Gertrude as an Innocent Victim or a Sexually and Morally Corrupt Woman in Hamlet

Gertrude as an Innocent Victim or a Sexually and Morally Corrupt Woman in Hamlet

Shakespeare’s character Gertrude is one of much mystery; in relation

to this there are many questions that need to be answered to establish

Gertrude’s innocence through out the play. Some examples of these

questions are, was Gertrude in some kind of relationship with Claudius

before the murder of her late Husband and did she know about the

murder before or after it was committed? Does she love Claudius or is

it just her status that she is protecting? And did she ever love the

late King Hamlet?

At the beginning of the play when we learn about the late King

Hamlet’s death and Gertrude’s hasty marriage to his brother Claudius,

we are faced with a question on the audience’s awareness. It can be

assumed that the marriage to her brother- in-law is purely because of

Gertrude’s weak personality, resulting in a dependency on men and the

means of protecting her status and her power. We also question the

love between the Gertrude and Claudius; this is because there is no

suggestion of a resemblance between the late King and his brother. The

description that we are given about late King Hamlet maybe slightly

distorted, as it is Hamlet who tells us this, and he is noticeably

loyal to his father. It is also possible to argue that the love that

the late King and Gertrude shared was not that strong as the only

evidence to suggest this has been told to us by Hamlet and he maybe

slightly bias.

First we notice that Gertrude does not display her grief for her dead

husband, and suspicions mount when she also tells Hamlet that he

should stop his mourning as well....

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...unishment upon death.

She does not show any untoward hatred towards Claudius showing that

she may not be aware of his cruel deed.

In the end Gertrude drinks the poison which can suggest many things;

that she has no knowledge of the poison or that she feels guilty of

her late husband’s death, and cannot carry on with the corrupt

behaviour between her husband and her son, or that she is protecting

her son and saving his life. When she attempts to consume the drink

she is stopped suddenly by Claudius, but she replies “I will my lord,

I pray you pardon me”, is this the request of someone who is guilty,

someone who is tired of the fighting between her two dearest or of

someone with no awareness of what was going to happen? This for many

readers is the critical part of the play in determining her innocence

or guilt.