Hamlet, Part 4: Comparing and Contrasting Interpretations — Quiz
Question 3 • British Literature and Composition
Read the excerpt from Act III of Hamlet . Hamlet: 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. Which of these adaptations of the excerpt is most likely to portray Hamlet as worried and thoughtful?
Answer
A
The actor playing Hamlet shouts his lines to the audience while wildly gesturing with his hands.
B
The actor playing Hamlet sings the lines, adding an impromptu melody to the soliloquy.
C
The actor playing Hamlet cries to himself as he tearfully speaks the lines to himself.
D
The actor playing Hamlet speaks slowly and deliberately, weighing the meaning of every word as he goes along.
Explanation
Hamlet is carefully considering whether it is better to endure suffering or end it, and he pauses when he thinks about what might come after death. Speaking slowly and deliberately, as if weighing each word, would show that he is worried and thoughtful. Shouting or singing would make the soliloquy seem more forceful or theatrical than reflective.
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