Hamlet’s second soliloquy (2.2)
Now I am alone. O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I! (555)
Is it not monstrous that this player here,
But in a fiction, in a dream of passion,
Could force his soul so to his own conceit
That from her working all his visage wann'd,
Tears in his eyes, distraction in's aspect, (560)
A broken voice, and his whole function suiting
With forms to his conceit? and all for nothing!
For Hecuba!
What's Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba,
That he should weep for her? What would he do, (565)
Had he the motive and the cue for passion
That I have? He would drown the stage with tears
And cleave the general ear with horrid speech,
Make mad the guilty and appall the free,
Confound the ignorant, and amaze indeed (570)
The very faculties of eyes and ears. Yet I,
A dull and muddy-mettled rascal, peak,
Like John-a-dreams, unpregnant of my cause,
And can say nothing; no, not for a king,
Upon whose property and most dear life (575)
A damn'd defeat was made. Am I a coward?
Who calls me villain? breaks my pate across?
Plucks off my beard, and blows it in my face?
Tweaks me by the nose? gives me the lie i' the throat,
As deep as to the lungs? who does me this? (580)
Ha!
'Swounds, I should take it: for it cannot be
But I am pigeon-liver'd and lack gall
To make oppression bitter, or ere this
I should have fatted all the region kites (585)
With this slave's offal: bloody, bawdy villain!
Remorseless, treacherous, lecherous, kindless villain!
O, vengeance!
Why, what an ass am I! This is most brave,
That I, the son of a dear father murder'd, (590)
Prompted to my revenge by heaven and hell,
Must, like a whore, unpack my heart with words,
And fall a-cursing, like a very drab,
A scullion!
Fie upon't! foh! About, my brain! I have heard (595)
That guilty creatures sitting at a play
Have by the very cunning of the scene
Been struck so to the soul that presently
They have proclaim'd their malefactions;
For murder, though it have no tongue, will speak (600)
With most miraculous organ. I'll have these players
Play something like the murder of my father
Before mine uncle: I'll observe his looks;
I'll tent him to the quick: if he but blench,
I know my course. The spirit that I have seen (605)
May be the devil: and the devil hath power
To assume a pleasing shape; yea, and perhaps
Out of my weakness and my melancholy,
As he is very potent with such spirits,
Abuses me to damn me: I'll have grounds (610)
More relative than this: the play 's the thing
Wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king.
rogue ] Useless vagrant.
peasant ] A person of little integrity (see The Taming of the Shrew 4.1.113).
player...Hecuba ] This passage is often very difficult for students, and standard annotations leave them wanting. So it is best paraphrased:
Is it not horribly unfair that this actor, pretending to feel great passion, could, based on what he has conceived in his own mind, force his own soul to believe the part that he is playing, so much so that all the powers of his body adapt themselves to suit his acting needs, so that he grows agitated ("distraction in's aspect"), weeps, and turns pale ("wann'd")? And why does he carry on so? Why does he pretend until he truly makes himself weep? For Hecuba! But why? What are they to each other?
Hamlet wishes he could arouse his passions so.
Hecuba ] Trojan queen and heroine of classical mythology. Earlier in 2.2 Hamlet asks the First Player to recite a monologue retelling Hecuba's response to the death of her husband, King Priam. The Player tells us that Hecuba's grief was profound and "Would have made milch the burning eyes of heaven/And passion in the gods" (505-6). The contrast between Gertrude and Hecuba should be noted. To Hamlet, Hecuba has responded appropriately to her husband's death, while Gertrude has not.
cue for passion ] The reason for strong feelings.
Make mad the guilty ] "By his description of the crime he would drive those spectators mad who had any such sin on their conscience, and would horrify even the innocent" (Kittredge 68),
amaze ] Plunge into confusion.
muddy-mettled ] Dull-spirited.
peak ] Moping about; languishing, unable to act.
