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Why Is Hamlet's First Soliloquy

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In Act III, Scene I of Hamlet by William Shakespeare, Hamlet performs his most famous soliloquy that starts off, “To be, or not to be….”(Shakespeare). This speech is arguably the most profound and thought provoking pieces in English literature. This speech comes right in the midst of the main action of the play. At the end of Act Two, Hamlet provided a more rational outlook and attitude to life, while this soliloquy contradicts his previous persona. In Act Three, Hamlet has reverted by to his dark times and into a contemplative state. It explores the themes of life and death and questions whether this is life that comes after death. Throughout the entire soliloquy, Hamlet is debating whether he wants to kill himself or to continue to struggle through life and his depression. The opening suggests death or possible …show more content…

Hamlet is trying to find the closest thing to death that humans experience, which he figures would be sleep. When people sleep, they do not feel and do not think, they do dream though. He later refers back to this phrase “to sleep, perchance to dream”(Shakespeare). He states that this is what prevents him from committing suicide, because perhaps it is not dreaming that occurs after death, but instead they “When we have shuffled off this mortal coil” and cease to exist (Shakespeare). The imaginary continues by depicting death as “The undiscover’d country from whose bourn/ No traveller returns” (Shakespeare). Hamlet is making light of death by giving it an aura of excitement and mystery. An explorer is someone who is seen as a hero who is remembered in history, and an undiscovered country gives the impression of a new start. In this part of the soliloquy, Hamlet is trying to convince himself that suicide is a brave act to commit, which contradicts his earlier statements of “Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer”

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