Act 3, Scene 1

Question 1

Main line in Hamlet soliloquy?

Answer 1

To be or not to be that is the question, whether tis nobler to suffer in the mind the slings and hooks of outrageous fortune or take arms against a sea of fortune

Question 2

Function of Soliloquy?

Answer 2

Reflects Hamlet’s choices between being passive or active- whether to seek justice or let it take its course
Personally it is his decision of whether to commit suicide- which highlights the extent of his suffering

Question 3

Issue of suicide?

Answer 3

Goes against Elizabethan belief- considered a sin

Question 4

How is Hamlet presented as a detective?

Answer 4

And thus the nature hue of resolution, is siclied o’er with the pale cast of thought- has all the characteristics of a good detective but a poor revenger, consequences stop him from acting