To be, or not to be - wikipedia To be, or not to be For other uses, see To Be or Not to Be ( disambiguation ). `` Perchance to Dream '' redirects here. For other uses, see Perchance to Dream ( disambiguation ). Wikisource has original text related to this article : Hamlet, Act 3 To be, or not to be is the opening phrase of a soliloquy spoken by Prince Hamlet in the so - called `` nunnery scene '' of William Shakespeare 's play Hamlet. Act III, Scene I. Although Hamlet 's speech is called a soliloquy, Hamlet is far from alone when he makes his speech because Ophelia is pretending to read while she waits for Hamlet to notice her, and Claudius and Polonius, who have sent Ophelia there in order to overhear their conversation and find out if Hamlet is really mad or only pretending, have concealed themselves. Even so, Hamlet seems to consider himself alone and there is no indication that the others hear him. In the speech, Hamlet contemplates death and suicide, bemoaning the pain and unfairness of life but acknowledging that the alternative might be worse. The meaning of the speech is heavily debated but seems concerned with Hamlet 's hesitation to directly and immediately avenge his father 's murder ( discovered in Act I ) on his uncle, stepfather, and King Claudius. Contents 1 Text 1.1 First Quarto ( 1603 ) 1.2 Second Quarto ( 1604 ) 1.3 First Folio ( 1623 ) 2 Cultural impact 3 References 4 External links Text This version preserves most of the First Folio text with updated spelling and five common emendations introduced from the Second ( `` Good '' ) Quarto ( italicized ). 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 wished. To die, to sleep, To sleep, perchance to Dream ; aye, 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. There 's the respect that makes Calamity of so long life : For who would bear the Whips and Scorns of time, the Oppressor 's wrong, the proud man 's Contumely, ( F : poor ) the pangs of despised Love, the Law 's delay, ( F : disprized ) the insolence of Office, and the spurns that patient merit of the unworthy takes, when he himself might his Quietus make with a bare Bodkin ? Who would Fardels bear, ( F : these Fardels ) to grunt and sweat under a weary life, but that the dread of something after death, the undiscovered country, from whose bourn no traveller returns, puzzles the will, and makes us rather bear those ills we have, than fly to others that we know not of. Thus conscience does make cowards of us all, and thus the native hue of Resolution Is sicklied o'er, with the pale cast of Thought, And enterprises of great pitch and moment, ( F : pith ) with this regard their Currents turn awry, ( F : away ) And lose the name of Action. Soft you now, The fair Ophelia ? Nymph, in thy Orisons Be all my sins remember 'd. First Quarto ( 1603 ) Although the `` First Quarto '' ( Q1 ) was the earliest edition of Hamlet in print it is considered a bad quarto ( essentially, a theatrical knock - off ) rather than a first or earlier draft. Some parts of Q1 reflect the received text well ; its version of ' To be ' does not, being much shorter and very different. For ease of comparison the spelling here is updated as above. To be, or not to be, Ay there 's the point, To Die, to sleep, is that all ? Aye all : No, to sleep, to dream, aye marry there it goes, For in that dream of death, when we awake, And borne before an everlasting Judge, From whence no passenger ever returned, The undiscovered country, at whose sight The happy smile, and the accursed damn 'd. But for this, the joyful hope of this, Who 'd bear the scorns and flattery of the world, Scorned by the right rich, the rich cursed of the poor ? The widow being oppressed, the orphan wrong 'd, The taste of hunger, or a tyrants reign, And thousand more calamities besides, To grunt and sweat under this weary life, When that he may his full Quietus make, With a bare bodkin, who would this endure, But for a hope of something after death ? Which puzzles the brain, and doth confound the sense, Which makes us rather bear those evils we have, Than fly to others that we know not of. Aye that, O this conscience makes cowards of us all, Lady in thy orizons, be all my sins remembered. Q1, as mentioned above, differs from its source