John-a-dreams ] A nickname for a dreamer.
unpregnant ] "Pregnant" here does not mean "with child", but rather, quick or ready. Thus to be "unpregnant" is to be unable to act quickly.
pate ] Head.
swounds ] God's wounds.
pigeon-liver'd ] In the Renaissance, the gentle disposition of the Dove was explained by the argument that it had no gall and thus no capacity to feel resentment or to seek revenge. The liver also was seen as the body's storehouse for courage.
region kites ] The birds of prey in the region, circling in the sky, waiting to feed. If Hamlet were not "pigeon-liver'd" (583) he would have long ago fed Claudius to the hawks.
kindless ] Unnatural.
drab ] A whore.
scullion ] A kitchen helper, either man or woman but usually a woman. It was a term used to show contempt. One should note that in the second quarto, scullion was actually "stallyon", which means a male whore. Scholars are still undecided on the matter, but scullion is the more generally accepted of the two.
proclaim'd their malefactions ] Announced their evil deeds.
blench ] Flinch.
Source: http://shakespeare.about.com/library/weekly/aa061500b.htm
2.2 Soliloquy Response
Write an explication (one page, 300 words) of this soliloquy. An explications is not a paraphrase or a summary, but explains and explores a text thoroughly. You will explain what Hamlet is saying and how he says it.
When explaining “what Hamlet is saying,” remember that the soliloquy is a tool that Shakespeare uses to show Hamlet’s mind at work. Ask yourself “what does this reveal about Hamlet?” and “how does what he says fit into the work as a whole?” Deal with the surface and the depths.)
When explaining “how he says it,” pay close attention to the language (particular word choices, sentence structure, etc.) and imagery (including figurative language, such as metaphors). Ask yourself “what does how he speaks and the language that he uses reveal about Hamlet?”
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19 comments:
Hamlet is very hard on himself. He beats himself down by calling himself all kinds of names like when he says “What an ass am I!” He is questioning what would Hecuba do if he were in the same situation. He believes that King Priam (or the actor playing him) in all his might as king of troy would in the same situation as he were placed in would “drown the stage in tears” , basically saying that it is too much for him to bear. Hamlet is very angry with Claudius and further discusses how much he wants him dead. He feels nervous in doing this and therefore asks “am I a coward?” he is also confused. He wonders why he feels like this when he is being insulted and when his father has been murdered. Because he is confused, he decides to test the words of the ghost. Because he dislikes, even hates his uncle and now father Claudius he hopes that the ghost is right so that way the murder will be justified because at this point he is going to murder Claudius no matter what.
Hamlet says this in order to present the fact that he is a useless to some and that he has little integrity. He does this because at this moment he feels that this is where he stands and his opinions stand in the eyes of his mother and uncle. He then refers to his uncle who tricked his mother. How he pretended to be distraught over the king’s death, but when it was actually he who committed the crime. Shakespeare has him word it like this because he wants Hamlet’s uncle to seem more of a villain and more soulless. Hamlet mentions Hecuba because he wished his mother was like this woman. Right now Hamlet vies his mother as a whore. However it is not only because she married his uncle so quickly after his father’s death. Hamlet wants to tell his mother what he thinks, but he knows better not too, but the knowledge is ripping him apart. He knows he is a dreamer and that is why he dreams of something better for himself and mother. He can not say anything against his uncle because he knows he is just a dreamer and whatever he says will not hold any merit. Hamlet knows to the king he is nothing more than a coward who is weak while he the uncle is strong the villain that triumphs over everyone. Shakespeare writes him this way because he wants to show that Hamlet knows his weaknesses, but still he knows that his uncle is stronger than him even if he is a villain. Hamlet knows that is dumb of him to exact revenge for his father or at least ghost. However Hamlet feels as though this is his duty and has accepted that he will be condemned to hell and forced to face torture for this act. Hamlet however comes up with a plan to have ° play put on depicting what his uncle did to his father. He thinks that if his uncle reacts then he must have preformed the deed so he will kill or at least that at the moment is what he believes. Hamlet knows that he may seem to catch the conscience of the king, but will not know if the conscience is true. Shakespeare rights him like this to show that while Hamlet is brilliant he is still naïve when it comes to reading people. Shakespeare also does this to show the reader that Hamlet knows that his uncle is stronger than him. This plays into the whole because it sets up the way in which Hamlet will plan and execute the demise of his uncle.
