The Use Of Soliloquies In Hamlet

Hamlet's second soliloquy is found in Act 1 Scene 5, Hamlet is puzzled whether to believe his eyes and ears as he has just seen and heard the ghost of his father. Hamlet then goes on to say he will take revenge for his father even if it is the only thing he has to live for. ("I'll wipe away all trivial records, All saws of books, All forms, All pressures past, That youth and observation copied there, And thy commandment all alone shall live").

The third Hamlet soliloquy is found in Act 2 Scene 2. Hamlet is alone after talking with polonius, Rosencrantz, Guildenstern and some players. Hamlet wonders why a player has shown such emotion to something that does not effect or concern him, but he can't seem to show any feelings at all. ("What's Hercube to him, or he to Hercuba, That he should weep for her?").

Hamlet's fourth soliloquy is in Act 3 Scene 1. During this soliloquy Hamlet wonders about many things that could happen as a result of his actions. In this soliloquy Hamlet again wonders whether to commit suicide. After thinking this he then thinks about death and is troubled when thinking about what will happen after death. Hamlet wonders why people are afraid of committing suicide, he says that it maybe because people are afraid of the unknown, or the fear of terrors that await the dead. Hamlet then concludes that thinking before we act might stop us from taking action.

The fifth Hamlet soliloquy appears at the end of Act 3 Scene 3. In this scene Hamlet talks of revenge in the way of the traditional revenger in an Elizabethan Theatre. Hamlet seems to be crazed in taking revenge over his fathers death and starts to change his style of language and emotion. Hamlet says that he is going to "speak daggers" to his mother, this implies that he will not harm her physically but he will make his feelings known.

The sixth Hamlet soliloquy is at the end of Act 3 Scene 3. Hamlet has the opportunity to strike death to Claudius but hesitates because Claudius is praying while his opportunity arrives. Hamlet does not kill him while praying because he knows his father was killed in these circumstances and was unable to confess his sins before travelling to heaven. Hamlet believes that waiting to kill Claudius while he is committing a sin will send Claudius to hell for sure.

The last Hamlet soliloquy is found in the last paragraph of Act 4 Scene 4. In this soliloquy Hamlet tells us that he criticises himself because of his hesitation to revenge his fathers death. Hamlet concludes that he does not forget to take revenge, but is stopped when thinking of the consequences. After the encounter between himself and Fortinbras's army he decides to take a speedy revenge.

Claudius's first soliloquy appears in Act 3 Scene 3. Claudius is in his private chapel where Polonius, Rozencrantz and Guildernstern accompany him. After talking Polonius, Rozencrantz and Guildernstern leave Claudius, where he stays and begins to pray. Claudius prays for forgiveness from his God for killing his brother, yet he knows that he may not be forgiven while he is still married to Gertrude. Unknown to Claudius Hamlet knows of his uncle's treachery and is behind hesitating to take revenge. Although crazed Hamlet thinks about the situation and decides that it will be best to take his life at another time.

Claudius's second soliloquy is found in Act 4 Scene 3. After news of Polonius's death by Hamlet's sword, Claudius Comes to the conclusion that Hamlet has been driven mad by his fathers death and decides to send Hamlet off to England. Claudius tells Hamlet that he will be taken to England for a while, but unknown to Hamlet, Claudius has ordered Hamlets immediate execution as soon as he arrives. Without Claudius's soliloquy the audience would not know that Hamlet is to be executed. This again shows that soliloquies are important when giving insight into the future and destination of the play.

To show how effective soliloquies are I have picked Hamlet soliloquy 1 which is found in Act 1Scene 2 on lines 129-159. This first Hamlet soliloquy is very important because it allows the audience an insight into the confused and crazed character of Hamlet.

The soliloquy of Hamlets tells us that Hamlet loved his father King Hamlet very dearly, and when his father was killed.the strong bond between Hamlet and his father was broken which has devastated him. The strong love that Hamlet has for his father may contribute to Hamlet's decision to take revenge upon his uncle for his father's death. The furnace of anger locked within Hamlet is then lit so soon after his fathers death when his mother marries his Uncle Claudius.(O God, a beast that wants discourse of reason would have mourned longer-married with my uncle).The enraged state of Hamlet contributes to Hamlets later decision to take revenge upon the newly proclaimed King Claudius.

The state that Hamlet is in prompts him to extreme measures of mourning, as he becomes saddened and suicidal. Hamlet thinks about committing suicide in order to take away the pain and so that he re-join his father in a life after death.

After analysing each soliloquy I have come to the conclusion that soliloquies can be and are very important dramatic devices as they will show to the full extent how an character thinks and feels which can improve the audiences understanding of the play and allow the imagination to think about what might happen in the future after taking into account all that a soliloquy offers. Soliloquies are sometimes crucial to the audiences understanding of the play as they don't only show the feelings and emotions of Hamlet and Claudius, but they tell the story line of the play and give information in one speech which would normally be shown in 2 or 3 more scenes.

Andrew Steven Howell

English Set 1- Hamlet Soliloquies