Importance of Hamlet’s Soliloquies in Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

Answer

Importance of Hamlet’s Soliloquies in Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

or, What impression of Hamlet do you form from his soliloquies?

or, What is the significance of the soliloquies in Hamlet?

Soliloquies are crucial in William Shakespeare’s (1564-1616) tragedy, “Hamlet,” written between 1599 and 1601. Soliloquies are monologues where characters speak aloud and reveal their inner feelings, conflicts, and reflections to the audience. We found seven soliloquies from Hamlet throughout the play. In “Hamlet,” Shakespeare employs soliloquies to breathtaking effect.

Set in Denmark, the play depicts Prince Hamlet and his attempts to exact revenge against his uncle, Claudius, who murdered Hamlet’s father to usurp the throne and married Hamlet’s mother. A ghost resembling Old King Hamlet’s face urges Hamlet to take revenge on Claudius. The play is an odd sort of tragedy. It plumbs the depths of Hamlet’s indecisiveness and the tragic consequences thereof. Shakespeare employs the soliloquies effectively to bring out the tragedy of indecisiveness.

Let’s take a closer look at Hamlet’s soliloquies in the play.

Revelation of Character: Hamlet’s soliloquies deeply understand his internal struggles, doubts, and conflicts. In the first soliloquy, in Act 1, Scene 2, Hamlet is reflective and depicts how he views his position. Hamlet expresses his grief over the hasty and incestuous marriage of his mother to his uncle. His mother married his uncle within two months of her first husband’s death. Hamlet believes his mother is frail because she is a woman.

“Frailty, thy name is woman”.

All this information gives the audience a strong first impression of Hamlet as a character. The second soliloquy occurs after Hamlet meets with the ghost. Here, Hamlet seems resolute to avenge his father’s murder.

Hamlet’s Hesitation: The third soliloquy conveys Hamlet’s turmoil at the events around him. Hamlet accuses himself of cowardice for failing to exact revenge.

“Am I a coward?”

Hamlet is more determined in the fourth soliloquy. He decides to make a plan to test the king’s guilt. Hamlet sets up a play that will recreate the murder scene of his father by his uncle. Hamlet believes the play will catch his uncle’s conscience.

“The play’s the thing

Wherein I’ll catch the conscience of the king.”

Philosophy of Revenge: In Act 3, Scene 1, we get the play’s most famous soliloquy.

“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. To die—to sleep,”

This soliloquy reflects Hamlet’s contemplation of life, death, and the human condition. It reveals the troubles of taking revenge. Hamlet is burdened with his duty to take revenge and contemplates suicide to end his inner turmoil. Hamlet’s emotional turmoil makes him the most human character Shakespeare ever created.

Hamlet delivers his sixth soliloquy on his way to his mother’s closet. He finds Claudius at prayer:

“Now might I do it Pat, now is a praying

And now I’ll do’t.”

Hamlet at first thinks this will be the perfect opportunity to murder his uncle and gain his revenge but his soliloquy quickly reveals that his thoughts have brought him somewhere else. He decides not to kill him while he is praying. It reveals that Hamlet is not a man of action.

In Hamlet’s last soliloquy, he finally decides to take revenge. Here, he feels ashamed for his cowardice and by comparing himself to Fortinbras. He finally vows to act upon his feelings and states:

“O, from this time forth

My thought’d be bloody or be nothing worth”

In conclusion, soliloquies in “Hamlet” provide a window into Hamlet’s mind. They also deepen his tragic character by portraying him as a “thinking man.” They contribute significantly to the depth and complexity of the play, making “Hamlet” a timeless and compelling work.