material. A puzzling example is that `` dread '' is changed to `` hope '' in the line : `` But for a hope of something after death ? '' In the lines above this, Hamlet questions why one would suffer the calamites of life when `` a bare bodkin '' could quiet that suffering ( i.e. suicide ). In the Second Quarto ( see topic below ), Hamlet suggests that humanity endures life because we `` dread '' what comes after death, and we would rather face the evils we face now, for fear of facing evils unknown. The change from `` dread '' to `` hope '' makes the phrasing nonsensical, since he is now suggesting that we refuse death because of `` a hope of something after death. '' Second Quarto ( 1604 ) The Second Quarto ( Q2 ) is considered the earliest and authoritative version of the play. In Q2 the whole nunnery scene including ' To be ' takes place later in the play than in Q1 where it occurs directly after Claudius and Polonius have planned it and the addition of `` Soft you now '', suggesting that Hamlet has not ( or is feigning having not ) seen Ophelia thus far during his speech To be, or not to be, that is the question, Whether tis nobler in the minde to suffer The slings and arrowes of outragious fortune, Or to take Armes again in a sea of troubles, And by opposing, end them, to die to sleepe No more, and by a sleepe, to say we end The hart - ache, and the thousand naturall shocks That flesh is heire to ; tis a consumation Deuoutly to be wisht to die to sleepe, To sleepe, perchance to dreame, I there 's the rub, For in that sleepe of death what dreames may come When we haue shuffled off this mortall coyle Must giue vs pause, there 's the respect That makes calamitie of so long life : For who would beare the whips and scorns of time, Th'oppressors wrong, the proude mans contumly, The pangs of despiz 'd loue, the lawes delay, The insolence of office, and the spurnes That patient merrit of the'vnworthy takes, When he himselfe might his quietas make With a bare bodkin ; who would fardels beare, To grunt and sweat vnder a wearie life, But that the dread of something after death, The vndiscouer 'd country, from whose borne No trauiler returnes, puzzels the will, And makes vs rather beare those ills we haue, Then flie to others we know not of. Thus conscience dooes make cowards, And thus the natiue hiew of resolution Is sickled ore with the pale cast of thought, And enterprises of great pitch and moment, With this regard theyr currents turne awry, And loose the name of action. Soft you now, The faire Ophelia, Nimph in thy orizons Be all my sinnes remembred. First Folio ( 1623 ) Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies, published by Isaac Jaggard and Ed Blount in 1623 and better known as the `` First Folio '', includes an edition of Hamlet largely similar to the Second Quarto. The differences in ' To be ' are mostly typographic, with increased punctuation and capitalization. To be, or not to be, that is the Question : Whether ' tis Nobler in the mind to suffer The Slings and Arrows of outragious Fortune, Or to take Armes against a Sea of troubles, And by opposing end them : to dye, to sleepe No more ; and by a sleep, to say we end The Heart - ake, and the thousand Naturall shockes That Flesh is heyre too ? ' Tis a consummation Deuoutly to be wish 'd. To dye to sleepe, To sleep, perchance to Dream ; I, there 's the rub, For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come, When we haue shufflel 'd off this mortall coile, Must giue us pause. There 's the respect That makes Calamity of long life : For who would beare the Whips and Scornes of time, The Oppressors wrong, the poore mans Contumely, The pangs of dispriz 'd Loue, the Lawes delay, The insolence of Office, and the Spurnes That patient merit of the unworthy takes, When he himselfe might his Quietus make With a bare Bodkin ? Who would these Fardles beare To grunt and sweat vnder a weary life, But that the dread of something after death, The vndiscouered Countrey, from whose Borne No Traueller returnes, Puzels the will, And makes vs rather beare those illes we haue, Then flye to others that we know not of. Thus Conscience does make Cowards of vs all, And thus the Natiue hew of Resolution Is sicklied o 're, with the pale cast of Thought, And