Hamlet To Die To Sleep Analysis

In Shakespeare’s passage,3.1, conveys the uncertainty Hamlets feels about suicide. Throughout the passage the words “to die/to sleep” is repeated several times indicating that Hamlet is thinking about committing suicide. Also, through this passage the reader can get a sense of grief and confusion Hamlet is feeling over the death of his father. Hamlet feels that the only way to put an end to his problems is to end his life. With the opening of the passage Hamlet debates what his fate could be: “to be or not to be – that is the question” (1). By this statement it shows that Hamlet is lost because he is questioning whether he should continue to live or to die. In the next phrase, Hamlet questions which choice would be better. He says “tis nobler in the mind to suffer/or to take arms against a sea of troubles (2,4). This shows that Hamlet is deciding whether it will be ethical for him to keep his emotions inside or to take charge against his troubles, which is to end his life.
Also, the speaker conveys the pessimist attitude that Hamlet is experiencing through his tough time of grief over the death of his father. However, the following statement indicates a change of attitude Hamlet has on the idea of suicide. It states “for in the sleep of death what dreams may come/ when we have shuffled off this mortal coil” (11,12). Hamlet questions what kind of life will await him if he decides to end it. For this reason, Hamlet comes to the conclusion that the unknown of what might come next after dying is enough to stop him from committing suicide. He says “Must give us pause/ that makes calamity of so long life” (13,14). This concludes that the idea of not knowing what happens after death is enough to scare people from committing suicide and for that reason people choose to live their long and miserable lives