Hamlet´s Soliloquies

Emphasis on ´to be or not to be´

Seminar paper from the year 2009 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Literature, grade: 1,0, University of Vechta, language: English, abstract: William Shakespeare´s ´Hamlet´ is of great cultural significance. It was published around 1600/1601, marking the transition from the 16th to the 17th century. It reflects upon spiritual and cultural conflicts of the Elizabethan period more intensively than any other literary work. It includes a variety of philosophical, theological, political, literary and general references. With Hamlet, a new form of interiority is born, 'the sense of being inside a character´s psyche and following it´s twists and turns.' This interiority is predominantly shown to the audience by the use of soliloquies. Shakespeare´s lifework includes a great variety of soliloquies. Hamlet is commonly associated with one phrase: ´to be or not to be`. In this work, I am going to give an overview of Hamlet´s soliloquies, concentrating on `to be or not to be´. Before that, I am going to briefly explain the difference between soliloquy and monologue.