Throughout this soliloquy of hamlet’s, it is easy to tell that he feels very alone and also he is beating himself up, not making himself feel any better he compares his mother to Hecuba, wondering what Hecuba would do in the same situation. He wants to confront his mother, for he has little faith in her at this time because of the marriage. It is easy to see how little self esteem/integrity he has for himself. He has nothing but ill feelings towards his uncle, he cannot fathom what has happened, but knows there is nothing he can do or say to change it. He believes his father was murdered, holding the responsibility at the feet of Claudius. He see’s Claudius as a villain. Hamlet also points out even though the “devil hath power’ out of his weakness he can catch the conscience of the king.
At this point in the story Hamlet is most depressed than he has ever been thought out the book. In this soliloquy hamlet explains his feelings; relationship to the situation and Claudis relationship to his mother. Hamlet is constantly putting down on him self for instance when he says “I am alone.” and “all for nothing.”. Hamlet tells us that Claudis does not even have the same feelings for his mother to what hamlet has to his mother. He wonders if he would even cry for her. Hamlet wonders if he is a coward for the actions that his is doing or not doing to make this situation right. Hamlet then goes on in saying that his is prompted to revenge his father by heaven or hell. He is going to seek revenge for his father no matter what he has to do even if it means sending him to hell. Calling himself brave for what he just said. Hamlet does not want to trust the ghost because it,” Maybe the devil”. So he needs to, “have grounds more relative to this”. He needs to find better evidence than the ghost before he makes any further actions. This final decision that Hamlet makes shows the reader that he does not trust the devil. And that hamlet is the kind of guy to make sure of what he is doing before he performs a sin.
Hannah Cain
Hamlet feels useless and unworthy of his life. He is not only angered by his mother and uncle re-marrying so early, he is also upset that his uncle had faked the mourning of his brother’s (Hamlet’s father’s) death. Hamlet feels unworthy of his life because he thinks he is a coward for not speaking up to his uncle. Although Hamlet wants to speak bravely and honestly to his uncle he knows that even though his deed will be good and honest, his uncle’s evilness will still over shadow him and he knows that his uncle is more powerful than any words he will ever speak. Shakespeare has Hamlet speak about himself this way to show to the audience that he has zero self esteem. Hamlet feels that his uncle has murdered his father and because he is scared to voice his opinion Hamlet is going to unconsciously make his uncle confess. Hamlet plans on doing this through a play that will include a murder. Hamlet will be able to prove if his uncle killed his father by his uncle’s body language; if he twitches, smiles, becomes pale, or shows any type of familiarity with the staged killing. Shakespeare also shows the sarcastic side of Hamlet when he says “Why, what an ass am I! This is most brave, that I, the son of a dear father murder'd, prompted to my revenge by heaven and hell, must, like a whore, unpack my heart with words, And fall a-cursing, like a very drab”. Here Hamlet is saying how cowardish of me, to know that my own uncle has killed my father and I do nothing about it but cry to myself and keep my knowledge private. Hamlet says that he sees himself as a coward and wonders if anyone else sees him as one too. He feels that if someone did see him as a coward and they had hit him in the face or yelled at him for being one that he would not retaliate because he believes he would deserve it.
