Act 3 Scene 1

In Laurence Olivier’s 1948 film version of Hamlet, we see Hamlet’s third soliloquy of the play, which begins with the famous line: ‘to be or not to be’ (Act 3 Scene 1). In this scene, Hamlet contemplates existence in a philosophical tone that is very similar to that of Sartres. Hamlet considers suicide and finds the chief reason not to kill oneself (note he does not implicate himself but people as a whole) in the fear of not knowing what comes after death. In terms of location, this scene takes place after Polonius and Claudius have had a brief encounter. In fact, Polonius and Claudius are hiding while Hamlet gives his soliloquy. Although this particular YouTube scene does not end with the original ‘Soft you now, The fair Ophelia!—Nymph, in thy orisons Be all my sins remembered’ (Act 1 Scene 3), the audience will see Ophelia enter and attempt to give Hamlet back letters he wrote her.

Act 3 brings the climax of the play. As such, Hamlet’s soliloquy covers a whole range of tragic themes found throughout the play, which include life, death, fate, and revenge, to name a few. The fact that Act 3 Scene 1 is structured as a soliloquy is a literary device in itself. Furthermore, Shakespeare uses metaphor to enhance the characterization in Hamlet’s bleak portrayal of life. For example, the line ‘to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune’ depicts the harsh and arbitrary nature of a society that is no more than a rotten soup of bad luck. In another line, ‘the whips and scorns of time’ alludes to the humiliations that life brings, adding to the desperately sorry perspective Hamlet gives on existence as a human being. In ‘With a bare bodkin? Who would fardels bear’ Shakespeare uses alliteration of the letter ‘b’ to enhance the message that people only choose not to end their miserable lives because they are more afraid of what happens afterwards. These are only three examples in a myriad to show how literary devices are used to enhance the existentialist message Shakespeare conveys through the troubled Hamlet’s soliloquy.