... in it then trip him, that his heels may kick at heaven, " (III, iv, 95-97). According to historical interpretations, it is melancholy that guide Hamlet's hesitation. Several treatises were written during Elizabethan times about this malady. The primary characteristics of melancholy are: sadness, fear, doubt, despair, and procrastination with additional sarcastic humor. Hamlet displays all these traits: he is extremely ... " soliloquy: "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 up arms ag...

• Word Count: 1979
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: High School