Is Ophelia driven mad by her love for Hamlet, or is she the victim of a society that has created impossible expectations for its women? Had she the license to think for herself, Ophelia might have reasoned…
In nearly every tale, the story line contains multiple characters whom depict both good and “evil” qualities. In other words, they reveal opposite interpretations. These drastic differences can be drawn due to the lack of specifics in the reading. One interpretation may portray a character as pure and innocent. In another, they may appear at fault. Shakespeare’s famous play, Hamlet, illustrates this notion through an accumulation of characters. Of the many, Ophelia may strike one as the innocent virgin, or rather the selfish and corrupt whore. An overall analysis may be useful in determining which portrayal is more accurate.…
Throughout history, a strong male lead has been the popular choice in literature. Oftentimes, the females in written works are seen as weaker characters than their male counterparts. This was especially true in the time of Shakespeare. In Hamlet, both Ophelia and Gertrude, the queen, are written in this way. Although they both could have had a large impact on the plot, Shakespeare chose to write them in as small, impotent characters. This may be because that's how women were often viewed in his time.…
You don't have to be a feminist to know that Ophelia is little more than a plaything and a tool of the men around her. Hamlet may well have loved her and treated her well once, but by the time he has the burden of revenge on him, he treats her rather badly. Now, of course, he does so because he knows that she's followed her father's orders and has rejected his love. Further, Hamlet knows that Ophelia is being used by her father and the King to spy on him.…
Gender inequality in William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, is a key discourse which is explored throughout the character of Ophelia. In Elizabethan England, the period of William Shakespeare, women were brought up in a patriarchal society where they were dominated by the authority of men. Women were socially degraded and taught they were inferior to men. Ophelia, is portrayed as weak, submissive and is manipulated continuously by the male figures in her life. Throughout the play, Ophelia is continuously taken advantage of and used as an object by her father Polonius and her love interest Hamlet. In modern day society, women have become more independent and generally have more freedom in regards to social expectations.…
In many of William Shakespeare’s works, it is evident that Shakespeare is alluding the lack of intelligence and weakness of women. “Frailty, thy name is woman” (1.2.146), quoted by Shakespeare in Hamlet is an example of this. In Hamlet, Shakespeare depicts characters like Ophelia and Gertrude as demonstrating weakness and being tools of manipulation by the males in their lives. Their actions and fates are greatly influenced by the men's decisions and are led by the men in their lives, which gives them a weak image. Women in the Elizabethan era were reliant on men to make their decisions as they were oppressed and disregarded in society. As Alex Gilbertson states, “this was not a glorious time…
“Women may fall, when there’s no strength in men” –William Shakespeare. William Shakespeare conveys this message about women being inferior to men through all his plays. He says that men are women’s strength and are the reason for women’s survival. Shakespeare shows women to be obedient and weak, whereas, men to be strong and independent. Once again, Shakespeare continued this trend of showing women to be dominated and influenced figures in his play Hamlet. Hamlet was written in 160 set in Denmark during the Elizabethan era. A very significant part of the play Hamlet is gender roles where the men are powerful, dominant, and revengeful but, the women are fragile, manipulated, and simply weak. There are many examples throughout Hamlet in…
Hamlet, himself, exhibits faults in his personality, often acting volatile and reckless in situations beyond his control. In Act 1, Scene 3, Ophelia describes Hamlet as an admirer who had ‘made many tenders of his affection’ to her but later on, in Act 3, Scene 1, when they confront each other about their feelings, Hamlet angrily shouts ‘Get thee to a nunnery’, insulting her and not realising the possible consequences of his actions. Ophelia isn’t without flaws, herself, as shown by her tendency to be influenced by the men around her. Whilst it was common for the women during Shakespeare’s time to be obedient to their men, Ophelia’s submissiveness eventually drives her to insanity and leads to her suicide. Furthermore, Ophelia’s father, Polonius, is also a fatally flawed character, with his peripeteia being his nosiness and propensity to pry, which then leads to his death. Shakespeare uses the weaknesses of each character to emphasise that human beings are flawed to warn his audience that if these flaws are not recognised, they may, and often will, bring…
Yes, Hamlet does truly love hamlet. On the surface it seems that Hamlet rejects Ophelia and insults her constantly because he is acting as if he were crazy in his plot to kill Claudius. While this may be true I feel there is a deeper reason Hamlet is so vile to Ophelia. Hamlet is actually trying to push Ophelia away. It’s much like how spider man does Mary Jane in the Movies (not the comics). He loves her so much but he knows his lifestyle will not be fitting for a serious relationship so he has to stay away from her to avoid the pain felt by the situation. The next question that arises why is he trying to push her away. Either way Hamlet is going to have complications. If he doesn’t kill Claudius he will emotionally…
Although the play Hamlet was written nearly 450 years ago by William Shakespeare, scholars still pose the question, “Did Hamlet really love Ophelia?” I believe Hamlet had feelings for Ophelia, but he never demonstrated true love for her. Several times in the play Hamlet denies his love for Ophelia. If he truly loved her, he would not want to hurt her. When Hamlet accidently killed Polonius, he did not try to console Ophelia. If he truly loved her, he would have been at her side to provide comfort in her time of grief. Even at Ophelia’s funeral, he did not profess his love for Ophelia. If he truly loved her, he would have proclaimed his love for her to those present at the funeral. Hamlet’s actions prove that he didn’t have true love for Ophelia.…
“I did love you” (III.i.125) Hamlet, confesses that he does love Ophelia. In the play, The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark by William Shakespeare, Hamlet denies the fact that he loves Ophelia, Hamlet and Ophelia have been watched almost every time they talk, this leads Hamlet to say that he does not love her anymore. Hamlet says all those awful things to Ophelia because he is afraid Claudius would take revenge on him, which would would leave Ophelia all alone.…
Earth is filled with this thing called humans,these humans have feelings. In the story Hamlet by William Shakespeare a character known as Laertes shows his care to another character known as Ophelia.Laertes cares about Ophelia more than any other character as he cares about her future and virginity.…
In Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet” controversy is raised as to whether or not hamlet ever truly loved Ophelia. Despite the arguments supporting that hamlet didn't actually love her, there is more evidence that hamlet did. Through his words that he shares with her when they’re alone, Hamlet conveys a true love for Ophelia that can’t really be disproven.…
In the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare, Ophelia is a beautiful and simple-mind girl, easily influenced by other’s opinions and desires. Always doing what she is told, even if it is not what her heart wishes. She is easily influenced by her father, Polonius and brother, Laertes the most. Later on the love letters Ophelia receives from Hamlet cause her mind to become confused, and is forced to choose between obeying what her father wants or following her heart. Ophelia is not able to understand what is really happening because of all the pressure they put on her to be someone else. The weakness of her mind and will that force her to obey her father causes her to go insane and die.…
The next person that is extremely affected by the patriarchy placed in Hamlet is Ophelia. Ophelia was the lover of the protagonist, Hamlet, and was one of the two major females mentioned in the play. Therefore, it is evident she was going to be the main target used by Shakespeare, to demonstrate his point about the patriarchy. Throughout the novel, Ophelia was slandered with misogynistic statements and was belittled because of her sex. In one instance, her brother, Laertes, tells her to remain pure and not let Hamlet…