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The Opening Line Of Hamlet 's Speech Essay

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The opening line of Hamlet’s speech, “to be or not to be” could be considered Shakespeare’s most famous as often times it is easily recognized and quoted without any real understanding of its significance (3.1.1749). At this moment, this question is of the utmost importance, literally a question of life and death; however, its simple phrasing gives it a significance greater than just Hamlet in his moment of despair. Hamlet poses the question in the cloudiest yet clearest way possible. He does not ask can I live with this or should I just end my life, rather “to be or not to be” (3.1.1749). It is not just life but existence as a whole being debated in his soliloquy. In using one of the simplest verbs in the English language, the choice of words and a general idea of the overall plot assure that the question will undoubtedly be received on the most basic level, life and death. The verb is presented in the infinitive, “to be,” leaving the line unattached to any person, not even the speaker. The line is given perfect balance by placing the same verb on either side of the dividing “or” (3.1.1749). Shakespeare strips down the subject to its most basic yet abstract level. There are no flowery imagery or allusions to outside events that could explain the line’s purpose or give it a hidden meaning, surely this simplicity is one reason why the line has continued throughout time even into pop culture. The speech’s first line reads naturally. The stressed syllables fall in order

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