Soliloquy

Short Note- Soliloquy

Soliloquy is a dramatic technique of speaking alone on the stage. The word ‘soliloquy’ is derived from the Latin word ‘solo’ which means “to himself”, and ‘loqour’, which means “I speak” respectively. Thus the definition of soliloquy is similar to this compound meaning of “I speak to myself”. It is a dramatic convention in which a character expresses his thoughts and feelings while no one remains on the stage. Playwrights use this device for

the audience to acquaint the character’s inner thoughts and feelings as though they were not being spoken at all. One of the most famous examples of a soliloquy is Hamlet’s speech from Shakespeare’s Hamlet are quoted here:

“To be or not to be: that is the question.

Whether it is nobler in the mind to suffer

The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune

Or to take arms against a sea of troubles.”

Generally, no other characters hear a soliloquy, even though they are onstage during a soliloquy, they cannot hear the utterance of the character.