"To sleep, perchance to dream..."
This famous quote falls directly in the middle of Hamlet's even more famous soliloquy, and is used to great dramatic and cinematic effect in the Olivier film adaptation. In terms of arc: the comma between these clauses is used to create the turning point of the scene at which Hamlet realizes that suicide is not a viable choice in light of the unknown nature of the afterlife. His objective as a character is now bent purely towards revenge and this line is the pivot point on which this transition hinges. This is shown through the climactic increase in tension and pacing, as well as through assemblage, as a sudden highly contrasting cut startles the audience out of the lull of sleep just as Hamlet does to himself. The mise-en-scene of the first shot ("to sleep") is extremely close up and shaky, cutting to a long shot ("perchance to dream") that shows Hamlet steady and poised. The non-diegetic music swells out of nowhere after he says "to sleep," creating a similar dramatic startling effect to go with the cut.
This line of monologue echoes Antigone in its consideration of death and the afterlife, as well as that of duty to the dead. Antigone expresses multiple times that she is more afraid of the consequences from the gods if she should fail to step up than of the retribution of Creon. Similarly, Hamlet realizes that the "dreams" of death are much more fearful to face than the perils of his mission. However we never see Antigone weighing the two in this way, and thus Hamlet comes across as more weak, flawed, and ultimately more relatable as a character.
