Hamet Blog Assignment #3: To Be or Not to Be Analysis

Soliloquy Analysis

Imagery of the uncertainty of death:

• "The undiscover'd country from whose bourn no traveler returns" (Shakespeare III.i.79-80).
• "Puzzles the will and makes us rather bare the ills we have than fly to others that we know not of?" (Shakespeare III.i.80-82)
• "For in that sleep of death what dreams may come" (Shakespeare III.i.66)

Imagery of the negative experiences of life:

• "Suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune or to take action against a sea of troubles" (Shakespeare III.i.58-59)
• "The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to" (Shakespeare III.i.62-63)
• "Whips and scorns of time" (Shakespeare III.i.70)
• "To grunt and sweat under a weary life" (Shakespeare III.i.77)

Appeals:

• Pathos:
• Hamlet appeals to the emotional interest of the audience by showing them the difficultly of the decision that he is trying to make:
• "Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against the sea of troubles, and by opposing end them?" (Shakespeare III.i.57-60)
• Hamlet also allows the audience to sympathize with him by telling them how depressed he is and how much he is currently suffering in life:
• "The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation devoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep" (Shakespeare III.i.62-64)
• Ethos:
• Hamlet establishes credibility with the audience when he shouts out with emotion so we can realize that although Hamlet seems to have control over is mad façade, he may not which establishes the honesty in his soliloquy:
• "And lose the name of action- soft you now!" (Shakespeare III.i.88)
• Logos:
• Hamlet appeals to logic by creating an opposition to his wish of death by contemplating the consequences of his actions:
• "But that to the dread of something after death, the undiscover'd country from whose bourn no traveler returns, puzzles the will and makes us rather bear those ills we have than fly to others that we know not of?" (Shakespeare III.i.78-82)

Literary Devices:

• Paradox: In the soliloquy, paradox appears in the form of an invalid argument. He describes how terrible and painful life is but he also considers the fact that his afterlife could be just as bad or worse so he would put up with life.
• Parallelism: "Th' oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely, the pangs of despis'd love, the law's delay, the insolence of office and the spurns" (Shakespeare III.i.71-73). It emphasizes the struggle in life that Hamlet faces.
• Synecdoche: Hamlet uses synecdoche to characterize and focus on the question that Hamlet is pondering.
• Tone: The tone of this speech is depressed because Hamlet is struggling with his emotions of sorrow and fear of death.
• Diction: Words like "whips", "scorns", "spurns", "dread", "oppressor", and "sicklied" to create the depressed mood.
• Metaphors:
• Sleep: Hamlet compares death to sleep in order to make it seem more natural and less intimidating for him to try and ease his own fear of death. He also compares his uncertainty of his afterlife to the dreams that come in sleep.
• "To die, to sleep: to sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub; for in that sleep of death what dreams may come" (Shakespeare III.i.64-66).
• Slavery: Hamlet's compares the hardships of his life to slavery. He endures the pain of slavery everyday and wants to escape his "slavery" by death.
• "That makes calamity of so long life; for who would bear the whips and scorns of time, th' oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely" (Shakespeare III.i.69-71).

Comparisons:

• Life on earth to the afterlife: "To grunt and sweat under a weary life, but that the dread of something after death, the undiscover'd country from whose bourn no traveler returns" (Shakespeare III.i.77-80)
• Humans and thinking: "Thus conscience does make cowards of us all; and thus the native hue of resolution is sickled o'er with the pale cast of thought, and enterprises of great pitch and moment with this regard their currents turn awry, and lose the name of action" (Shakespeare III.i.84-88)

Oppositions:

• Hamlet is unsure if he will go to Heaven or Hell.
• He would not be able to avenge his father's death.
• It may be viewed as a cowardly thing to do to die.

