How Did The Change In Hamlet's First Soliloquy

Hamlet is strongly held by archetypes that can be revealed throughout the play. Death, itself, is a very strong archetype in the story exploring the social beliefs in that era; superstitions and societies loyalty to religion. Throughout the play, Hamlet experiences his main trifles over the concept of death. Reviewing the murder of his father and the task given to him to kill his uncle, Hamlet becomes fascinated with the idea of existence and afterlife.As a whole, Hamlet is primarily concerned with exploring the individual's relationship with death in which our fear of death comes from the notion that there must be something else, eliminating the fact that we can't ever know for sure if there is. This idea is explored in Hamlet’s “to be or not to be” soliloquy, which questions the righteousness of life over death in moral terms. When Hamlet utters the pained question, “to be, or not to be: that is the question / Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer / The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune / Or to take arms against a sea of troubles” (Act 3, Scene 1 59-61) there is little doubt that he is thinking of death. Although he attempts to pose such a question in a rational and logical way, he is still left without an answer of whether the “slings and arrows of outrageous fortune” can be eliminated since life after death seems so uncertain. All of this mirrors aspects of human nature as man has always questioned the meaning of life and the events that occur after. Theoretically, one will never understand the full nature of our

Hamlet recognizes that suicide is a sin in the eyes of God, so consequently wishes that he could simply cease to exist. In doubting that life is worth all the hardships one must face, Hamlet briefly relishes in the concept of death, equating it to nothing more than a sleep wherein one can be rid of the “heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks” of physical life (III.i.70). Though immediately thereafter Hamlet acknowledges the startling unknown, and the fact that one does not know what comes after death. Hamlet feels a great deal of uncertainty, which surely enhances his overall frustration. Herein lies Hamlet’s reservations in regards to committing suicide: it is a sin, and the afterlife may prove to be more unpleasant than life itself.

When Hamlet is set up and spied on by Claudius and Polonius, he examines the moral aspect of suicide in a painful world. He opens his soliloquy with asking a simple question, "To be, or not to be:that is the question:" (III. i. 58), that is, whether to live or to die. He then begins to question whether it is nobler to suffer life and the, "slings and arrows of outrageous fortune," (III. i. 66), or to take ones life and end one's suffering. He compares death to sleep and at first thinks that

Next, in one of the most famous soliloquies in the English language, Hamlet again contemplates the subject of suicide, but he does not do so on impulses of emotion. Instead, his contemplation is based on reason. “To be or not to be, that is the question: whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer outrageous fortune…or end them. To die, to sleep- no more- and by a sleep to say we end the heartache…’Tis a consummation devoutly to be wished. For who would bear the whips and scorns of time…who would fardels bear, to grunt and sweat under a weary life, but that the dread of something after death, the undiscovered country from whose bourn no traveler

Hamlets contemplation of ending his life shows an inward conflict within himself. In his first soliloquy, he debates whether he should commit suicide. "To be, or not to be- / that is the question: / whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer/ the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, / or to take arms against a sea of troubles and by opposing, end them" (3.1. lines 64-68 Shakespeare). He questions why he should live with all of this chaos but overcomes this internal conflict because he acknowledges that in his religion suicide is a sin. “O, that this too, too sullied flesh would melt, / Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew, / or that the everlasting had not fixed His canon 'gainst (self-slaughter). O God! God!” (1.2. lines 133-136 Shakespeare). This soliloquy signifies the reality of Hamlet s internal conflict and also shows the reality of his external conflict with the society he is surrounded by. This declamation establishes

Hamlet was so obsessed with his lack of action and the worthlessness of life that he contemplates suicide asking, "For who could bear the whips and scorns of time" ( III. i. 69-70). He believes he would be foolish to suffer through his life when he will simply be

It is clear that the death of his father and his mother 's remarriage has taken an enormous mental toll on him and that he desires death to free himself of the burden laid upon him by the ghost. He romanticizes it, saying that suicide is the brave and courageous option akin to “[taking] arms” against troubles. However, he can’t commit to the idea of death, saying “To sleep, perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub / For in that sleep of death what dreams may come” (III, i, 66-67). He craves death, which would allow him to escape all the “natural shock / that flesh is heir to” (III, i, 63-64) but the more he ponders it, the further he is from reaching a decision. Ironically, the argument within his mind about how he should free himself of the ghostly burden — murder, or death — is impeding him from carrying out any action on it. At the end of his most famous soliloquy, Hamlet hasn’t made any decisive choice and therefore is in limbo regarding death due to his overarching rationale. His inaction proves “[his] endless reasoning and hesitation and the way in which the energy of his resolutions evaporates in self-reproaches” (Morgan 259). Moreover, Hamlet tackles the decision of interpreting what is real and what is false when he questions the ghost’s true nature. At first, Hamlet is certain

How far would you go for revenge? How insane are you willing to become? Unfortunately, he tragic ending of Shakespeare’s Hamlet did not satisfy Hamlet’s, vengeful heart. As a young prince, Hamlet must deal with his manipulative uncle, inconspicuously intelligent mother, and bring justice to his murdered father. It is through Hamlet’s seven soliloquies that he reveals how he evolves from endlessly seeking for revenge to stoic acceptance.