enterprizes of great pith and moment, With this regard their Currants turne away, And loose the name of Action. Soft you now, The faire Ophelia ? Nimph, in thy Orizons Be all my sinnes remembred. Cultural impact `` To be, or not to be '' is one of the most widely known and quoted lines in modern English, and the soliloquy has been referenced in innumerable works of theatre, literature and music. Much of the plot of 1942 sophisticated comedy To Be or Not to Be, by Ernst Lubitsch, is focused on the monologue of Hamlet ; in 1957 comedy film A King in New York, Charlie Chaplin recites the famous monologue in the shoes of the ambiguous king Shahdov. Hamlet 's famous line inspired the title of Kurt Vonnegut 's 1962 short story `` 2 BR 0 2 B '' ( The zero is pronounced `` naught '' ). The narrative takes place in a dystopian future where the United States government, through scientific advancement, has achieved a `` cure '' for both aging and overpopulation. The alphabetical / numerical reformulation of Shakespeare 's lines serves in the story as the phone number for the Federal Bureau of Termination 's assisted suicide request line. In 1963 at a debate in Oxford, Black liberation leader Malcolm X quoted the first few lines of the soliloquy to make a point about `` extremism in defense of liberty. '' P.D. James ' dystopian novel The Children of Men ( 1992 ) refers to expected or forced mass suicides of the elderly as `` Quietus ''. The film adaptation Children of Men ( 2006 ) portrays a self - administered home suicide kit, labelled `` Quietus ''. Star Trek 's sixth film was named after the `` Undiscovered Country '' line from this soliloquy. References are made to Shakespeare during the film including Klingon translations of his works and the use of the phrase `` taH pagh, taHbe ' ``, roughly meaning `` whether to continue, or not to continue ( existence ). '' The book ( and later film ) What Dreams May Come also derives its name from a line from this soliloquy. A shorter Hindi version of `` To be, or not to be '' was recited by Shahid Kapoor in the 2014 Bollywood film Haider. Stargate Atlantis, the Season 4 Episode 10 named `` This Mortal Coil '' ( 2008 ) after the soliloquy, as well as Season 4 Episode 11 named `` Be All My Sins Remember 'd '' ( 2008 ). These episodes involved learning about and fighting the artificial intelligence species Replicator. References Jump up ^ Act III, Scene i Jump up ^ Perseus Project. `` Perseus : image : 1998.04. 0773 Image : 1998.04. 0773 ''. Tufts University. Accessed 24 August 2013. Jump up ^ Shakespeare, William. The Tragicall Historie of Hamlet Prince of Denmarke. As it hath beene diuerse times acted by his Highnesse seruants in the Cittie of London : as also in the two Vniuersities of Cambridge and Oxford, and else - where ( The `` First Quarto '' ), pp. 35 ff. Nicholas Ling & J. Trundell ( London ), 1603. Reprinted as The First Edition of the Tragedy of Hamlet : London, 1603. The Shakespeare Press, 1825. Jump up ^ Shakespeare, William. ( The `` First Quarto '' ). Hosted at The Shakespeare Quartos Archive as Hamlet, 1603. Copy 1. Huntington Library, image 17. Accessed 13 December 2013. Jump up ^ Tronch Pérez, Jesús. `` Dramaturgy of the Acting Version of the First Quarto of Hamlet ''. SEDERI VII ( 1996 ), p. 219. Jump up ^ Shakespeare, William. The Tragicall Historie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke. Newly imprinted and enlarged to almost as much againe as it was, according to the true and perfect Coppie ( The `` Second Quarto '' ). Nicholas Ling, 1604. Hosted at The Shakespeare Quartos Archive as Hamlet, 1604. Copy 1. Folger Library, images 27 & 28. Accessed 13 December 2013. Jump up ^ Shakespeare, William. The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies Published according to the True Originall Copies ( The `` First Folio '' ), p. 265. Isaac Jaggard & Ed Blount ( London ), 1623. Hosted at the Internet Shakespeare Editions as First Folio, Page 773. Brandeis University. Accessed 13 Dec 2013. Jump up ^ Vonnegut, Kurt. `` '' 2 BR 0 2 B `` ''. gutenberg.org. The Project Gutenberg. Retrieved 29 April 2017. External links Hamlet 's To Be Or Not To Be soliloquy translated into modern English The Fishko Files : The Many Faces of Hamlet