Philosophical Questions:

• "To be or not to be: that is the question: whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles, and by opposing end them?" (Shakespeare III.i.56-60)
• "For in that sleep of death what dreams may come" (Shakespeare III.i.66)
• "To grunt and sweat under a weary life, but that to the dread of something after death, the undiscover'd country from whose bourn no traveler returns, puzzles the will and makes us rather bear those ills we have than fly to others that we know not of?" (Shakespeare III.i.77-82)

Conclusions:

• Hamlet decides that he will not kill himself because of his fear that this act will send him to Hell. We know this because in the last line of the soliloquy Hamlet says, "Be all my sins rememb'red" (Shakespeare III.i.89). This shows that Hamlet knows that it would be a sin to kill himself and he doesn't want to commit it. It also alludes to his intentions to instead of killing himself, go and kill his uncle which would also be considered a sin.

Acting Analysis

Kenneth Branagh: Minimal editing is used in this scene as the camera angle is continuous until Hamlet is finished with his soliloquy. It makes the soliloquy smoother and emphasizes it's importance over other speeches in the play. The camera angle is very clever as it shows Hamlet's reflection in a large mirror with only the tip of his shoulder visible in front of the mirror. This shows that Hamlet is reflecting deep into his thoughts and analyzing his own sins and morality and whether or not he would go to Heaven or Hell. The camera also zooms in as the speech gets more intense. The only diegetic sounds in the scene are Hamlet's voice in a whisper and it's echo and the sound and echo of his footsteps as he walks closer to the mirror. The echoes create an eerie tone and the silence behind them emphasizes the seriousness of the words and leave no distractions that could turn their focus away from Hamlet. The only non-diegetic sound was soft classical music that played to signal the audience that Hamlet had reach the climax of his soliloquy in towards the middle-end of the speech. It also brings out the sorrowful aspect of Hamlet's predicament. The only props where the mirror and the castle background to add to the solemnness of the scene. He also holds a dagger which show the audience that Hamlet is serious and that it is a very close and tough decision to make whether or not to die. Hamlet was wearing his everyday costume and make-up which would show that he contemplates these thoughts amidst his daily life behind his disposition.

Laurence Olivier: The scene begins with many choppy, edited shots of stairs up to a tower, tumultuous water, and Hamlet's head and face close up as he peers over the side of the tower. These images set the dark mood of the soliloquy to follow. After Hamlet begins to speak, there is little switching of angles or editing to interrupt his monologue. The first camera angle that we see of Hamlet is behind him as he stares over the edge of the tower and into the water which shows just how close he is death. The diegetic sounds in the scene are the sounds of the water and wind to set the mood and Hamlet's voice. His mouth is only moving for some of the words that he speaks to show that the contemplation is mostly in his thoughts. The non-diegetic sounds is violent violin music in the beginning to set the fearful mood and in the middle of the soliloquy when he brings the dagger close to him to create suspense and surprise. Intense violin music also plays at the end of the soliloquy as Hamlet is walking away to show that he has come to a conclusion to live. The main prop is the dagger which he moves farther and closer away from his body to show whether his thoughts are leaning closer to life or death. Hamlet doesn't appear to be wearing and makeup. And his costume is disheveled and distressed looking which shows his current mental instability.

Mel Gibson: The entire scene is clips edited together of Hamlet in different places and positions in what seems to be some type of mausoleum. This shows Hamlet's restlessness and changing of thoughts throughout the soliloquy. In some shots, the camera angle is of the room as a whole or Hamlet wondering around the room.  These shots usually occur when Hamlet is changing his mind in his speech and going from life to death or from death to life. The other shots are close ups of Hamlet's face to capture his facial expressions in the peak emotional parts of his soliloquy. The diegetic sounds are the sound of Hamlet's voice and its echo as well as his footsteps and their echoes as he paces around the room. The silence interrupted by only the harsh sound of his voice and the echoes creates the solemnity and serious tone of the soliloquy. There are no non-diegetic sounds to distract the readers from the content and meaning within the words. The only props would be the tombs of dead bodies which are used to set a dark mood and show that Hamlet is close to death and also his envy of those that are dead. It looks as if Hamlet is wearing eye makeup to draw attention to his eyes and the emotions of sadness and melancholy that they will show throughout the soliloquy. Hamlet's costume is dark and blends in well with the shady background which shows his currently dark mood and thoughts.

