In Hamlet, Ophelia exemplifies the classic embodiment of the battered woman. She makes no decisions for herself, takes orders from her father, her brother, as well as Hamlet. She knows no free will, and her death shows the toll that this lack of freedom takes on her mind. Ophelia is loyal to a fault, and because of this loyalty she has lost control of her body, her mind, and, ultimately, her life.
It is obvious that Ophelia is loyal to the men in her life – too loyal. Because of her blind loyalty to her father, brother, and lover, she has not only let her thoughts be clouded, but she also cannot fight back when she has been wronged. There are multiple examples of situations in which the men who surround her directly and obviously berate
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her. These attacks are most obvious with Hamlet. It seems that Hamlet knows about Ophelia acting as a “double agent” for her father. She spies on Hamlet, telling her father what he is doing. This spy act leads Hamlet to denounce her (and all women), by accusing them of being “breeder[s] of sinners.” He then continues with this denouncement: he orders her to a “nunnery.” (3.1.121-122) There is also a point at which Hamlet goes on to say that, if she were ever to marry, Ophelia would transform her husband into a “monster,” a fancy way of saying cuckold, and would without a doubt be unfaithful to him (3.1.10). He then hammers in his point when he says: "I loved you not" (3.1.119). Ophelia laments, going as far to say: And I, of ladies most deject and wretched, That sucked the honey of his music vows Now see that noble and most sovereign reason (3.1.156). Though the play focuses on the revenge of Hamlet, no other characters are able to get their revenge. Ophelia has no way to fight back against Hamlet for the downright hurtful things that he has revealed to her, and that has everything to do with her loyalty to him. Even when he is rude and misogynistic, she still cannot move against him. In fact, if she were to fight back, her reputation would be ruined. This lack of control causes Ophelia to completely lose her mind, as it would anyone who was in her situation. Ophelia’s honor is also put into question multiple times throughout the play: by her father, by her brother, by Hamlet; she cannot catch a break.
Her worth as a human being is defined by her sexuality, and, therefore, by her honor. Ophelia is, however, put on the fence: Polonius and Laertes both warn and scare her away from sex in general, and Hamlet is, or was, trying to seduce her. This causes a great rift in her mind that eventually causes her madness and death. Laertes is the main proponent against Ophelia’s sexuality, stating multiple times in Act I that sex is something that she needs to be downright afraid of. He refers to sex as a "canker" worm, harming a flower too early in its life (1.3.39). This saying, innately sexual, turns Ophelia into an erotic object, while also telling her that it is wrong to be erotic. He takes a paradoxical stance that was common for the time at which the play was written: a non-virgin would never marry, for she is spoiled. It is later shown how this affects Ophelia. After she goes mad, Ophelia is shown singing songs, all of which relate to spurned lovers and one-sided love. One of the songs transparently references a lover who rejected the other: "Before you tumbled me, you promised me to wed" (4.5.61-62). Though it is clear that Ophelia is hurt by Hamlet, it is left ambiguous whether or not she lost her virginity to him. Either way, it is clear that Ophelia’s honor is in question, and she goes mad and dies because of it. If …show more content…
she was not truly corrupted by Hamlet, then she did nothing wrong and was still destroyed by the patriarchal hierarchy anyway. When Ophelia goes mad, it is revealed just how sad her life really was.
Whether she has done anything with Hamlet or not, there is still a bunch of pressure put on her that really causes her to crack. Ophelia’s songs show the weight of this pressure on her mind, as she sings of a woman who is tricked into lust by a promise of marriage – again showing the degeneration of her life due to the patriarchal society she is forced to bend to. Ophelia’s life was awful, and her death is symbolic of what she endured. Gertrude explains Ophelia’s death to the
reader: Fell in the weeping brook. Her clothes spread wide; And, mermaid-like, awhile they bore her up: […] but long it could not be Till that her garments, heavy with their drink, Pull'd the poor wretch from her melodious lay To muddy death. (4.7.174-183.1) Ophelia’s death is symbolic because it is passive. She did not directly commit suicide; rather, she fell into the water and then did not fight to save herself. In life, she could never make any decisions for herself, and it is the same in death. Her clothes have a metaphoric mind of their own, and Ophelia allows herself to bend to their will. Ophelia’s death, symbolic of her controlled, disciplined life, exemplifies the deterioration of a weak woman in the patriarchy that controlled her world. Ophelia was a character who never knew what she wanted, and was kept on the fence, never knowing where to go. She felt a pressure in her life that ultimately led to her “accidental” demise, and this was due to the conflicting loyalties that she let lead her, the honor that was questioned but should not have been, and the life that was the result of these combining factors. Ophelia is a battered woman; a victim, and that is what ultimately killed her.