It is shown throughout this play that Hamlet Has a changing opinion of death and that his opinion is changed by the people he is near. At the beginning of the play, Hamlet is a miserable man who believes that he has no reason to be alive. The first time that this opinion is shown is when hamlet says “O cursed spite/that ever I was born to set it right” this shows that even after finding out that his father was murdered by Claudius he sees this revenge scheme as a chore more than something he must do. Hamlet shows his hatred for his own life in many ways including the “to be or not to be” soliloquy which focuses on whether or not his life is even worth living.

Hamlet feels the constant need to reassure himself that his beliefs are correct, especially in his soliloquies about death. It is stated, “O that this too too solid flesh would melt, Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew!...” (Act 1, Sn 2, 129-1559). Hamlet discusses how things were not good and he was just in mourning and despair in this soliloquy. In the noted to be or not be soliloquy he continues the decisions on death, “To be, or not to be: that is the question: Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer, The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them?...” (Act 3, Sn 1, 56-89). As Hamlet continues through the play he gives up in a sense because of everything happening to the people he was close to and to him in general. He lost the people he cared about due to his uncle’s careless actions and his mother playing along with it. When he actually got emotion from his uncle things were only proven to be more complicated because his father’s ghost was correct. His soliloquies prove how Hamlet was overly depressed and wanted to die, although depression during this time period is completely different compared to now.

The soliloquies in Hamlet serve as a way for readers to understand Hamlet’s innermost thoughts and feelings and allows them to determine what Hamlet is thinking and whether or not he is sane. When Hamlet delivers his soliloquies throughout the play, readers are able to view his inner thoughts that he does not disclose to other characters. For example, one of Hamlet’s soliloquys reveals how he believes himself to be “a rogue and peasant slave” (Act 2 Scene 2 Line 560) who should be ashamed of his uncertainty and inability to act upon avenging his father, as well as Hamlet’s decision to put on a play to make sure that Claudius is indeed the one who killed Old King Hamlet. This glimpse into Hamlet’s mind gives readers insight into what he is feeling,

Throughout the play, Hamlet’s understanding of death and the afterlife shifts to accommodate his emotional state and the needs of his conscience. Deep down, Hamlet doesn 't believe in a true “afterlife”. After seeing the sins of man, he has a hard time believing that we deserve such a fate and seems to almost hope that all that awaits is peaceful nothingness. However, certain situations cause Hamlet to shift his views as a way to console his conscience and help him to avoid facing his own problems. Hamlets complex conscience can be dissected through the shifting views on the afterlife.

In Hamlet's soliloquy in Act 3, scene 1, he presents his most rational and dominating scrutiny of the moral authority to take one's own life. He presents the dilemma of whether to commit suicide and escape one's frustrations in life, or to live because of fear of the after life. "To be or not to be-that is the question:/ Whether it is nobler in the mind to suffer/ The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, / Or to take arms against a sea of troubles" (3.1. 64-7). He decides that the only reason people choose to live is because they fear the afterlife and it's consequences. "When he himself might his quietus make/With a bare bodkin? Who would fardels bear, / To grunt and sweat under a weary life, / But the dread of something after

In a following speech Hamlet’s disposition towards the world persists, yet his attitude towards death has undergone a transformation. Previously, Hamlet was quick to proclaim his desire to die, but by the third act he’s become uncertain. This hesitation becomes apparent in Hamlet’s “To be or not to be” speech (3.1.56-90). With those opening words, Hamlet debates whether he should exist or not. The fact that this is still a question for him shows that he continues to be displeased with life. Hamlet asks himself, “Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing end them? To die to sleep.” This reveals a new concern that Hamlet has, he doesn’t ask what is best for him to do, but rather what is nobler, which makes it apparent that he’s concerned with maintaining his character. Even though he maintains the desire to escape the world and the experience in it, he still cares about the image that he leaves behind. Subsequently, Hamlet uses war-like diction, comparing life to war with “slings and arrows” which makes life intolerable. This just reaffirms the ideas Hamlet has had throughout the play, however, a shift transpires when he mulls over the idea that death is like being asleep. A problem arises when he realizes that even when you sleep you experience, “To sleep; perchance to dream: Ay, there’s the rub.” This could be easily misinterpreted as Hamlet hoping to dream, but perchance

Hamlet is an intensely cerebral character marked by a desire to think things through and pick situations apart. As such, for the first three and a half scenes of Hamlet, Hamlet broods over his father’s death instead of taking action against Claudius, his father’s murderer. Hamlet finally acts because he experiences three intense emotional jolts that allow him to view his situation from a new perspective and spur him to action. Together, these emotional experiences alter his personal philosophy about the nature of death and God’s relationship with creation, and compel him to finally take decisive action.