from WNYC 's Sara Fishko, a radio piece and accompanying blog post about the many interpretations of the soliloquy. William Shakespeare 's Hamlet Characters Hamlet Claudius Gertrude Ghost Polonius Laertes Ophelia Horatio Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Fortinbras The Gravediggers Yorick Soliloquies `` To be, or not to be '' `` Mortal coil '' `` What a piece of work is a man '' `` Speak the speech '' Words and phrases `` The lady doth protest too much, methinks '' `` Thy name is '' `` Primrose path '' Terminology Dumbshow Induction Quiddity Substitution Sources Criticism Legend of Hamlet The Spanish Tragedy Ur - Hamlet Critical approaches Bibliographies Horwendill Saxo Grammaticus House of Gonzaga Damon and Pythias Influence Common phrases from Hamlet Hamlet in popular culture References to Ophelia Language of flowers Human skull symbolism Performances Moscow Art Theatre ( 1911 -- 1912 ) Richard Burton ( 1964 ) On screen 1900 1907 1908 1912 1913 1917 1921 1935 1948 1954 1961 1964 1969 2000 2011 Adaptations Films The Rest Is Silence ( 1959 ) The Bad Sleep Well ( 1960 ) Ophelia ( 1963 ) Johnny Hamlet ( 1968 ) One Hamlet Less ( 1973 ) The Angel of Vengeance -- The Female Hamlet ( 1977 ) Strange Brew ( 1983 ) Hamlet Goes Business ( 1987 ) The Lion King ( 1994 ) Let the Devil Wear Black ( 1999 ) The Banquet ( 2006 ) Tardid ( 2009 ) Karmayogi ( 2012 ) Haider ( 2014 ) Hamlet A.D.D. ( 2014 ) The Lion King ( 2019 ) Novels Gertrude and Claudius ( 2000 ) Dating Hamlet ( 2002 ) Ophelia 's Revenge ( 2003 ) The Dead Fathers Club ( 2006 ) Something Rotten ( 2007 ) Hamlet 's Father ( 2008 ) The Story of Edgar Sawtelle ( 2008 ) Plays Hamletmachine ( 1977 ) Dogg 's Hamlet ( 1979 ) Fortinbras ( 1991 ) Musicals Rockabye Hamlet ( 1973 ) The Lion King ( 1997 ) Television Hamlet ( Australian TV, 1959 ) Hamlet at Elsinore ( BBC, 1964 ) Hamlet, Prince of Denmark ( BBC, 1980 ) Hamlet ( BBC 2, animated, 1992 ) Hamlet ( BBC 2, 2009 ) Parodies 15 - Minute Hamlet The Complete Works of William Shakespeare ( Abridged ) Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Io, Amleto The Klingon Hamlet `` Lyle the Kindly Viking '' To Be or Not to Be : That is the Adventure Songs `` My Robin is to the Greenwood Gone '' ( 16th century ) `` Pull Me Under '' ( 1992 ) `` Song for Athene '' ( 1997 ) Opera / classical Hamlet ( Thomas ) Amleto ( Faccio ) Hamlet ( Tchaikovsky ) Tristia ( Berlioz ) Die Hamletmaschine ( Rihm ) Hamlet ( Dean ) Story within a story Films To Be or Not to Be ( 1942 ) Acting Hamlet in the Village of Mrdusa Donja ( 1973 ) To Be or Not to Be ( 1983 ) Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead ( 1990 ) Renaissance Man ( 1994 ) In the Bleak Midwinter ( 1995 ) Hamlet 2 ( 2008 ) Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Undead ( 2009 ) Three Days ( 2012 ) Plays Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead ( 1966 ) Stage Blood ( 1974 ) I Hate Hamlet ( 1991 ) To Be or Not to Be ( 2008 ) Novels Hamlet, Revenge ! ( 1937 ) Theatre of War ( 1994 ) `` The Undiscovered '' ( 1997 ) The Shakespeare Stealer ( 1998 ) Interred with Their Bones ( 2007 ) Television `` The Producer '' ( 1966 ) Slings & Arrows ( 2003 ) Art Ophelia Affe mit Schädel Video game Last Action Hero ( 1993 ) Hamlet ( 2010 ) Intertextuality Asterix and the Great Crossing The Seagull Sharpe 's Havoc Related Hamlet and Oedipus Hamlet Had an Uncle Hamlet and His Problems Hebenon Hamlet Q1 Ostalo je ćutanje The Chronicles of Amber `` Symphony No. 65 '' ( Haydn ) War Highlander II : The Quickening The Hobart Shakespeareans Gertrude -- The Cry Poor Murderer Something Rotten ! `` The Conscience of the King '' `` Born to Be King '' Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=To_be,_or_not_to_be&oldid=800094535 '' Categories : Hamlet Monologues Shakespearean phrases Snowclones Talk Contents About Wikipedia Alemannisch Български Català Deutsch Eesti Español Esperanto Euskara فارسی Հայերեն Italiano עברית Nederlands Norsk Polski Português Русский Suomi Українська 粵語 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 11 September 2017, at 13 : 47. 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Question: where did the quote to be or not to be come from
Answer: William Shakespeare's play Hamlet. Act III, Scene I