Gilbert Brown
Hamlet is feeling very depressed because of what his uncle and mother have done. He feels that his uncle pretended to be sad that his brother died and never really cared because he is the one who killed him. Shakespeare expresses that Hamlet has no self satisfaction all through the soliloquy but especially when he says “Yet I, A dull and muddy-mettled rascal, peak, Like John-a-dreams, unpregnant of my cause, And can say nothing; no, not for a king, Upon whose property and most dear life , A damn'd defeat was made.” This along with the rest of the piece proves that Hamlet is not happy with himself or the choices he has been making because he knows that his uncle has killed his father and says nothing about it. Through the majority of the soliliquay Hamlet expresses the hatred towards his uncle and himself but he also shows that he is unhappy with his mother when he talks about Hecuba. Hecuba is a woman that is very attractive and very true. Hamlet wonders what Hecuba would do if she were in the same shoes as his mother; remarry or mourn? Shakespear then shows Hamlet’s brave courages and smart side when he has Hamlet say that he is going to put on a show and have his uncle watch it. The show will include the murder that Hamlet belives his uncle committed. Hamlet believes that if his uncle did kill his father he will give himself away through body language. “Fie upon't! foh! About, my brain! I have heard That guilty creatures sitting at a play Have by the very cunning of the scene Been struck so to the soul that presently They have proclaim'd their malefactions;For murder, though it have no tongue, will speak (600) With most miraculous organ. I'll have these playersPlay something like the murder of my fatherBefore mine uncle: I'll observe his looks;I'll tent him to the quick: if he but blench,
I know my course.”
Hamlet’s emotions are now more powerful than ever as he stands lonely trying to make sense out of his situation. He is depressed and not just disapproving of the people around him but also disapproving himself. He says, “Why, what an ass am I!” showing his hate for himself and then shows his isolation by saying, “Now I am alone.” Hamlet is lost and confused, unknowing if he should act or not act and finding ways to justify his actions. He calls his mother a whore and says how much he’d rather have his mother act like Hecuba. Referring to Hecuba’s passion and how it would be very appropriate for the passing of king Hamlet but Gertrude was very inappropriate and pathetic. He can’t approach his mother that he now despises but has no idea what to do or what he is. He is full of questions and because of his inaction and indecision he asks himself, “Am I a coward?” Hamlet then tries to figure out his future. He dreams of a better one and also the murder of his uncle. He tries to justify it with the news from his fathers ghost that his father was murdered by his uncle. These words from Hamlet show his lack of confidence but then a start of an idea of what he must do. He is very unsure but knows he has to do something to save his mother and himself. This soliloquy is very important because it shows that Hamlet will at some point have to take on his uncle and help himself out of his loneliness, cowardliness, and shame.
In this soliloquy it is clear that Hamlet is mad at himself, and has convinced himself that he is a bad person. It is also clear that he does not like his uncle, he feels nothing but hatred toward him for replacing his father. "Now I am alone. O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I!" Hamlet expresses that he feels alone, and he is a slave. He feels like he is a slave in his own home. Usually when a person is a slave it means they do not belong in that house, Hamlet seems to feel that he does not belong with his mother and uncle/now father. He shows his isolation through saying that he is alone. He also shows his true feelings about himself through saying “Why, what an ass am I! This is most brave, that I, the son of a dear father murder'd, prompted to my revenge by heaven and hell, must, like a whore, unpack my heart with words, And fall a-cursing, like a very drab”. Throughout the whole soliloquy it is evident that Hamlet feels badly about himself but even more evident through him calling himself an ass. This part of the soliloquy shows that perhaps Hamlet knows his uncle murdered his father yet Hamlet will not say anything. He knows that he should but will not. "What's Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba, That he should weep for her? What would he do, (565) Had he the motive and the cue for passion That I have? He would drown the stage with tears And cleave the general ear with horrid speech" It seems that Hamlet wishes his mother were Hecuba, he wonders what Hecuba would do if placed in that situation but knows that Hecuba would easily handle it. He wonders why his uncle even cried. Hamlet seems to think that it was all just a fake cry, to get closer to his mother.
