To Be Or Not To Be Soliloquy Interpretation
The first line in the soliloquy
“To be, or not to be, that is the question”
has resonated through history to become one of the most famous lines in Shakespeare’s plays. What stands out about this line is that instead of saying should I or should I not act, he uses the much more general
“To be, or not to be”
which has a much more profound and deep meaning, questioning not just whether he should kill his uncle, but whether he should ‘be’ or not, live or not. The next few lines are similar in this way
“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”
instead of just applying to Hamlet, the language makes it appear as if he is speaking out to everyone, whether to be a man of action, or a man of conscience and observation.
This conflict between conscience and action dominates the soliloquy. The next four lines talk about the positives of death.
“To die, to sleep
No more, and by a sleep to say we end
The heart-ache, and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to; ‘tis a consummation
Devoutly to be wished to die to sleep!”
The text compares sleep to death, and death being finality to all the grievances that come with life. The meaning for Hamlet in these lines can be perceived in two ways. He is talking about killing his uncle, but whether he is happy with the fact he is giving his uncle the freedom from “the thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to” or he believes that even death is not strong enough of a punishment for him is unclear. On the other hand, he is possibly considering the benefits of death for himself.