Theme Of Suicide In Hamlet

Based on the play of Hamlet by William Shakespeare, suicide is the most prevalent and important themes in Hamlet. Hamlet always asks himself for the reason to stay alive. Even though he always thinks that there is no reason for him to stay alive, however he always chooses to stay. The first reason Hamlet seems to contemplate suicide is because his life is contaminated by sins and revenge. The other reason he is thinking about suicide is because he is young and immature. Young adults usually look for escapes when they become angry with things. There are many instances where Hamlet contemplating suicide and he treats the idea of suicide morally, religiously, and aesthetically, with particular attention to Hamlet’s two important statements about suicide: the “O, that this too too solid flesh would melt” soliloquy (I.ii.129–158) and the “To be, or not to be” soliloquy (III.i.56–88).

The topic of Hamlet’s soliloquy is his consideration of committing suicide. Throughout the speech, it is obvious that Hamlet is over thinking and wavering between two different extremes: life and death. "Whether 'tis nobler in the

Hamlet was so obsessed with his lack of action and the worthlessness of life that he contemplates suicide asking, "For who could bear the whips and scorns of time" ( III. i. 69-70). He believes he would be foolish to suffer through his life when he will simply be

In William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, it’s clear that the title character, Hamlet, has a relationship with death, that relationship is often misunderstood. Some see him merely as an agent of death, and others believe he retains a lust for it throughout the entire play, inspired by the tragedy he’s experienced. While these interpretations are partially true, they don’t hold true throughout the play. Hamlet has a disdain for the world which makes him desire nothing but to fade away in the beginning of the play, but he develops a respect for fate and the unknown aspects of the afterlife. This respect eventually manifests itself in an attitude of indifference towards death.

In Hamlet’s famous soliloquy, he contemplates for a while whether to commit suicide. Hamlet’s unhappiness is caused by the people around him. His mother’s actions of marrying her brother-in-law made Hamlet extremely frustrated drawing him out of the right mental state. Meanwhile, his view of his father is godlike, but he distrusts the Ghost enough to think about killing himself instead of pursuing the Ghost’s request. In Hamlet’s famous soliloquy, “to be, or not to be;” he contemplates (3.1). “The Everlasting had not fixed, His cannon ‘gainst self-slaughter!” (1.2). He is uncertain if things would be any better in the afterlife if he were to end his life. Hamlet’s hesitancy, especially concerning suicide, is the cause of his realistic and frightened nature. In this situation, his indecisiveness saves his life, but it also does not allow him to find another solution. Concluding, in his soliloquy he would rather

It is clear that the death of his father and his mother 's remarriage has taken an enormous mental toll on him and that he desires death to free himself of the burden laid upon him by the ghost. He romanticizes it, saying that suicide is the brave and courageous option akin to “[taking] arms” against troubles. However, he can’t commit to the idea of death, saying “To sleep, perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub / For in that sleep of death what dreams may come” (III, i, 66-67). He craves death, which would allow him to escape all the “natural shock / that flesh is heir to” (III, i, 63-64) but the more he ponders it, the further he is from reaching a decision. Ironically, the argument within his mind about how he should free himself of the ghostly burden — murder, or death — is impeding him from carrying out any action on it. At the end of his most famous soliloquy, Hamlet hasn’t made any decisive choice and therefore is in limbo regarding death due to his overarching rationale. His inaction proves “[his] endless reasoning and hesitation and the way in which the energy of his resolutions evaporates in self-reproaches” (Morgan 259). Moreover, Hamlet tackles the decision of interpreting what is real and what is false when he questions the ghost’s true nature. At first, Hamlet is certain

Hamlet ponders the two polar opposites, a state of being, versus a state of not being. The balances then continues with a close consideration of the way one copes with life and death. Life is a lack of power, somebody always has power over you whether it’s your parents, boss, law enforcement. Therefore Hamlet sees that the only action he can take towards power is to end his own life. In a sense, death is empowering; when someone kills themselves it's a way of taking action against those living. Majority of the speech emphasises the subject of death, although in the end Hamlet makes the decision to live and see through his revenge of on his unfaithful step father, King Claudius. At this point of the plot he wonders about the nature of his death, and thinks for a moment that it may be like a deep sleep. This seems perfectly acceptable to the young Hamlet. Until, with his continuous thoughts rushing through his head on the subject he speculates what is to come with an extremely long deep sleep, nightmares. After posing this complex question and wondering about the nature of this great sleep, Hamlet goes on to list sufferings that men have caused themselves throughout the course of life. This makes it seem as if he is leaning towards death. By the end of his soliloquy however, he realized, “But that 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”

