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How does the line âTo be or not to beâ use antithesis?
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figure of speech
Front cover of Louisa May Alcott's classic novel Little Women.
The line "To be, or not to be" serves as a classic example of antithesis because it places two irreconcilable oppositesâexistence ("to be") and nonexistence ("not to be")âin sharp juxtaposition to create sustained tension.1
In this rhetorical construction, the two phrases are balanced in a parallel grammatical structure, highlighting the fundamental moral conflict at the heart of Hamlet's soliloquy. By setting these opposing ideas against one another, the line forces a choice between the endurance of life's suffering and the finality of death, effectively using the figure of speech to mirror the character's internal struggle and psychological complexity.2