Monday, May 25, 2009

THe Soloist 7-12

The Soloist 7-12

I want to talk about my reaction when reading the excerpt from Hamlet. It has some very interesting thoughts about the purpose of life and the pursuit of happiness.


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,
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,
Th'oppressor's wrong, the proud man's contumely,
The pangs of despised love, the law's delay,
The insolence of office, and the spurns
That patient merit of th'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 makes 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 thus the native hue of resolution
Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought,
And enterprises of great pitch and moment
With this regard their currents turn awry,
And lose the name of action.

This world famous monologue from the Hamlet was recited by Nathaniel in front of the “respectable” audiences at Skids Row. “To be or not to be” itself makes perfect alternative for people that are on the brinks of collapse, when the only alternative to them is to end all misery by suicide. But there is something inside us that tells us that death is not the only option when it comes to ending misery and grief. Love is what makes us survive the cruel world of reality, and we will forever remember being loved or the loved ones. And also there is always a choice that we can make, but there are consequences.



PS: I want my readers to think about Nathaniel's position and the monologue itself, and it almost seems that To be or not to be, means to live or not to live. To me death is almost a kind of relief from the suffering in the world, and yet life can seem wonderful with love, and music. Basically love is the only thing that keeps us all going, while knowing all of us are heading towards death. And it also it seems like being born, is to die. I can't totally explain this unique paradox.



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