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Replies | Post Reply | Shakespeare Queries From Genuinely Interested Students 3.15.97: Top | Help
As in all great Shakespearean soliloquies, Hamlet:
1) Poses a question,
2) Analyses the question,
3) Comes to a conclusion.
These are the "poetic devices"
You'll see this again and again with Shakepeare.
Also, the simplicity and beauty of the language and the use of verse,
the "Pentameter" form, makes it poetic.
Why is it so famous?
Hamlet ponders why more people don't kill themselves rather than suffer
through the difficult struggle of life. Listen to the speech - read it.
These are not the thoughts of an optimistic man. Who can blame him for
feeling pessimistic? His father has been killed (or so it seems) by
his Uncle who is now boffing his mother. And no one is doing anything
about it! Of course he is cynical, we all would be in those
circumstances.
Everyone can identify with his struggle to overcome life's sometimes
seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Anyone who has lived past the age of 25
has experienced despair. Everyone understands his despair and many
have pondered this question also. This universal and profound understanding,
the beautiful, poetic, simple language is, in my opinion, the reason for
this speech's popularity.
Posted by Terry - The Bard Fan on March 22, 1997 at 23:55:16
In Reply to "Hamlet's Soliloquy...... Why is it so famous?" posted by Justin on March 22, 1997 at 18:01:25
Replies | Post Reply | Shakespeare Queries From Genuinely Interested Students 3.15.97: Top | Help