To be, or not to be

In the very first line of Hamlet’s soliloquy, “To be, or not to be”, is summarized the conflict which is tearing him apart: he has to decide whether to revenge his father’s death or to go on living pretending he does not know the truth, thus behaving like a fool. However, Hamlet’s words do not refer to any particular event or circumstance in his life, so they assume a general meaning and symbolize all the conflicts, or “natural shocks”, that have always tormented mankind.

Once human beings are aware of the unjust features of life and decide not to cope with them, the only solution seems to be suicide, thus ending the “sea of troubles” life involves. Committing suicide, however, is making a decision itself and compels to act, which makes the same dilemma arise again. Moreover what prevents people from killing themselves is also the fear of the beyond, because it is an unknown world. Hamlet actually softens death’s terrible image by comparing it to sleep or using some metaphors: “shuffled off this mortal coil” (l.12), “quietus make” (l.20). In line 28 Hamlet states that what makes all of us “cowards” is conscience and that the doubts it arise prevent our thought from turning into action.

The Tempest: a coloniser and a colonised

In this passage, taken from the second scene of the first act, Caliban and Prospero curse each other using the power of language more than the magic’s one. Caliban cannot stand his state of slavery any longer because he reminds Prospero that when he arrived on the island they established a relationship based on mutual help and learning : Prospero taught him his language while Caliban showed him the “qualities” of the island. Unfortunately Caliban’s gratefulness did not lead to friendship but to slavery because, thanks to the power of his magic, Prospero overwhelmed Caliban confining him in a “hard rock”. This kind of relationship recalls the one between powerful colonisers and weaker colonised people who are obliged to learn and accept the invaders’ culture and language and to give up the control over their own lands. A modern example can be the way Native Americans were confined in reservation. On the one hand Prospero justifies his spell on Caliban as the only possible way to protect Miranda’s chastity from Caliban’s savage instincts, on the other hand Caliban had behaved spontaneously like any human being trying to preserve the species. The Elizabethan perception of the natives of England’s new colonies was the belief that they were savages without any values and culture so it is easy to understand why from Prospero and Miranda’s point of view it was inconceivable that Caliban could be Miranda’s partner, thus putting a coloniser and a colonised on the same level.

Shakespeare’s opinion was probably the same as Prospero and most English Elizabethan people’s but we can also think that Shakespeare’s position as an artist was the same as Caliban’s in verse 59 when he says “I must obey” because the sovereign’s power is so strong that he could be defeated.

Othello: Algid crystals and red roses

This is a fundamental passage of Shakespeare’s tragedy “Othello”, where the protagonist is about to kill his wife Desdemona that he thinks unfaithful. The scene is characterized by Othello’s soliloquy, which is like an ode to Love and Justice. He has to decide whether to extinguish Desdemona’s vital light or let his love for her prevail thus allowing the shadows of Injustice to darken life’s harmony.

Literature is full of works in which the struggle between good and evil is shown through the opposition of light and darkness. An example of images of light and darkness can be found in the Italian writer Tasso in his “Gerusalemme liberata” (“Jerusalem delivered”) in the stanzas here he describes the battle between Clorinda and Tancredi. The night images are associated with fight and violence, whereas dawn is followed by the spiritual rebirth of Clorinda’s soul. Following my instinct I would say that light is linked to safety, positiveness and optimism, while darkness usually makes me feel insecure and afraid of the unknown. However I realize that some people prefer darkness to light because they consider it as a shield against anything that can harm them.

In this passage two contrasting colours emerge: white and red. White is linked to the words snow and alabaster, while red is suggested by the words blood, heat, light and rose. Even if white is usually the symbol of pureness, chastity and recalls a vital shine as it is a perfect colour, here it is used to create an image of cold death because both snow and alabaster are as gelid as a corpse. Inversely red keeps its usual symbolism as it represents some animated elements of life. However even a red living rose, if “plucked”, can die as a body drained of its blood. What can seem contradictory is justified by Othello’s urgent need to restore Justice which can be compared to something as perfect as an algid crystal of snow or a “smooth monumental” alabaster. For this reason the repeated word “cause” in Othello’s soliloquy has to be considered with its legal meaning. This is shown by his words: “Yet she must die else she’ll betray more men”. This momentary vacillation “to break” the sword of Justice is eventually overcome because he smothers Desdemona.

The human condition

Thanks to Renaissance dramatists, English drama changed dramatically. The main protagonists of this turning point were Christopher Marlow and William Shakespeare. Through their works they sounded the deepest aspects of human soul and exalted the glorious moments of English history, criticising its most dreadful episodes as well.

Characters like Marlowe’s Faustus enhance the power of knowledge that enables human beings to act free from God’s influence and be aware of their own intellectual capabilities and human miseries.

As many past and contemporary critics wrote in their essays – e.g. F. Hegel and Harold Bloom – William Shakespeare can be considered incomparable and unequalled because his plays range over almost all aspects of human life. For the first time in English drama the characters of Shakespeare plays in addition to acting, are also able to analyse their behaviour from an alienated perspective as if they were the spectators of their own life.