Hamlet Shakespearean meme: ![](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/tumblr_ovok79YB4t1rc6u3wo1_540.jpg?resize=640%2C450) If you’re familiar with Hamlet, chances are that you’re morbidly grinning along with me right now. Not to unpack this over-much, but let’s have some English major-y fun. Beyond the evocative art style that ingeniously mirrors the original meme while substituting in the Ghost, a black-suited Hamlet, and his concerned bestie Horatio, this depiction also plays well with the themes of the play. The question of whether the Ghost is real or a figment of Hamlet’s fevered imagination has long been the subject of debate; though other characters also see the Ghost, Hamlet is the only one it speaks to. It’s Hamlet’s interactions with his father’s spirit that send him into a spiral of outrageous behavior and familial tragedy. This ghostly mystery is imparted via “my dad’s ghost(?)” which first got me smiling. Then there’s Horatio’s caption, “a friend who thinks the ghost will drive me insane.” Hamlet’s faithful friend stands by him through a lot but, y’know, first begins to worry when his friend wants to follow the Ghost: > What if it tempt you toward the flood, my lord, > Or to the dreadful summit of the cliff > That beetles o’er his base into the sea, > And there assume some other horrible form, > Which might deprive your sovereignty of reason > And draw you into madness? Horatio is the only sensible person in this entire play, BTW. We can have even more winking fun calling this “Distracted Boyfriend Hamlet” considering there’s a whole lotta subtext in the Hamlet/Horatio relationship. The author [Myrlin Hermes](http://www.myrlinhermes.com/2010/01/was-hamlet-gay-textual-evidence.html) breaks this down for us: > In Act 3, Hamlet calls Horatio “Damon dear,” a reference to the tale of Damon and Pythias, two Greek gentlemen so famously devoted to one another that each was willing to sacrifice his own life to save his friend’s. … There may be a double meaning, then, in Horatio’s declaration “I am more an antique Roman than a Dane,” as Hamlet lies dying in his arms. The brokenhearted scholar, like Romeo, means to drink from the poisoned cup and follow his beloved into death. It is only after Hamlet begs him “\[i\]f thou didst ever hold me in thy heart…in this harsh world draw thy breath in pain/to tell my story,” that Horatio relents, and is spared Romeo’s fate. I’ll stop myself before I write an entire academic essay based on Binah Q.’s Hamlet meme but I will continue to insist that this is the finest version of “Distracted Boyfriend” you’re likely to encounter on a windswept night in Denmark. Now will someone do Macbeth? (image: [binary-bird on Tumblr](https://binary-bird.tumblr.com/post/164915066209/ill-stop-making-hamlet-memes-when-im-dead), Shutterstock/Antonio Guillem) *Want more stories like this? [Become a subscriber and support the site](https://www.themarysue.com/membership-account/membership-levels/)\!* —[The Mary Sue has a strict comment policy](https://www.themarysue.com/comment-policy/) that forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward anyone, hate speech, and trolling.— Have a tip we should know? [tips@themarysue.com](mailto:tips@themarysue.com) Author Close ![Image of Kaila Hale-Stern](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/kaila-profile.jpeg?resize=96%2C96) [Kaila Hale-Stern](https://www.themarysue.com/author/kaila-hale-stern/%20) Kaila Hale-Stern (she/her) is a content director, editor, and writer who has been working in digital media for more than fifteen years. She started at TMS in 2016. She loves to write about TV—especially science fiction, fantasy, and mystery shows—and movies, with an emphasis on Marvel. Talk to her about fandom, queer representation, and Captain Kirk. Kaila has written for io9, Gizmodo, New York Magazine, The Awl, Wired, Cosmopolitan, and once published a Harlequin novel you'll never find. [twitter](https://twitter.com/kailahalestern) ### Filed Under: [artists](https://www.themarysue.com/tag/artists/)[binah q.](https://www.themarysue.com/tag/binah-q/)[binary-bird](https://www.themarysue.com/tag/binary-bird/)[distracted