Ethan Hawke: Hamlet is seen through edited shots of him walking through the aisle of a Blockbuster store. The setting makes the scene much more modern although Hamlet is still speaking in Old English which is a contrast. The shots of him walking show the continuity of the soliloquy until the end when the shot stays on a close up of his face as he stops walking and comes to a resolution. There is also a clip of death and destruction on the TVs in the store when Hamlet speaks of death with desire and envy. The camera angle mostly showed him in a somewhat close up shot of his torso and up with the aisle of the store behind him. The pacing and browsing through the aisles show that he is facing indecision. He is walking down the Action aisle most of the time because we can see the Action labels repeated in the selves at his sides. This is almost mocking him in the fact that he has not just taken any action to avenge his father. The diegetic sounds are the sound of his voice and foot step to create a solemn mood and limit the distractions as much as possible to keep the attention on Hamlet. Part of Hamlet's words are said out loud and part of them are just a voice over which indicates that his soliloquy is mostly full of thoughts. There is sad, violin-like music as a non-diegetic sound. The purpose of the music is to bring some seriousness into the scene that is taking place in a very ordinary place, usually a place of entertainment. The TV and the movies on the shelves in the background are props. The TVs show dark and violent scenes and create a fearful mood. The videos add to the averageness of the setting. Hamlet doesn't seem to be wearing any makeup. Hamlet is wearing a dark costume to create sorrow but then he also contrasts the soliloquy's dark and serious tone by wearing a funny looking hat which makes the scene almost comical and satire like.

After viewing all of the scenes of my friend Hamlet speaking his famous soliloquy, I have to say that Kenneth Branagh best portrays my friend and what he is feeling right now. I thought that it was absolutely ingenious the way that Hamlet is only shown through a mirror. I believe that this shows a level of self analysis and reflection that none of the other scenes did. The way that Hamlet spoke all of the words and did not rely on voiceover and also the harsh whisper that he used made the scene more relatable and believable. Not any one but Hamlet and I know of the show of madness that he is putting on and the raw emotion that Kenneth shows in this scene as Hamlet with the way he speaks the words and inches closer to the mirror and utilizes the dagger on his reflection show that he has brought down his walls for a moment and is actually falling apart behind his façade. Him being dressed in his normal attire also give the scene honesty and show Hamlet's humanness and vulnerability. The silence and the echoes, while present in many of the other scenes, spoke the most to me in this particular scene. The cold silence left you on the edge of your chair and your eyes glued on Hamlet. It also created an almost eerie but sincere solemn mood that would give you goosebumps and make you suspenseful for the critical words to follow. Overall, the scene was very tasteful and well thought out. It showcased not only Hamlet's words but his inter conflict and deep emotions of sorrow in his mental instability.

My favorite approach to Hamlet's soliloquy scene was Kenneth Branaghs. I thought that almost ever choice was well thought out and clever, especially the camera angle. The only thing that might not have been necessary was the soft classical music in the background. It was so quiet and brief that it was barely noticeable and it took away from the silence that emphasized the emotion in Hamlet's words. My least favorite scene was Laurence Olivier's scene. I thought that they beginning was overly dramatic and could be less choppy and loud. I also did not like the way that Hamlet was awkwardly positioned laying propped up on the tower. It seemed to strange and casual for the seriousness and importance of the scene. I would have had him sit upright or stand. I also did like how Olivier and Ethan Hawke's scene relied on both the actor speaking and voice overs to do the soliloquy. It was confusing and unrealistic and the words should either have been keep strictly in the thoughts or strictly out loud but preferably the latter. I like the setting for Mel Gibson's scene and the close ups on his facial expression to capture his emotions. What I would change about his scene would be to have him moving around less and changing camera angles less because I think that it left too many pauses in the speech and took away from some of the meaning. The modern interpretation of Hawke's scene was very interesting but also a little bit confusing. I wasn't sure if it was supposed to be comical or not with the strange hat and Blockbuster background. If it was supposed to be comical then I think that there should be more props or sounds to show that. That scene was also lacking some emotion compared to the other portrayals which I am not sure was intentional or not.