Help me, please! Thank you so much for your help!

Question

Hamlet Act 2, Scene 2 Soliloquy - “Oh What a Rogue and Peasant Slave Am I!”

1. Look through the soliloquy and choose three lines or phrases from the ORIGINAL text that stick out to you. List them below and explain why they stood out to you.
2. What is the tone (author’s attitude) and the mood (general atmosphere) of the soliloquy? What evidence supports your tone and mood?
3. Throughout the soliloquy, Hamlet poses many rhetorical questions. What is the purpose of this? Choose one of the questions he poses and explain what the effect of posing that question is.
4. In 3 – 4 sentences, write an objective summary of the soliloquy. What are the main points?

Answer 1

For question 2:

The important thing here is that you understand the difference between tone and mood. Tone is the author's attitude toward the scene, and the mood is the atmosphere that is set. Consider what diction and syntax Shakespeare uses that might give away his attitude toward the situation, and cite that as your evidence. Additionally, consider what types of imagery and dialogue is used to help understand the mood of the scene and cite that as your evidence.

Question 3:

A rhetorical question is a question that is not meant to be answered usually because the answer is obvious. How and why are the answers to his questions obvious? Answering this question will likely get you on track to understanding why he used rhetorical questions.

The remainder of your questions are up to your own judgement, but if you need help developing your line of thought please feel free to schedule a session with me!