boyfriend](https://www.themarysue.com/tag/distracted-boyfriend/)[english majors forever](https://www.themarysue.com/tag/english-majors-forever/)[fanart](https://www.themarysue.com/tag/fanart/)[Hamlet](https://www.themarysue.com/tag/hamlet/)[LGBTQ](https://www.themarysue.com/tag/lgbtq/)[memes](https://www.themarysue.com/tag/memes/)[Shakespeare](https://www.themarysue.com/tag/shakespeare/)[Tumblr](https://www.themarysue.com/tag/tumblr/) ### Follow The Mary Sue: Join the Conversation ![Close Icon](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/themes/m2019-tms/images/close-icon.svg) Most Popular 1. [![two women standing in an elevator](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/devil-wears-prada.jpg?resize=432%2C243)](https://www.themarysue.com/devil-wears-prada-2-anne-hathaway-meryl-streep-models/?utm_source=mostpopular) ### [Anne Hathaway Is Trying to Stop the Return of the 2000s Diet Culture With a Pivotal Move for 'The Devil Wears Prada 2'](https://www.themarysue.com/devil-wears-prada-2-anne-hathaway-meryl-streep-models/?utm_source=mostpopular) 2. ### ['Daredevil: Born Again' Didn't Pull Its Punches Against Real World Issues: "Sometimes things just take on a life of their own"](https://www.themarysue.com/daredevil-born-again-ice-anti-vigilante-task-force-explained/?utm_source=mostpopular) 3. ### [Ryan Gosling Has an Important Message to Hollywood: Make Movies Audiences Want to See](https://www.themarysue.com/ryan-gosling-project-hail-mary-box-office-movie-theaters/?utm_source=mostpopular) 4. ### [Do You Need to Watch the 'Daredevil' Shows to Watch 'Spider-Man: Brand New Day'? How New York's Heroes Are Connected.](https://www.themarysue.com/spider-man-brand-new-day-trailer-daredevil-born-again-spoilers-punisher/?utm_source=mostpopular) You may also like: - [![](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Woman-walks-into-Hermes-.jpg?resize=432%2C243)](https://www.themarysue.com/hermes-birkin-bag-appointment/) ### [Woman walks into Hermès without an appointment. She can’t believe the response when she asks for a Birkin: ‘Begging to spend 10s of thousands is wild’](https://www.themarysue.com/hermes-birkin-bag-appointment/) - [![](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Blanca-in-Pose.jpeg?resize=432%2C243)](https://www.themarysue.com/the-10-most-influential-trans-characters-in-tv-history/) ### [The 10 Most Influential Trans Characters in TV History](https://www.themarysue.com/the-10-most-influential-trans-characters-in-tv-history/) - [![](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/woman-uses-little-known-return-hack-to-get-T.J.-Maxx-.jpg?resize=432%2C243)](https://www.themarysue.com/tj-maxx-return-hack-boston/) ### [Boston woman uses little-known return hack to get T.J. Maxx items for less. People think it’s genius—but is it ethical?: ‘My kind of gambling’](https://www.themarysue.com/tj-maxx-return-hack-boston/) - [![](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/MixCollage-28-Mar-2026-05-07-AM-9156.jpg?resize=432%2C243)](https://www.themarysue.com/woman-flying-delta-to-the-usa-confronts-man-repeatedly-visiting-bathroom-then-gets-threatened-with-no-fly-list-they-rewarded-him-for-his-behavior/) ### [Woman flying Delta to the USA confronts man repeatedly visiting bathroom, then gets threatened with no-fly list: ‘they rewarded him for his behavior’](https://www.themarysue.com/woman-flying-delta-to-the-usa-confronts-man-repeatedly-visiting-bathroom-then-gets-threatened-with-no-fly-list-they-rewarded-him-for-his-behavior/) - [![](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Woman-walks-into-Staples.webp?resize=432%2C243)](https://www.themarysue.com/staples-woman-swings-purse/) ### [Woman walks into Staples. Then a woman swings a bag at her head—all because of what she was wearing: ‘I wouldn’t leave the house dressed like that’](https://www.themarysue.com/staples-woman-swings-purse/) - [![](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Melbourne-man-witnesses-the-barista-mishear-a-customers-coffee-order-and-just-lets-him-mess-up.jpg?resize=432%2C243)](https://www.themarysue.com/melbourne-man-witnesses-the-barista-mishear-a-customers-coffee-order-and-just-lets-him-mess-up-but-why-is-everyone-calling-it-a-good-decision/) ### [Melbourne