In Act II scene II of Shakespeare's Hamlet, Hamlet makes it clear that he is very unclear about whether to avenge the death of his father. Just before the speech, he has been witness to a ghost of his father's likeness that tells him how his father was murdered and commands him to avenge the terrible murder. The ambiguity can be seen not only by the structure of Hamlet's soliloquy but also by the many questions he asks that call his behavior into doubt and by the contrast in the verbs used to describe what he has done with those that suggest what he ought to have accomplished.

Hamlet conveys a feeling of ambiguity in his soliloquy that is supported by the structure of the speech and expresses both condemnation of himself and excuses for not avenging his father's murder. Hamlet...