To Be Or Not To Be

1. "To be or not to be" soliloquy

1 Modernize the content:

Is it better to live or to die? Would it make more sense to put up with all of the unfortunate events, you can't control, that life throws at you or end all of my troubles by just ending them? Sleeping, that is all that death is. Death is like a sleep that will end all troubles of my life. It is something to hope for. Once I sleep I may dream, but I can't predict what kind of dreams may occur. That is one thing that I may be worried by. Who would really put up with the scorns and troubles of life; abuse and put downs from the proud, problems with troubled relationships, when has one endured enough to say enough, and end it all at once? Who would want to struggle through a painful life unless they were afraid to die? We question, without answer, what happens after death. The uncertainty causes us to rather live a painful life than to die. Any bravery that we have becomes weakness by too much thinking. Things that should be done are not done as they should. Here comes Ophelia, remember I have done wrong.

2. At the time of this soliloquy, Hamlet is standing alone in castle talking and looking at him self in the mirror. No one else is around at this point.

3. In his soliloquy Hamlet is contemplating suicide. He can't deal with what is going on anymore. He is still depressed about his father's death and the Claudius has taken his fathers wife and his position in the castle. He is also contemplating the reasons why people may choose to live sometimes rather than to just end their life. He thinks that people only chose to live because they may be afraid of what will happen after they die.

4. This soliloquy is debating the theme of suicide and death which are both important themes of the play. Death is a major focus in his speaking.