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What does Hamlet's soliloquy in Act 2 reveal about him?

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Analysis of Hamlet's Soliloquy, Act 2.
This soliloquy illustrates Hamlet's continued inability to do anything of consequence. He lacks the knowledge of how to remedy the pain caused by his present circumstances, so he wonders how an actor would portray him, saying, '[he would] drown the stage with tears'.


In this way, what does Hamlet's soliloquy in Act 2 mean?

In the soliloquy, Hamlet expresses anger at himself for not having yet done anything. He compares himself to one of the visiting actors who, in acting out a scene, expresses emotion in a profound way, causing the audience to feel what he feels even though he has no real reason to do so.

Also Know, what does the soliloquy reveal about Hamlet's character? Plans for Hamlet to be killed when he gets to England. What does Hamlet's soliloquy reveal about his present idea of himself? He believes he can't come to himself to carry out his revenge, and he feels bad about it. Describe Ophelia's behavior.

Similarly, you may ask, what does Hamlet reveal in his soliloquy found at the end of Act 2?

In his third soliloquy (act 2, scene 2), Hamlet recriminates himself for his lack of courage, which prevents him from avenging his father's murder. 540-541) Hamlet concludes that he must be cowardly; otherwise, he would have slain Claudius, the "bloody, bawdy, villain" (2.2.

What is the purpose of Hamlet's soliloquy?

The Importance of the Soliloquies in Hamlet A soliloquy is a dramatic speech spoken by a character who is alone on stage, or believes themselves to be alone. This device allows a character in a play to speak directly to the audience about their motives, feelings and decisions.

Related Question Answers

Gabrielle El Akhal

Professional

How all occasions do inform against me?

My thoughts be bloody, or be nothing worth! “How All Occasions Do Inform Against Me” Soliloquy Translation: Whether it was animal-like inability to understand or some cowardly nit-picking – thinking too precisely about it, analysing his thoughts, which were one quarter wisdom and always three quarters cowardice.

Naema Koark

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What is Hamlet's plan at the end of Act 2?

At the end of act 2, scene 2, Hamlet describes how he plans on using the actors to confirm that Claudius murdered his father. When the group of actors arrive, Hamlet plans for them to perform the play The Murder of Gonzago in front of King Claudius and Gertrude in the hopes that the king will reveal his guilt.

Khadijah Yvonnet

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Does Hamlet love Ophelia?

Hamlet really did love Ophelia, and tells Laertes, “Be buried quick with her, and so will I” (V.i.296). Hamlet shows his love for Ophelia when he confesses to her that he loves her, when he tells her to go to a nunnery to protect her, when he sends her the letter, and when he finds out that she has died.

Shawanna Shamuzafarov

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What is Hamlet's tragic flaw?

Hamlet's tragic flaw is his inability to act. By examining his incapability to commit suicide, his inability to come to terms with killing his mother, putting on a play to delay killing Claudius and the inability to kill Claudius while he's praying, we see that Hamlet chooses not to take action.

Nadin Ocallaghan

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What is the main idea of Hamlet's third soliloquy?

In his third soliloquy, Hamlet berates himself for his indecision, his inaction, and his cowardice. The theme of this soliloquy is Hamlet's depression. Hamlet continues to wonder at his procrastination in avenging his father's murder.

Bernardeta Bogener

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Why does Hamlet criticize himself in two of the soliloquies?

Hamlet begins his soliloquy by criticizing his lack of passion and ability to express his strong emotions. Hamlet calls himself a "rogue and peasant" and proceeds to say that he would "make mad the guilty and appall the free" if he had the capacity to reveal his emotions on stage.

Kalid Maiga

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What are the causes of Ophelia's madness?

Either way the external cause is obvious - her helplessness, lack of agency, rejection by Hamlet and distress at the death of her father. She loses all the things she hangs her very existence on.

Celida Sanchez Mayoral

Pundit

What happens in Act 2 of Hamlet?

Summary: Act II, scene ii. Within the castle, Claudius and Gertrude welcome Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two of Hamlet's friends from Wittenberg. He has therefore sent a request back to Claudius that Prince Fortinbras's armies be allowed safe passage through Denmark on their way to attack the Poles.

Amarildo Avksentievsky

Pundit

What is Hamlet's state of mind?

Throughout the play, Hamlet's state of mind goes on a rollercoaster. Hamlet's state of mind goes through multiple changes as he experiences deception, struggles with self-reliance, and deals with grief. Hamlet displays his feelings of deception very sarcastically in his Act 1 soliloquy.

Daya Barrue

Pundit

What does Hamlet question about himself?

Expert Answers info
In a long soliloquy in Act 2, Scene 2, Hamlet asks himself, "Am I a coward?" He wonders about his own courage because he cannot understand what has been keeping him from doing what he promised the ghost of his father he would do--kill Claudius.

Brianne Catasus

Pundit

What does Hamlet learn in his second soliloquy?

Hamlet's Soliloquy: O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I! (2.2) In addition to revealing Hamlet's plot to catch the king in his guilt, Hamlet's second soliloquy uncovers the very essence of Hamlet's true conflict. But Hamlet again fails to quell his apprehensions of committing murder and cannot act immediately.

Damyan Oldham

Teacher

What are the seven soliloquies in Hamlet?

Hamlet's Seven Soliloquies. Most important line: “O most pernicious woman! O villain, villain, smiling, damnèd villain!”

Krzystof Koppers

Supporter

What will happen to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern?

When their ship is attacked by pirates, Hamlet returns to Denmark, leaving Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to die; he comments in Act V, Scene 2 that "They are not near my conscience; their defeat / Does by their own insinuation grow." Ambassadors returning later report that "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead."

Braudilia Cousin

Supporter

How is Hamlet a dynamic character?

In Shakespeare's Hamlet, for example, the character of Hamlet is dynamic because his attitudes and actions at the end of the play stand in direct contrast to those at the play's beginning; in the same work, Polonius is static because his character is consistent and does not change.

Emiliyan Youssef

Supporter

What has happened to Ophelia?

In Act 4 Scene 7, Queen Gertrude reports that Ophelia had climbed into a willow tree (There is a willow grows aslant the brook), and that the branch had broken and dropped Ophelia into the brook, where she drowned. Gertrude says that Ophelia appeared "incapable of her own distress".

Romualda Zigeler

Beginner

How does Hamlet die?

Laertes succeeds in wounding Hamlet, though Hamlet does not die of the poison immediately. First, Laertes is cut by his own sword's blade, and, after revealing to Hamlet that Claudius is responsible for the queen's death, he dies from the blade's poison.

Denislav Houttum

Beginner

Who all dies in Hamlet?

By the end of the tragedy, Hamlet has caused the deaths of Polonius, Laertes, Claudius, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two acquaintances of his from the University of Wittenberg. He is also indirectly involved in the deaths of his love Ophelia (drowning) and of his mother Gertrude (poisoned by Claudius by mistake).

Josefa Winkelmolen

Beginner

Who Was Hamlet written for?

William Shakespeare