Analysis of "To be or not to be", Hamlet

It is the most famous monologue all over the world, but even if we refer to it as a monologue, to tell the truth it is a soliloquy. It is a form of writing which implyes that somebody is talking to himself pretending that nobody else can hear what crosses his mind, so it is a very personal and intimate dialogue with himself. In this case Hamlet is talking to himself. It was written in the years 1600-1601. The soliloquy takes place in a room in the castle.

Right from the start, the intelligent reader understands the structure of the text: it has been organized according to posing a question, and the playwright seems to offer two options.

The two options represent two different ways of answering the question.

Each question gives the opportunity to formulate another one.

Pantuation plays a very important role, because the protagonist poses himself a question, that is “to be or not to be?”. To be is a perception verb that includes all the other dimension verbs (biological, philosophical). The structure of the monologue is introduced by a question, and is immediately followed by two options: to remain alive, and therefore suffer, or to put an end to his life, surrender. So, the center of investigation is life.

Hamlet perceives life as a battle, as something human beings have to fight to survive.

The main semantic field is the semantic field of fighting.

Life and death are the key words that create an argumentative contrast.

Hamlet considers all the possible sides of the two options, starting with the option “to die”.

The verb to sleep is a metaphor for death. Death is a never ending sleep, and dying will be a way to put an end to all our suffering and heartache, that come from the flesh.