In Hamlet’s second soliloquy Shakespeare reveals Hamlet’s thoughts, and shows the reader that Hamlet is still young and naïve. The first line of the soliloquy Hamlet says that he is useless, and worthless, he says this to show his feelings of inadequacy, and he also says that he lacks integrity. He may think this because he doesn’t believe in pretending or putting on a show on the outside, yet he is doing it to pretend to be crazy sometimes it is hard to see whether it is really Hamlet, or his pretend craziness who is talking. In the soliloquy Hamlet even says that it is the actors fault if he actually starts believing the role he is playing, like Hamlet may be. Hamlet also continues on to wonder how an actor can get so passionately emotional, and he wishes he could express such emotions that would awe an audience. Shakespeare uses words that stand out and are extreme to show Hamlets admiration for the actors, and when Hamlet describes himself as a dreamer. He considers himself fake in that he wants to do something about King Claudius and how he suspects him of murder, but cannot. Because of this he considers him a coward, showing his thoughts of inadequacy again. Also Hamlet compares his mother to a Trojan god, Hecuba. He has already compared his father to a god, but only to show that his father was perfect compared to him or Claudius. When comparing his mom to a god he shows how unlike a god she is, and Hamlet shows his discomfort with his mother’s speedy marriage. Shakespeare shows that Hamlet is a clever character when Hamlet plots an unconventional means of revenge, although Hamlet thinks he is too coward to confront him blatantly he can still get revenge. However he also shows that Hamlet is young to rely on the conscience of King Claudius for revenge, he still has hopes for human character although the world is full of weeds and he is disgusted by the people around him like his mother.
In this soliloquy Hamlet shows a lot about how he is feeling. Hamlet is depressed and feels like he is not worthy of his life. He even starts off the entire soliloquy by saying “Now I am alone. O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I!” This shows that he is alone, confused, and angry with himself. Throughout the speech, Hamlet asks many questions. He is facing many moral dilemmas, like how he should treat his mother and Claudius. Claudius causes Hamlet to become so angry because he is fake. Hamlet thinks that everything he does is an act, a cover up for a darker truth. His mother also upsets him, their relationship is deeply troubling to him. “What's Hecuba to him, or he to Hecuba.” To Hamlet, Hecuba is the person he wishes his mother was like. Hecuba grieved over her husband isn’t of remarrying within two months as Gertrude did. Hamlet is considering a lot of emotions at once that he does not quite know how to deal with. He plans to expose the king for the villain he is, “the play's the thing Wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king.”
Grant Weaver
3/14/10
E Block
In this soliloquy, spoken by Hamlet the meaning is presented relatively clearly. Hamlet is basically beating himself up, talking about what a worthless “ass” he is. It is clear that he is having some feelings of depression and anger about his whole situation of his father’s possible murder, his mothers’ remarriage, and his not being allowed to see Ophelia. These feelings put a gloom about him, seeing the world as if through a pair of sunglasses. He even gets angry with the actor for being able to create any emotion necessary for the part. For Hamlet it feels as if no one but him knows what it is like to feel true emotion. He is also upset because he feels that is too much of a ‘coward’ to confront his uncle about the possible murder of his father. Instead he hatches a plan to see if the King reacts suspiciously to the play he requested. Hamlet, feels the need to be punished because of his cowardice he wishes someone would “Plucks of my beard”. Not only would this result in excruciating pain, but it would also revert him to a mere adolescent. For he, just a young prince who cannot even confront the possibly corrupt and bloodied King is just like a young child hiding behind his mother’s skirt. But even he can’t do that! His mother has betrayed him just like the rest of the world. Denmark has become a prison for Hamlet, and he cannot escape!
This falls in line with the rest of the book. Hamlet finds himself in a painful despair, with seemingly no viable (manly) options. So he whines, moans, and pleads until he comes up with some solution. Hamlet though still has one remaining talent, his intelligence. He lays a trap for his uncle, and if sprung, he plans to confront him. Only time will truly tell if Hamlet is man enough to shatter the bars on his prison windows.
