Hamlet Interpretation Essay

Submitted By kalos55
Words: 425
Pages: 2

Carlos Jalomo
PD/AM
English
My Interpretation
The interpretation I did was on lines 52-89 of act III scene I. This begins with Hamlet’s famous quote “To be or not to be.”
Hamlet enters, speaking thoughtfully and agonizingly to himself about the question of whether to commit suicide to end the pain of experience: “To be, or not to be: that is the question.” He says that the miseries of life are such that no one would willingly bear them, except that they are afraid of “something after death.” Because we do not know what to expect in the afterlife, we would rather “bear those ills we have,” Hamlet says, “than fly to others that we know not of.”
“To be, or not to be” is the most famous line in English literature. One reason is that they are a stunning example of Shakespeare’s ability to make his characters seem three-dimensional. The audience senses that there is more to Hamlet’s words than meets the ear—that there is something behind his words that is never spoken. Or, to put it another way, the audience witnesses signs of something within Hamlet’s mind that even he isn’t aware of. Hamlet is a fictional character who seems to possess a subconscious mind.
In the first place, Hamlet doesn’t talk directly about what he’s really talking about. When he questions whether it is better “to be, or not to be,” the obvious implication is, “Should I kill myself?” The entire soliloquy strongly suggests that he is toying with suicide and perhaps trying to work up his courage to do