To Be Or Not To Be

- A soliloquy from William Shakespeare's play 'Hamlet'

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?

To die: to sleep;

No more; and, by a sleep to say we end

The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks

That flesh is heir to, tis a consummation

Devoutly to be wished.

To die, to sleep;

To sleep perchance to dream, ay, there's the rub;

For in that sleep of death what dreams may come

When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,

Must give us pause.

There's the respect

That makes calamity of so long life;

For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,

The pangs of disprized love, the law's delay,

The insolence of office, and the spurns

That patient merit of the unworthy takes,

When he himself might his quietus make

With a bare bodkin?

Who would fardels bear,

To grunt and sweat under a weary life,

But that the dread of something after death,

The undiscovered country from whose bourn

No traveller returns, puzzles the will,

And make us rather bear those ills we have

Than fly to others that we know not of?

Thus conscience does make cowards of us all;

And Is sicklied o'er

With the pale cast of thought

And enterprises of great pith and moment

With this regard their currents turn away,

And lose the name of action.
 
I. About the Poem
‘To be or not to be’ is the most famous soliloquy in the works of Shakespeare – probably, even, the most famous soliloquy anywhere. That is partly because the opening words are so interesting, memorable and intriguing but also because Shakespeare ranges around several cultures and practices to borrow the language for his images, and because he’s dealing here with profound concepts, putting complex philosophical ideas into the mouth of a character on a stage, communicating with an audience with a wide range of educational levels.

Works Cited （参考文献）

 "‘To Be Or Not To Be’: Hamlet’s Soliloquy." No Sweat Shakespeare. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2016. <http://www.nosweatshakespeare.com/quotes/hamlet-to-be-or-not-to-be/>.           

II. About the Poet

William Shakespeare was baptized on April 26, 1564, in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. From roughly 1594 onward he was an important member of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men company of theatrical players. Written records give little indication of the way in which Shakespeare’s professional life molded his artistry. All that can be deduced is that over the course of 20 years, Shakespeare wrote plays that capture the complete range of human emotion and conflict.

Works Cited （参考文献）

 "William Shakespeare." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2016. <http://www.biography.com/people/william-shakespeare-9480323>.           

III. My Reaction

A. Reaction Point -  theme

    Theme of this poem is "To Be Or Not To Be".

    This is very famous phrase.

B. Reaction Point - rhythm
    This poem has comparatively long sentences, but it has a few short sentences too.
    For example, "To die: to sleep;", "Must give us pause", "There's the respect" and so on.
   

C. Reaction Point - structure

    The pattern of organization of this poem is that each sentence almost start with  a 

    conjunction.

    For example, whether, when, and, with and so on.

    This point is one of the feature of this poem.

D. My General Opinion

This poem has a regularity and easy to read. I like this poem very much because I like a Shakespeare's view of the world. I want to read  his poem more from now on.