This soliloquy made by Hamlet is one that shows his desperation. He is mad at himself because he is not doing anything to get instant results about the death of his father and his current state. He calls himself a coward for not pursuing what he believes to be the murder of his father. Hamlet shows in this passage how he has already become paranoid and self conscious about everything. He is taking everything personally and blaming everything on himself, and it shows that Hamlet is not the most stable minded person. It sounds as if he is even going crazy.
The idea that he comes up with is not necessarily a good plan. He decides to do this out of confusion and frustration over having remained inactive about everything with his father. Staging a play will not necessarily work in convicting his uncle, but Hamlet simply does this because he is overwhelmed. Hamlet also questions himself and who he is in this soliloquy. He asks a lot of questions about himself in lines 530-534. These questions show how Hamlet is questioning his character. He is basically slapping himself in the face and trying to get his act together, but the emotions and feelings inside him are making that hard.
Shakespeare is using very strong language in describing his situation and himself as well. He uses such strong language because he is so upset at himself. He is basically venting his anger in this soliloquy and he uses strong language in the process. Hamlet is talking to himself trying to convince himself that he will discover that his uncle is the murder. He says that “the play’s the thing” that will uncover his uncle. Hamlet is taking a big guess in saying that this will uncover his uncle, seeing as he is uncertain about the reality of the ghost that came to him.
This soliloquy comes about after Hamlet has witnessed a play. In the first part of the soliloquy, Hamlet is comparing himself to one of the actors. He says that the actor pretends to feel passion so easily, that his body starts to respond to the feelings like they are truly his own. He does all of this to himself for Hecuba, who means nothing to him. Hamlet is upset because he actually feels the passion, but he cannot act upon them like the actor in the play can. “Had he the motive and the cue for passion That I have? He would drown the stage with tears And cleave the general ear with horrid speech, Make mad the guilty and appall the free, Confound the ignorant, and amaze indeed The very faculties of eyes and ears.” Here Hamlet is saying that if the actor had the same reason for passion that Hamlet has, his performance would have been much greater. It would have made the guilty people angry and terrified the innocent people because it would be so dramatic and shocking. Hamlet is in pain because he wishes that he could express what he really feels, and the actor can express feelings that aren’t actually his. Hamlet goes on to question if he has been a coward. He says that he should have gotten rid of Claudius a long time ago, but he lacked the capacity to seek revenge. Then he finally decides that he will get his revenge on Claudius. “I have heard That guilty creatures sitting at a play Have by the very cunning of the scene Been struck so to the soul that presently They have proclaim'd their malefactions.” Here he is saying that he has heard that sometimes while watching a play, people will get so caught up in their emotions because of the scene that they will start to announce the bad things that they have done. Hamlet hopes that if he has the actors depict a scene like the murder of his father, Claudius will show some sign of guilt and prove to Hamlet that he really did murder his father. He says that it will be his proof, just incase the spirit that he saw was the devil trying to trick him.
In this second soliloquy of Hamlet’s, is shows that he is feeling very despondent and pessimistic about everything that has happened and is going on in his life right now. As of now, Hamlet is very unhappy about what his uncle and mother are doing and have done. After hearing the news from a ghost who claims to be his father of how King Claudius murdered him, Hamlet is appalled and completely overwhelmed with the death and the true way it occurred. In the soliloquy, Hamlet expresses that he feels his uncle only pretended to mourn over the death, and he thinks his mother agreed to it. Hamlet is confused and bewildered over this occurrence. Shakespeare is trying to state that Hamlet at this point feels worthless, and like he is not good enough. Hamlet says, “Yet I, A dull and muddy-mettled rascal, peak, Like John-a-dreams, unpregnant of my cause, And can say nothing; no, not for a king, persuade whose property and most dear life, A damn'd defeat was made.” Hamlet feels useless and pathetic and he ultimately persuades himself into thinking that he is a bad person and the one at fault. The defeat he feels is caused by his uncle. Later on in the piece of literature, Hamlet refers to Hecuba. Hecuba is a mythical heroine who can definitely be contrasted to Queen Gertrude. Hamlet differentiates between the two because Gertrude acted wrongly and lacked integrity. Hamlet now is very upset with his mother’s actions and because of what she was done, he doesn’t know what to do with himself. Yet, Hamlet does still love his mother but he is very confused and believes that everything is his fault somehow. Hamlet feels like the coward for he questions himself asking this, and he asks many other questions pertaining to him being right or wrong. Overall, Hamlet is shutting himself down, and not standing up to his uncle and others things that have happened. He wants justice to come to his uncle but he doesn’t know even if the ghost is telling him the truth. Hopefully soon into reading, Hamlet will really discover that he needs to go before his uncle with the confidence he is lacking and prove to him and himself that he is right.
