Hamlet's Diction In Hamlet

In this soliloquy, Hamlet’s tone changes from being frustrated and irritated to sure, powerful, and bloodthirsty. Hamlet begins speaking in a frustrated manner, beating himself up that although there is so much around him that should motivate him to take revenge against his uncle, he has not. Shakespeare’s diction, such as “dull” (4.4.35) and “beast” (4.4.37) show Hamlet’s disgust with only living like an animal, just sleeping and eating. Hamlet is frustrated since he has been lazy, which was not God’s intention. He cannot even fight for a worthy cause dear to his heart, but Fortinbras’ men die for a meaningless reason. Shakespeare uses particular words such as “death” (4.4.55), “danger dare” (4.4.55), “eggshell” (4.4.56), and “honor” (4.4.59) to show that Fortinbras’ men are braver than Hamlet since they take action. For this, Hamlet is irritated since they are fighting for an eggshell, a simple and useless item. However, this irritation sparks a realization which allows a powerful ending to the soliloquy. Hamlet vows to only have “bloody” (4.4.69) thoughts. At this point, Hamlet is seeking

Although these men are not fighting for a great reason, when “honor’s at the stake” (4.4.59), they fight to their “imminent death” (4.4.63). This shows how Hamlet should act since his justification for seeking revenge is far greater than this army’s reasons for going to battle. Since these soldiers “go to their graves like beds” (4.4.65), Hamlet acknowledges that he must take action and have his “thoughts be bloody or be nothing worth” (4.4.69). In this soliloquy, Hamlet realizes that it is necessary to take action now. For too long, he has worried about the aftermath of murdering his uncle, but now he has been motivated by Fortinbras’ army willing to die for a worthless cause. This soliloquy is a representation of Hamlet’s last time dwelling on killing his