man witnesses the barista mishear a customer’s coffee order and just lets him mess up. But why is everyone calling it a good decision?](https://www.themarysue.com/melbourne-man-witnesses-the-barista-mishear-a-customers-coffee-order-and-just-lets-him-mess-up-but-why-is-everyone-calling-it-a-good-decision/) Tips [![Tips](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/themes/m2019-tms/images/promo-gossip.jpg?v=1)](mailto:tips@themarysue.com) [Have a tip or story idea? Email us.](mailto:tips@themarysue.com) [Or to keep it anonymous, click here](https://www.themarysue.com/tips/). © 2026 The Mary Sue [About Us](https://www.themarysue.com/about/) [Advertise](https://www.themarysue.com/contact/) [Privacy](https://gamurs.group/privacy-policy) [Terms of Service](https://gamurs.group/terms) [Accessibility](https://www.themarysue.com/accessibility/) [User Agreement](https://www.themarysue.com/user-agreement/) [Ethics & Diversity Policy](https://www.themarysue.com/ethics-diversity-policy/) [Corrections Policy](https://www.themarysue.com/corrections-policy/) [Fact Checking Policy](https://www.themarysue.com/fact-checking-policy/) [Ownership](https://www.themarysue.com/ownership-policy/) [Contact](https://www.themarysue.com/contact/) ![](https://sb.scorecardresearch.com/p?c1=2&c2=36750692&cv=3.6.0&cj=1)
Readable Markdown	## This Brilliant Hamlet Meme Means That All the Other “Distracted Boyfriend” Memes Can Go Home By Sep 6th, 2017, 3:30 pm ![](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/hamletposstop.jpg?resize=640%2C297) ![](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/distracted-boyfriend-meme-2.jpg?resize=640%2C427) Recommended Videos The “Distracted Boyfriend” stock photo meme swept the Internet recently, resulting in endless iterations (and a triumphant girl-power ending to the memestory). One artist gave the meme a clever literary twist and it is currently my favorite thing. To catch you up if you missed the ascent of Distracted Boyfriend, the original image was a basic stock photo shot to exemplify, well, a man distracted by another woman on the street while ostensibly walking with his lady. [Business Insider](http://www.businessinsider.com/distracted-boyfriend-meme-photographer-interview-2017-8) explains: > \[Photographer Antonio\] Guillem’s photo has been online, on the stock image site Shutterstock, for more than a year. In the past couple of weeks, it’s exploded across the web as a meme. The exaggerated facial expressions and soft focus makes it the prototypical stock image. And the social dynamic captured by Guillem and his models make the photo a metaphor for, well, pretty much anything if you put your mind to it — making it the perfect template for a meme. The denizens of the Internet, as if their wont, ran with the image’s sudden popularity and template that seemed to lend itself to all sorts of situations. > [pic.twitter.com/UeIeiQnFrt](https://t.co/UeIeiQnFrt) > > — Omar Essam LHC (@OmarEssamLHC) [August 19, 2017](https://twitter.com/OmarEssamLHC/status/898878505672466432) > log me off [pic.twitter.com/cF9E0kPb4X](https://t.co/cF9E0kPb4X) > > — darcie (@333333333433333) [August 25, 2017](https://twitter.com/333333333433333/status/900931462593163264) > [pic.twitter.com/4Z53MgtXfW](https://t.co/4Z53MgtXfW) > > — edgelord allan poe (@haarleyquin) [August 22, 2017](https://twitter.com/haarleyquin/status/899935787227262976) Intrepid users even crafted a happier ending to the stock photo’s story based on other pictures featuring the same models: > THE CONCLUSION WEVE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR [pic.twitter.com/48f6s5y9KG](https://t.co/48f6s5y9KG) > > — \gun\ (@wormpire) [August 25, 2017](https://twitter.com/wormpire/status/900923334799622144) Then I saw artist Binah Q., a.k.a. [binary-bird](https://binary-bird.tumblr.com/post/164915066209/ill-stop-making-hamlet-memes-when-im-dead)‘s take on the meme on Tumblr and couldn’t stop laughing—fellow literary