Tom Martin
Hamlet is very angry and disappointed with himself through this soliloquy. He is claiming that he is useless and has very little uprightness left within him. He calls himself all sorts of names such as when he proclaimed “what an ass am I!” His reasoning behind his self-infliction is because this is how he feels his mother and uncle currently see him, nothing more than a worthless ingrate. The anger surrounding his knowledge of his uncle’s deceit has now piled onto him. Claudius, being the murderer of King Hamlet, has now influenced even more rage within Hamlet. Claudius is a true villain and each second he is with Queen Gertrude, it kills Hamlet more and more inside. How could he not see this sooner? Hamlet refers to Hecuba because he beliefs she handled the death of her husband appropriately, and he wishes his mother did the same. Hamlet not only views his mother as sullied due to her instant remarriage to Claudius after her husband’s death, but he also is angry at his mother because he wishes to tell her so much how he feels about this. Yet he knows that it is better not to. The knowledge of Claudius’s act is killing him. But no matter what Hamlet says to his mother, he knows it will not be taken seriously. For Hamlet despises Claudius enough already that it would probably be viewed as an outlandish act of childish upset and not be taken true. This realization makes Hamlet feel weak, a coward. He feels more and more useless with each ounce of realization of this. Yet the message from Hamlet’s father’s ghost replays in the back of Hamlet’s head. He feels it is his duty to do what the ghost has asked of him. Yet at first he worries that he will be condemned for his acts, if he was to kill his uncle in revenger of his father’s death. So he comes up with the idea to put on a play portraying what his uncle did. If Claudius is unsettled by the performance, then that will show everyone that he committed the evil deed. Hamlet is still confused as how to tackle the task in front of him. Shakespeare wrote this soliloquy to portray a great deal about Hamlet’s inner thoughts. Hamlet may have a keen mind, yet he is still not the brightest when it comes to understanding certain people’s actions. Also, it is to show how award Hamlet is of his weakness, and how distraught he is over the troubles he is currently going through. Hamlet feels though some of what is going on is partially his fault. He feels as though he could put a stop to this easily, yet he just doesn’t know how to. At this point, Hamlet’s main goal is to murder Claudius, even if he doesn’t know exactly how to do it yet.
In this soliloquy Hamlet truly shows his emotions. He begins by saying “Now I am alone. O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I!” Right from the beginning he shows how angry he is with the world and himself. He views the world as a garden full of weeds. He finds only terrible people who cannot be trusted. Hamlet feels alone in the world and does not look at himself positively. Some believe Hamlet is somewhat crazy at this point. It is unclear on whether these feelings come from Hamlet himself or the actor who is playing Hamlet. Nevertheless, Hamlet seems depressed at this point in the book and cannot trust anyone around him, causing him to feel alone. He is still very upset about his mother’s marriage to his uncle and is disgusted by how quick his mother was able to move on from his father’s death. He wishes his mother was like the god Hecuba. Hecuba was passionate unlike Hamlet’s mother who seemed to show no feelings for the king after his passing. He now views his mother as a whore and does not look at her in the same way as he once did. Hamlet wants to get back at his uncle who he believes murdered his father. He learned that Claudius caused his father’s death from the ghost of the king himself. Hamlet wants find a way to get back at his uncle. He is expressing his ways in which he wants to get his revenge for his father’s murder and the pain it has brought him. Hamlet has courage in wanting to seek revenge against Claudius. He is angry at the world and does not know how else to deal with his emotions. Hamlet must come to terms with these emotions, but is not quite sure of how to just yet.
