Soliloquy: To Be or Not to Be

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William Shakespeare’s “To be, or not to be” soliloquy delivered by our lead character Hamlet is arguably the most popular soliloquy in all of literature, but is it? The question isn’t if it is the most popular in all of literature, but is it even a true soliloquy? Is it even original thought by Shakespeare? We will examine these questions in greater detail by scrutinizing articles written about these very topics and see if there is any validity to the claims. We will even look to the playwright himself, within his own work, to determine how he viewed the idea of the soliloquy.
Let us first examine a soliloquy, what it is now, what it was then, and how it has changed. James Hirsh opens his paper “Shakespeare and the History of Soliloquies” with this keen observation:
Until the middle of the seventeenth century, soliloquies in European drama represented speeches by characters and did not represent the thoughts of characters. When neoclassical canons of taste replaced Renaissance canons, it became “unnatural” for a character to talk to himself or herself, and dramatists began to employ a new kind of soliloquy that represented thought…The highest purpose of this new kind of soliloquy was to represent the innermost thoughts of a character. (1)
Since Hamlet was written at the beginning of the seventeenth century, and the term ‘soliloquy’ wasn’t used in the theater until the middle of the century, it makes little sense why scholars anachronistically apply the term to works created in prior periods. Shakespeare used the soliloquy (for lack of a better term) to represent speech rather than thought. His characters often mentioned in passing that they might be overheard, which would certainly not be possible if the soliloquy was a glimpse...

... middle of paper ...

...avesdroppers.
“To be, or not to be” isn’t a soliloquy as the term is used today. It was not meant to be delivered as the inner thoughts of our character, but as a feigned soliloquy to be a ruse against his enemies to continue to show his madness. The speech even used similar thoughts expressed in the culture of the day as a play at words, to ground the character in reality for the playgoer.

Works Cited

Barnett, George L. “Hamlet’s Soliloquy.” Modern Language Quarterly 7.1 (1946): 57-59. Literary Reference Center. Web. 19 Nov. 2013.
Hirsh, James E. "The "To Be Or Not To Be" Scene And The Conventions Of Shakespearean Drama." Modern Language Quarterly 42.2 (1981): 115-136. Literary Reference Center. Web. 1 Dec. 2013.
Hirsh, James. "Shakespeare And The History Of Soliloquies." Modern Language Quarterly 58.1 (1997): 1-26. Literary Reference Center. Web. 1 Dec. 2013.

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