Hamlets 2nd Soliloquy
In Hamlet’s second soliloquy the tones of worthlessness and inadequacy are prevalent and serve to emphasize the dissatisfaction he feels with his actions, or lack of action. He rambles incessantly and wallows in his own self-pity as he realizes he has not fulfilled his promise to the Ghost to avenge his father’s murder. Instead, he has thought more about his own death than that of his father’s supposed murderer, Claudius, and is a piteous coward for taking no action towards this murder. At the beginning of his soliloquy Hamlet has witnessed a player acting a scene engorged with emotion; the scene reminds Hamlet of his own lack of dedication to his cause. It is “monstrous” (578) that the player “in a dream of passion” (579) could put so much emotion into the piece that he even cried “all for nothing” (584). Hamlet is amazed but also suffers from a feeling of pitiful inadequacy because he sees that this player, acting out a speech about a fictional woman who is no more than a character on paper, has put much more emotion and passion into his speech than Hamlet has into avenging his own father’s death. Hamlet loved his father and still continues to mourn for him long after anyone else, and while he should be putting as much
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Some common words found in the essay are:
, Ghost Instead, Claudius Hamlets, Hamlet Claudius, King Hamlet, player acting, killing fathers murderer, killing fathers, avenge fathers, putting emotion, fathers murderer, fathers murder, own death, fathers death, taking action, late king,
Approximate Word count = 814
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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