In Act III, Hamlet delivers one of the best-known soliloquies in all of Shakespearean literature. Hamlet enters the scene alone after Polonius and Claudius plot with Ophelia to secretly observe a meeting between her and Hamlet. In his soliloquy, Hamlet reflects on his choice of life or death revealing his suffering on earth, his fear of life after death, as well as the ironic simplicity of a departure from earth.
             In the beginning of his soliloquy, Hamlet poses his question of life or death. "To be or not to be – that is the question."(63) This first line of Hamlet's soliloquy sets up the rest of his speech. Everything else is based upon this thought. Hamlet then wonders
             Whether 'tis nobler in the minds eye to suffer
             The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
             Or to take arms against a sea of troubles
             And, by opposing, end them. (64-68)
             In these above lines, Hamlet continues his question of life or death and wonders what the right thing would be. He could suffer through all of the pain that he is in now, or he could take his fate into his own hands and put and end to his misery by killing himself. This thought continues through the rest of his speech. The first five lines in his soliloquy act as guideline for the rest of the speech. It is in these lines that Hamlet reveals the basics of what he is thinking. Hamlet then goes into the unpleasant things around him that add to his suffering. Hamlet asks
             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 laws delay,
             The insolence of office, and the spurns
             That patient merit of th' unworthy takes,
             When he himself might his quietus make
             In these lines, Hamlet expands upon his suffering here on earth. He lists these reasons very evenly, creating this balanced thought. This smooth pattern
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