Since everyone is unaware of Hamlet’s true feelings of his mother’s new marriage and knowledge of Claudius poisoning his father, Polonius convinces Claudius and Gertrude that Hamlet is driven mad by love for Ophelia. So once again, Ophelia follows the orders of her father and the king to meet with Hamlet in a place where they can test this theory and watch the two young lovers in secret. Maki then quotes a scholar, “ ‘Polonius [and Claudius] snoop behind the arras, and she becomes the bait to catch the conscience of the Prince’ (Hunt 15)”, this sets up the scene that Polonius and Claudius quickly learn that a lot of Hamlet’s nonsense does in fact have truth and meaning. An example of this is when he crushes any of Ophelia’s hope of Hamlet still loving her with this reply, “If thou dost marry, I’ll give thee this plague for thy dowry: be thou as chaste as ice, as pure as snow, thou shalt not escape calumny. Get thee to a nunnery” (3.1.135-37). This is the second time that Ophelia is told she will have no value if she has any pre-marital sexual relations and during the time period of Hamlet, a woman who does not follow tradition could potentially be ostracised by her family and remain a maiden the rest of their life. So in the end, Maki draws the conclusion that, “Hamlet then rejects
Loyal. Betrayed. Insane. Ophelia, a character from The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark by William Shakespeare, goes through emotional pain and suffering, that drives her into madness. Torn between her father’s word and her love for Hamlet, she chooses to listen to her father, which spells her own demise. Hamlet betrays Ophelia, telling her that he never loved her and that she meant nothing to him. Ophelia feels abandoned, but when her father dies she is pushed over the edge. She is no longer able to move on so she takes her own life.
Hamlet shows much anger and disrespect to the women in his life. Ophelia’s believing her father’s words breaks Hamlets heart, being the reason for his treatment towards not just her but his mother. Ophelia
Ophelia is portrayed as a sensitive, fragile woman. Easily overpowered and controlled by her brother and father, Ophelia is destined to be weak. Ophelia’s brother, Laertes, warns and pushes Ophelia to stay away from Hamlet and is further supported by their father Polonius. “Polonius enters and adds his warning to those of Laertes. He orders Ophelia not to spend time with Hamlet or even talk to him. Ophelia promises to obey” (“Hamlet” 95). Ophelia’s obedience to her father’s directions prove the side she
...She had lost her father and her lover while her brother was away for school, and she was no longer useful as a puppet in a greater scheme. Ophelia was displaced, an Elizabethan woman without the men on whom she had been taught to depend. Therein lies the problem - she lacked independence so much that she could not continue living without Polonius, Laertes, and Hamlet. Ophelia's aloneness led to her insanity and death. The form of her death was the only fitting end for her - she drowned in a nearby river, falling beneath the gentle waters. She finally found peace in her mad world. That is how Ophelia is so useful as a classic feminist study - she evokes imagery of the fragile beauty women are expected to become, but shows what happens to women when they submit as such.
Culturally, women have been expected to be soft spoken, gentle, delicate flowers. They should not question a man's opinion or go against their will. Ophelia, in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, is an example of a young naive girl who faces the dangers that come from only following what others want, and not thinking for herself. The men in this play use her for their own benefit and she suffers the repercussions, which leads her to madness and “accidental” death.
Ophelia is conditioned to obey Polonius and Laertes’ commands, thinly veiled as guidance for her “own good.” She is never trusted to have a mind of her own, often having her intelligence openly insulted, causing her to be dependent on the men in her life. These men exercise authority over her, patronize, and degrade her, lowering her self-esteem to a non-existent level, and leaving her a...
With the men’s constant abuse, they each start telling her different things. Unsure of whom to listen to, she starts to get confused and starts losing herself. When finally there was no one there to tell her anymore she goes mad, and on the brink of her madness she ends up killing herself. Throughout all these events, no one stops to think of her as an actual person, but instead like a rag doll they could just toss around. The play Hamlet itself was discussed without any bother of Ophelia for nearly four hundred years before scholars started to think of her and read the play with a Feminist viewpoint.
While Hamlet’s achelis was his inability to adapt to the new realities he had come back too, Ophelia’s weakness was adapting to the will of everyone around her. This consequently lead her to lose herself in the end. The clear pattern of her willingness to please those around her at the cost of her own peace of mind is obvious from the beginning of the book as we are introduced to her.Her scene with Laertes sets the pace of her relationships as he attempts to dispense some advice in the form of a long winded cautionary tale against love and consequent betrayal. Her ‘concerned’ brother barrages her in Act 1 scene 3 against the treachery of men and the importance of virtues.
