King Claudius Soliloquy (Act 3, Scene 3)

Original Text

O, my offence is rank: it smells to heaven;

It hath the primal eldest curse upon’t,
A brother’s murder. Pray can I not:
Though inclination be as sharp as will,
My stronger guilt defeats my strong intent
And like a man to double business bound
I stand in pause where I shall first begin,
And both neglect. What if this cursed hand
Were thicker than itself with brother’s blood?
Is there not rain enough in the sweet heavens
To wash it white as snow? Whereto serves mercy
But to confront the visage of offence?
And what’s in prayer but this twofold force,
– To be forestalled ere we come to fall
Or pardoned being down? Then I’ll look up.
My fault is past. But O, what form of prayer
Can serve my turn: “Forgive me my foul murder”?
That cannot be, since I am still possessed
Of those effects for which I did the murder,
My crown, mine own ambition and my Queen.
May one be pardoned and retain th’offence?
In the corrupted currents of this world
Offence’s gilded hand may shove by justice,
And oft ’tis seen the wicked prize itself
Buys out the law; but ’tis not so above:
There is no shuffling, there the action lies
In his true nature, and we ourselves compelled
Even to the teeth and forehead of our faults
To give in evidence. What then? What rests?
Try what repentance can – what can it not?
Yet what can it, when one cannot repent?
O wretched state, O bosom black as death,
O limed soul that struggling to be free
Art more engaged. Help, angels, make assay.
Bow, stubborn knees, and heart with strings of steel
Be soft as sinews of the new-born babe.
All may be well.

Unfamiliar Language

Primal eldest curse: Biblical reference to the story of Cain and

Able
Visage: a person’s face, with reference to the form or proportions
of the features.
Twofold: having two parts or elements.
Forestalled: prevent or obstruct (an anticipated event or action) by
taking advance action.
Assay: Effort
Sinews: a piece of tough fibrous tissue uniting muscle to bone; a
tendon or ligament.

Modern Translation

Oh, my crime is festering and rotten, it’s smell reaches up to

heaven.
My crime has the curse of Cain on it. A brother’s murder.
I can’t pray, even though I desperately want to, the strength of my
guilt defeats the strength of my intention.
And, like someone who can’t decide which of two actions to make,
I stand here unable to do anything.
So if I am guilty of this crime, is there not enough forgiveness in
the heavens to make me free of it?
Isn’t that what God’s mercy is for?
And doesn’t praying do two things at once? Prevent us from
sinning in the first place and pardon us when we repent?
If this is the case, I’ll look to the heavens. My fault is in the past.
Oh, but what type of prayer can save me now?
“Forgive me for my foul murder”?
I can’t ask that, because I am still benefitting from the things I did
the murder for:
My crown, my ambition and my queen.
Can I be pardoned and keep those benefits?
In this corrupted world it is possible to avoid justice through
bribery with the rewards of the crime.
But this isn’t the case in heaven. There is no corruption there.
Up there all our crimes are judged exactly as they are worth.
So what can I do? What is there left for me to do? I will see what
repentance can do for me.
What can’t it do? Yet what can it do when I cannot repent?
Oh what a dismal situation I’m in. My heart is as black as death.
My soul is so fused with sin that even as it struggles to be free it
increases its bindings.
Help, angels! Make an effort here!
Bow, you stubborn knees, and my heart – as strong and stubborn as
steel be soft as a newborn baby.
Let’s hope everything will be ok.