If his uncle reacts suspiciously to this scene, Hamlet will have his proof: How will he get the proof he seeks? He’ll stage a play to be performed for the King, and the play will feature a scene depicting a murder nearly identical to his Father’s. So Hamlet needs some hard and fast proof to see for himself. The ghost may in fact not be his father’s spirit it might be an evil banshee trying to trick him. Right before this speech, Hamlet has come to a decision. Hamlet cops a lot of flack from modern scholars for his lack of “action” like a typical revenge tragedy hero, (think of the character Maximus from Gladiator) but come on, give the guy a break! One could argue he’s actually being quite rational about his approach he is taking his time and searching for the right decision to make. It’s a recipe for a solid head spin if you ask me. Oh, and the cherry on top, his dead father’s ghost has demanded that Hamlet avenges that murder. Yep, the same Uncle his Mother is now married to. And who was he murdered by? Hamlet’s Uncle – Claudius. He is facing several obstacles: he is grieving the death of his father he is questioning the hasty remarriage of his Mother he is disgusted by his mother’s decision to marry his father’s brother (an incestuous act by his morals) and if that wasn’t enough, his deceased father has returned to Hamlet as a ghost and told him that he did not die from natural causes. It’s fair to say that Hamlet is going through a lot at this point in the story. ![]() The speech happens in Act 3, Scene 1 of the play. This article is going to help you unlock Hamlet’s famous “To be or not to be” soliloquy from Act 3 Scene 1. This speech does require careful analysis, but with an understanding of what Hamlet is going through at this point in time and the argument he is having with himself, we can access the thoughts and emotions he is experiencing. Thus, it is more a conundrum and philosophical riddle than a question per se (even a rhetorical question), and the translation favors the appropriate term cuestión over pregunta, duda, tema, etc.Alright, let’s do it! Let’s tackle arguably the most famous and frequently quoted speeches in not only Shakespeare’s canon but in all western literature. You could have used pregunta in the translation, losing little meaning, but for Hamlet this is not actually " a question" ( una pregunta / la pregunta) but " THE question" ( LA pregunta). He is talking about this philosophical problem, this conundrum. He is more or less thinking aloud and philosophizing. ![]() Thus, "question" has been correctly translated in this context, since Hamlet is not asking anything to anybody present in the room. We can see how the definition of cuestión explains the term as a "pregunta", but a pregunta that you make in order to learn something (like a rhetorical question in order to help someone understand something or to make them think, like in the Socratic method). Oposición de términos lógicos o de razones respecto a un mismo tema, que exigen detenido estudio para resolver con acierto. Pregunta que se hace con intención dialéctica para averiguar la verdad de algo. ![]() Since a conundrum is "a confusing and difficult problem or question a question or problem having only a conjectural answer a riddle".Īnd by doing that I hope it is clearer to understand the difference when translating to Spanish "question" as cuestión, instead of pregunta. Whether 'tis Nobler in the mind to suffer To be or not to be, that is the conundrum: We could change the sentence, maintaining all the meaning, by saying: So Hamlet is asking a question to himself. "To be, or not to be" is the opening phrase of a soliloquy spoken by Prince Hamlet Īlthough called a soliloquy, Hamlet is far from alone since Ophelia is pretending to read while she waits for Hamlet to notice her, and Įven so, Hamlet seems to consider himself alone. To give some context to what is easily one of the most famous quotes in history:
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