Comparing Hamlet 'And' A Room Of One's Own

In hundreds of years past, women were burdened with overwhelming expectations and with their lack of rights would push women over the edge. Reader's can see examples of this in the excerpt of A Room of One's Own, and Hamlet by Shakespeare. In A Room of Ones Own, the author shows the reader what it would be like to be a woman in Shakespeare's time by telling her story of struggles and failure. In the novel Hamlet, Shakespeare portrays a story of a lady named Ophelia crumbling under the pressure of the expectations placed on her by her father and brother. Both stories were written in order to give the reader a better understanding of the struggles women went through centuries ago within themselves and with others around them. In A Room of Ones Own,

Her family was accepting of Ophelia loving Hamlet until he went crazy. Yet, she still loved him through his craziness. Her father and brother had long talk to tell her to not to "lose your heart, or leave your chaste treasure open" (Shakespeare 20). Her family tried to tell her what to do with her love and her chasteness and that doesn't settle well with her. She was expected to obey her fathers commands and even though it hurt her she did. It ht her so much being without Hamlet, throughout the novel, she becomes insane. She comes to people's house to sing songs with no meaning. One sounded like "Hey non-nony, nony, hey nony and in his grave rained many a tear-fare you well my dove" (Shakespeare 108). Her insanity didn't stop after just singing songs either. She eventually drowned herself with "fantastic garlands did she make. Of crowflowers, nettles, daisies, and long purples" (Shakespeare 117). Ophelia, couldn't handle the expectations placed on her. She wanted something more than her family allowed her too and it eventually led to her