In Elizabethan times, Ophelia is restricted as a woman. She is obedient to the commands of the men in her life although she often attempts to do the right thing. Polonius, Laertes, and Hamlet all have a grasp on Ophelia and who she is. She does not have the freedom to change her fate as Hamlet does. Shawna Maki states, “Ophelia’s life is determined by the whims of men who control her” (1). Polonius takes advantage of his relationship with Ophelia by using her to achieve a better relationship with Claudius. Polonius and Laertes teach Ophelia how to behave, therefore, abusing their power in allowing Ophelia to become who she wants to be (Brown 2).
Ophelia’s mental illness comes to fruition later in the play, but comes in a very strong form, Hysteria. Hysteria, as defined in Shakespearean times, by a sickness of the womb. This diagnosis was given to females and usually occurred after some form of psychological abuse. Ophelia’s symptoms point to a diagnosis of hysteria over the death of her father Polonius. Furthermore, according to “Mental illness in Shakespeare case study #2” Ophelia is incapable of individuation, or the separation of one's self from others. Her lack of individual self-causes her to become dependent on others, such as Hamlet and Polonius. With Hamlet's abandonment and the death of her father, Ophelia spirals into madness. Shakespeare uses Ophelia's gender to create her mental illness by shaping her mental illness around the diagnosis of a woman. The establishment of Ophelia's Mental illness allows Shakespeare to further develop it through the tone of which she speaks. Ophelia begins to sing songs after the death of her father that other characters interpret as her mourning. However, in delving into the songs Ophelia sings her madness becomes apparent. The first song Ophelia sings refers to her marital status. Ophelia “ by gis and by saint charity alack and fie for shame young men will do’t if they come to’t by cock they are to blame quoth she before you tumbled me you promised me to wed” (IV, v 57-62). Ophelia refers to Hamlet and her father in this song, she addresses her father's wishes that she keeps her virginity and keep it for the sanctity of marriage; furthermore, she refers to Hamlet who promised to wed her, however, Hamlet leaves her and claims he never loved her. Ophelia's obsession with the most important men in her life, even after they leave her reflects her dependency on man. This dependence further drives her mental illness after the loss of
Ophelia’s betrayal ends up putting Hamlet over the edge, motivating him in his quest for revenge. Ophelia is one of the two women in the play. As the daughter of Polonius, she only speaks in the company of several men, or directly to her brother or father. Since we never see her interactions with women, she suppresses her own thoughts in order to please her superiors. Yet, however weak and dependent her character is on the surface, Ophelia is a cornerstone to the play’s progression.
Another significant female character is Ophelia, Hamlet's love. Hamlet's quest for revenge interferes with his relationship with Ophelia. There is much evidence to show that Hamlet loved her a great deal, but his pretense of madness drove her to her death. Ophelia drowned not knowing what was happening to her. This can be deduced by the fact that she flowed down the river singing and happy when in truth she was heartbroken. Ophelia was very much afraid when she saw Hamlet "with his doublet all unbraced; No hat upon his head; his stockings foul'd, Ungarter'd, and down-gyved to his ancle" (Act #. Scene #. Line #). She described him as being "loosed out of hell" (Act #. Scene #. Line #). In addition to that he scared her when he left the room with his eyes still fixed on her. She is especially hurt when Hamlet tells her that he no longer loves her and that he is opposed to marriage. He advises her to go to a nunnery and avoid marriage if she can.
It is evident that Hamlet defines Ophelia by her sexuality. Hamlet does not value her as the woman she is. Instead, Hamlet views her as a mere object. Hamlet makes various sexual innuendos towards Ophelia. For example, this is apparent in 2.3, when Hamlet is speaking to Ophelia. Hamlet says, “It would cost you a groaning to take off mine edge” (3.2.250). Hamlet is making this regard to her in public and Ophelia lets him continue. Ophelia because of her gender continues to let Hamlet exploit and oppress her. Ophelia embodies a mutual assessment of femininity. Author Pragati Das writes, “Ophelia, it would seem, wholly at the mercy of the male figures throughout her life, is certainly a victim character” (Das 38). Ophelia does not have any alternative thoughts; she only responds with a simple sentence, “Still better and worse” (3.2.251). Ophelia is not standing up for herself, instead of she “…expresses acquiescence, uncertainty, and obeisance; she utters half lines” (Fischer 2). The power of Hamlet is manipulating Ophelia and it this shown through from her dull reaction of such crudities. Hamlet sums his vulgar and suggestive speech with, “For, oh, for, oh, the hobby-horse is forgot” (3.2.23–24). After Hamlet’s pressures of sexual suggestions, Ophelia is found to be under the absolute dominance of Hamlet’s demands, and as a result, her sanity diminishes. Ophelia’s song reflects on Hamlet, her father, and life
Ophelia loves Hamlet; her emotions drive her to perform her actions. Some would say that Ophelia’s emotions could have actually been what ended her young