To die—to sleep, Devoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep; That makes calamity of so long life. With a bare bodkin? Who would fardels bear, Than fly to others that we know not of? And lose the name of action.

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

"To be, or not to be" is one of the most widely known and quoted lines in modern English, and the speech has been referenced in numerous works of theatre, literature and music.

What is Shakespeare saying in ‘To be or not to be’? In the ‘To be or not be to’ soliloquy Shakespeare has his Hamlet character speak theses famous lines. Hamlet is wondering whether he should continue to be, meaning to exist or remain alive, …

This soliloquy from Act 3, Scene 1 is the single most famous speech in Hamlet, and probably in all of dramatic history. Even audiences unfamiliar with Shakespeare have heard these words.

Detailed annotations and commentary on Hamlet's first soliloquy.

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

‘To be, or not to be’ is the opening line of a monologue spoken by the character Hamlet in Act III, scene 1, of William Shakespeare’s revenge tragedy Hamlet (c. 1599–1601).

Hamlet’s soliloquy begins with the memorable line, “To be, or not to be, that is the question.” It means that he cannot decide what is better, ending all the sufferings of life by death, or bearing the mental burdens silently.

In the "To be or not to be" soliloquy, Shakespeare has Hamlet use a wide array of literary devices to bring more power, imagination, and emotion to the speech. Here, we look at some of the key devices used , how they’re being used, and what kinds of effects they have on the text.