In a following speech Hamlet’s disposition towards the world persists, yet his attitude towards death has undergone a transformation. Previously, Hamlet was quick to proclaim his desire to die, but by the third act he’s become uncertain. This hesitation becomes apparent in Hamlet’s “To be or not to be” speech (3.1.56-90). With those opening words, Hamlet debates whether he should exist or not. The fact that this is still a question for him shows that he continues to be displeased with life. Hamlet asks himself, “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.” This reveals a new concern that Hamlet has, he doesn’t ask what is best for him to do, but rather what is nobler, which makes it apparent that he’s concerned with maintaining his character. Even though he maintains the desire to escape the world and the experience in it, he still cares about the image that he leaves behind. Subsequently, Hamlet uses war-like diction, comparing life to war with “slings and arrows” which makes life intolerable. This just reaffirms the ideas Hamlet has had throughout the play, however, a shift transpires when he mulls over the idea that death is like being asleep. A problem arises when he realizes that even when you sleep you experience, “To sleep; perchance to dream: Ay, there’s the rub.” This could be easily misinterpreted as Hamlet hoping to dream, but perchance

“To be, or not to be: that is the question[...]” (III.i.64). This quote was said by the wise Hamlet in the play Hamlet written by well-known playwright William Shakespeare in one of his famous soliloquies. In this particular soliloquy, Hamlet contemplates suicide as he compares and contrasts the pros and cons of the afterlife. However, this is not the only time that death is mentioned as we actually see many of the characters, including Hamlet, die by the end of the play. One of the central themes throughout Hamlet is death. We know this from the many discussions about the mystery of death, the religious aspects of death, and finally, the acceptance of death.

O God! God!”(1.2.131-132). Suicide is the ultimate sin and Hamlet knows that which is why he cannot pull himself to do it. His life is unbearable, but the thought of everlasting suffering is even worse. Hamlet is tired of suffering, but no matter where he turns it seems to find him.

“for in that sleep of death what dreams may come when we have shuffled?” (III. 1. 66-67). Hamlet realizes that if one were to commit suicide there is no proof that peacefulness will be granted after they die. “ay, there’s the rub” (III. 1. 65) and that is where he realizes that there is a catch to committing suicide. Hamlet is fearful of not knowing what would happen after one commits suicide. And for that very reason I believe that’s why he hasn’t killed himself already.

Suicide would be an escape from a painful reality, which is why he cannot move past his suicidal thoughts. When Hamlet finds out that Claudius is the murderer, his suicide becomes more complicated because Hamlet’s father tries to incite Hamlet to recklessness to kill Claudius. If he were to choose suicide, he would be unable to complete the task his father gave to him. In order to fulfill his father’s task, Hamlet would need to move past the idea that murder is a sin, which poses an internal conflict for him. Being held in the highest stature by God is an important facet of Hamlet’s personality; he wants to go to heaven, and therefore cannot be associated with sin. Although suicide would end external and internal conflicts, it would not be a solution to them. As Hamlet begins to recognize this when he declares, “To be or not to be/that is the question” (III.i.64)”. He comes to this conclusion as he wonders if death is truly the answer and whether or not it is worth it to continue living. As he contemplates his tough choices ahead of him, his anger towards his uncle and infatuation with death continue to spiral out of control.

These questions and others are so hard on Hamlet that he contemplates suicide on several different occasions. The most famous of which is the “to be, or not to be” soliloquy. (3.1.58-90) During this monologue, Hamlet ponders the question of to exist or not to exist. Would it be better to live, and endure the troubles of life, or just end it all? He refers to death as simply sleeping, but then realizes that with sleeping comes the threat of dreaming. He concludes that the uncertainty of death and the afterlife is what makes all men cowardly. This insecurity of what happens after death is one of the main reasons preventing Hamlet from going through with his idea of suicide.

For example, “producing a world he has never before confronted… where death of life and love must be experienced, a world, in fact, so dark and disillusioning that it is impossible to find one's way through the despair” (Berlin 67-68). Another main theme of this play is the mystery of death and how the thought of life after death is intriguing to some people. After the death of Hamlet’s father, Hamlet tends to remain fixated on the idea of death. Throughout the play, he considers death from many different points of views. Over the course of the play, the idea of death is closely connected to the minor themes of fidelity, principle, and unpredictability. Hamlet uses these aspects so that hopefully, he can answer his innermost questions, which will end the problem of trying to figure out the truth in an enigmatic world. The idea of Hamlet’s own death intrigues him as well. There are numerous times that Hamlet ponders whether or not suicide is a proper action in an intolerably, agonizing world. With so much grief and misery on Hamlet’s shoulders, he constantly thinks about death as a solution to end his suffering. However, due to the Christian religious views on suicide, his fear that if he does commit suicide then he will confined to eternal suffering in hell stands in the way of his action. For example Hamlet states, “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 wish’d. To die, to sleep; to sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub”

Suicide is the ultimate defense against life’s trouble as it offers a peaceful sleep, but what dreams may interrupt that sleep? Shakespeare’s Hamlet is discussing about suicide as well as death. Even though death offer peace, but the afterlife which is unknown makes people cowardly to commit suicide. Throughout the novel, the act of suicide is treat religiously, morally and aesthetically.