nerds, this one is for us. Binah graciously gave me permission to post their Distracted Hamlet Shakespearean meme: ![](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/tumblr_ovok79YB4t1rc6u3wo1_540.jpg?resize=640%2C450) If you’re familiar with Hamlet, chances are that you’re morbidly grinning along with me right now. Not to unpack this over-much, but let’s have some English major-y fun. Beyond the evocative art style that ingeniously mirrors the original meme while substituting in the Ghost, a black-suited Hamlet, and his concerned bestie Horatio, this depiction also plays well with the themes of the play. The question of whether the Ghost is real or a figment of Hamlet’s fevered imagination has long been the subject of debate; though other characters also see the Ghost, Hamlet is the only one it speaks to. It’s Hamlet’s interactions with his father’s spirit that send him into a spiral of outrageous behavior and familial tragedy. This ghostly mystery is imparted via “my dad’s ghost(?)” which first got me smiling. Then there’s Horatio’s caption, “a friend who thinks the ghost will drive me insane.” Hamlet’s faithful friend stands by him through a lot but, y’know, first begins to worry when his friend wants to follow the Ghost: > What if it tempt you toward the flood, my lord, > Or to the dreadful summit of the cliff > That beetles o’er his base into the sea, > And there assume some other horrible form, > Which might deprive your sovereignty of reason > And draw you into madness? Horatio is the only sensible person in this entire play, BTW. We can have even more winking fun calling this “Distracted Boyfriend Hamlet” considering there’s a whole lotta subtext in the Hamlet/Horatio relationship. The author [Myrlin Hermes](http://www.myrlinhermes.com/2010/01/was-hamlet-gay-textual-evidence.html) breaks this down for us: > In Act 3, Hamlet calls Horatio “Damon dear,” a reference to the tale of Damon and Pythias, two Greek gentlemen so famously devoted to one another that each was willing to sacrifice his own life to save his friend’s. … There may be a double meaning, then, in Horatio’s declaration “I am more an antique Roman than a Dane,” as Hamlet lies dying in his arms. The brokenhearted scholar, like Romeo, means to drink from the poisoned cup and follow his beloved into death. It is only after Hamlet begs him “\[i\]f thou didst ever hold me in thy heart…in this harsh world draw thy breath in pain/to tell my story,” that Horatio relents, and is spared Romeo’s fate. I’ll stop myself before I write an entire academic essay based on Binah Q.’s Hamlet meme but I will continue to insist that this is the finest version of “Distracted Boyfriend” you’re likely to encounter on a windswept night in Denmark. Now will someone do Macbeth? (image: [binary-bird on Tumblr](https://binary-bird.tumblr.com/post/164915066209/ill-stop-making-hamlet-memes-when-im-dead), Shutterstock/Antonio Guillem) *Want more stories like this? [Become a subscriber and support the site](https://www.themarysue.com/membership-account/membership-levels/)\!* —[The Mary Sue has a strict comment policy](https://www.themarysue.com/comment-policy/) that forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward anyone, hate speech, and trolling.— Have a tip we should know? [tips@themarysue.com](mailto:tips@themarysue.com) Author ![Image of Kaila Hale-Stern](https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/kaila-profile.jpeg?resize=96%2C96) [Kaila Hale-Stern](https://www.themarysue.com/author/kaila-hale-stern/) Kaila Hale-Stern (she/her) is a content director, editor, and writer who has been working in digital media for more than fifteen years. She started at TMS in 2016. She loves to write about TV—especially science fiction, fantasy, and mystery shows—and movies, with an emphasis on Marvel. Talk to her about fandom, queer representation, and Captain Kirk. Kaila has written for io9, Gizmodo, New York Magazine, The Awl, Wired, Cosmopolitan, and once published a Harlequin novel you'll never find.
Shard	85 (laksa)
Root Hash	17844733798144582885
Unparsed URL	com,themarysue!www,/distracted-hamlet-meme/ s443