Hamlet’s soliloquy in Act 2 scene 2 gives us a great insight into hamlet’s mind at this point in the play. He feels dirty, because he has been allowing his uncle to deceive everyone. He has let his uncle play everyone for chumps, without having to pay for his actions. He feels that he is a coward for not intervening in this. He feels this so strongly that he mentions that he would like someone to harm him and call him a coward. He feels that if he weren’t a coward, he would have killed his uncle long ago. He feels all these things for the simple fact that he believes the ghost unquestioningly. He never second-guesses the option that his uncle is guilty, and Hamlet’s hero-worship of his father has led him to want his uncle dead painfully. He cared so deeply for his father. I feel there is no doubt this is foreshadowing. I can see no other option, whether soon or in the distant future, than Hamlet killing or trying to kill Claudius. He also then ironically mocks himself. While in soliloquy, he mocks himself for talking too much. He says that he is all talk and no action. He decides that he is going to get wonderful actors to emotionally move Claudius. Hopefully, the play that is carried out something like his father’s murder will cause Claudius to confess his crime. The final part is important because Hamlet seems to change his mind. He now seems to think the ghost could potentially not be his father’s. He feels now he must test it, because it could have been the devil. He feels that he cannot go on the ghost’s words alone. He needs more evidence to prove Claudius’ guilt. I am not actually sure why this moment of clarity has come over him, but I would speculate it is simply because it cannot be easy for Hamlet to take a life, and he needs to be sure in order to do it.
In Hamlet’s soliloquy at the close of Act 2 scene 2 he vents his emotions outward but to himself. In this venting Hamlet compares components of his life to characters in a play. Hamlet speaks of Hecuba, whom he thinks reasonably responded to her husband’s death. He compares his mother’s short impassionate grief to the grief of Hecuba. He would show the passion. What passion would the player show for Hecuba? Hamlet thinks he would have shown the passion and the motive because he has the feeling. This man is just acting, forcing the emotions to appear on him, Hamlet felt the emotions fully, truly in himself. Hamlet then proceeds to put himself down. He calls himself a coward, an ass, a dull and muddy-mettled rascal. He calls himself a dull spirit and a dreamer. He sees himself as a coward for not being able to stand up for the king (his father) and remove Claudius like the ghost had said, for Hamlet to regain what is his. He seems most remorseful over the death of his father and how he doesn’t have the courage to revenge it. He is an “ass” because he acts live a whore and speaks his feelings rather than go fight for the death of his father. Hamlet is certain that this death was murder and he must kill that that has killed. He thinks that if the players play out his father’s death, playing it before his uncle, the emotions on his uncle’s face would tell him what the true cause was. If his uncle was to “blench” then he will know the course of his actions. He doubts the ghost, admitting that it could be the devil and it might have had the power to take the shape of his lost father. It may had appeared to Hamlet to test out his weakness and damn him.
In this soliloquy, Hamlet is very hard on himself and is beating on himself and talking down on himself. He says things about himself like “What an ass I am!” It is easy to see that he feels useless and unworthy to his father and feels like a coward for not sticking up for his father and confronting his uncle about his father’s death. In the beginning of the soliloquy he says, “Now I am alone. O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I!” He feels that his uncle pretended to mourn over the death of his own brother. He would like to confront his mother but can’t build enough strength to ask her about the marriage and not being in grief and pain for longer than she was. It is clear that Hamlet blames the death of his father on Claudius and believes to all extent that he was the one who killed him, which would explain why he would pretend to be in sorrow for the death. Hamlet also compares his mother to Hecuba and wonders what she would do if she were in this situation. He also knows that he has to do something to save his mother and himself and at some point he will confront Claudius and regain his strength and courage.
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