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Just a random thought as to what the actual difference might be between the two??

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5 Answers

up vote 9 down vote accepted

In a soliloquy, the speaker isn't addressing anyone. A monologue may be addressed to other characters or the audience.

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Furthermore, I'd associate soliloquy strongly with dramas, while monologue could be used in a wide range of contexts. – Ankur Banerjee Mar 7 '11 at 18:14
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+1 — nicely put. One can perhaps also read this distinction into the etymologies: a monologue just has to be one person speaking, but a soliloquy must be someone speaking alone. (Of course, I don’t mean this as an argument for its correctness — modern meanings of many words have diverged from their etymologies — but in this case it does seem to fit well.) – PLL Mar 7 '11 at 21:56
up vote 6 down vote

Monologue is a "long and typically tedious speech by one person during a conversation", while a soliloquy is "the act of speaking one's thoughts aloud when by oneself or regardless of any hearers".

[Reference: the New Oxford American Dictionary.]

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up vote 1 down vote

To me a soliloquy is a speaker's inner voice, you are hearing the speaker's innermost thoughts.

A monologue is simply a one-sided conversation.

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up vote 0 down vote

Nobody ever lies in a soliloquy.

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This is really a comment, not an answer to the question. Please use "add comment" to leave feedback for the author. – tchrist Aug 19 '12 at 3:27
@tchrist: I disagree. This may not be as complete or accurate an answer as the community likes, but it is not a comment. It is not a response to anyone but the person who asked the question, and it doesn't do anything but answer that question. – nmichaels Aug 27 '12 at 13:57
Should we assume a soliloquy is always honest, post-Brecht? – Jon Hanna Jan 28 at 10:15
up vote 0 down vote

monologue occurs when a character talks to himself out loud when no other characters are either on stage or within hearing distance whereas soliloquy is a monologue restricted to drama that actors speak only when alone, or when they believe they are alone

Read more: Differences Between a Monologue & a Soliloquy | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/info_8353295_differences-between-monologue-soliloquy.html#ixzz2J4cTxPX2

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