Amleth
Rosanne said:
Card means the "pattern" or "map" of gentry. It could also be read as "chart." The idea is that Laertes is someone whom others would follow to become gentry. Laertes would provide the map, or chart, or pattern.
Calendar is probably used based on its Latin root meaning of "account book," which gives Ostrick saying that Laertes is the "full account" of gentry.
Both words are rather ambiguous, and that is probably intentional from Shakespeare, in keeping with the affected style of the speech in that passage. It isn't supposed to make easy sense, when Ostrick blathers. But what Ostrick is basically trying to say, is that Laertes provides the "chart" and "account" for others, if they want to be proper gentlemen, too.
The word "card" had another connotation in Elizabethan times, that's probably worth mention. Queen Elizabeth issued so-called "cards" of herself, which showed how to represent her in published illustrations. It was to insure she was depicted in a flattering way in popular publications, and in depictions that weren't directly supervised by the court. Other members of the nobility followed suit, ahem, and issued cards for illustrating themselves, as well. So card with the meaning "pattern of a person" had extra significance in those days.
Patterns for artwork were used pretty often then, just as today, even for major artworks. A nice example is a "procession" painting of Queen Elizabeth I from about 1600, that shows her being borne along by her courtiers. It's easy to tell, about the courtiers, that their legs have been painted from patterns, and are not their actual legs. Several of them have identical legs, except for the color of the stockings. Also, an odd thing about it, in some cases you'll see what looks like a right foot on the ground, but follow it up, and it's a left leg.
