Hamlet’s Most Important Lesson

Shakespeare on how to defeat fear

In Shakespeare’s plays, there are plenty of characters designed to instill some sort of physical fear in you, like the witches in Macbeth or the ghost in Hamlet.

Yet these physical representations of fear are nowhere near as terrifying as the feelings of doubt and uncertainty that lurk deep inside one’s self. Indeed, the fears that keep you from pursuing your dreams and ambitions are often the most paralyzing.

This kind of fear is all too common — especially when you are presented with something new. Because regardless of how compelling your reasons for changing things up might be, it is human nature to prefer the devil you know over the one you don’t. The result of this, however, is that most people never take the leap for fear of what awaits them on the other side.

In the play Hamlet, Shakespeare addresses this topic of fear and uncertainty head-on, but not in the way you think. Because while Hamlet’s most famous soliloquy is often understood to portray Hamlet as suicidal, it’s actually doing the exact opposite.

Today, we explore the hidden meaning behind Hamlet’s “To be or not to be” speech — and what it can teach you about overcoming your fear of the unknown…