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Hamlet and the concept of family
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Recommended: Hamlet and the concept of family
Polonius treats his children quite differently based on the advice he gives them. When referring to the relationship between Polonius and his son, Laertes, Polonius is open to the idea of setting his son free and letting him live out his life on his own in France. Polonius tells Laertes, “There, my blessing with thee.” his second blessing upon Laertes leaving to embark on his journey to France. Proving, Polonius is enthusiastically allowing his son to go out on his own and make his own life for himself. On the other hand, Polonius is considerably more austere towards his daughter, Ophelia, Polonius attempts to make Ophelia's decisions for her instead of letting her choose her own fate like he does with Laertes. When Ophelia tells her father
she is confused about her love interest, Hamlet, Polonius tells her, “Marry, I’ll teach you. Think yourself a baby that you have ta’en these tenders for true pay, which you are not sterling.” Contradicting of his actions towards Laertes, Polonius is treating Ophelia as if she can’t do anything on her own and is attempting to restrain her life choices. Overall, Polonius’ actions towards Laertes are substantially more trusting of him making his own decisions; while with Ophelia, he does not trust her making her own decisions, therefore, he tries to do so for her.
Ophelia was an object that male characters, i.e. Hamlet, Polonius, Laertes, etc., used to gain more political power or to get what they want. Polonius was greedy, he told his daughter to hold herself to a higher standard than Hamlet. Because Polonius wanted the marriage of Ophelia and Hamlet to happen, he went to the castle in Elsinore, which lead to his death. A connection through marriage to prince would be a huge power for the family. Ophelia was being used to gain more power. Hamlet only used her for sex and affection, which This show how no one really cared for Ophelia other that to use her.
The next member of the Polonius clan to die is his daughter Ophelia. Ophelia’s death is also tragic, because of her complete innocence in the situation. You can argue that Polonius deserved his fate because of his handling with Hamlet while he was mad. But Ophelia was entirely manipulated, and used by Hamlet and the king for their own selfish reasons, and games. An example of how Ophelia is used by Hamlet is seen in Act II, scene i, when Hamlet uses her to convince his family that he is truely mad. Ophelia explains to her father, how Hamlet has scared her, causing Polonius to draw the conclusion that Hamlet has an "antic disposition"(He is quickly losing his mind).
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
The Manipulation of Polonius and Ophelia in Hamlet. The main plot of Shakespeare's Hamlet centers around Prince Hamlet's desire to repay King Claudius for his evil deeds. This central action revolves around the stories concerning the minor characters of Polonius and Ophelia. Though they do not motivate Hamlet's actions towards the King, these characters act as forces upon Hamlet himself, trying to spur him to do things he does not want to do.
With her father’s word being law and with that what he says she must follow, if she refuses Polonius, she risks social exclusion and grave insult to the man who controls her future. Her real attitude is clear when she has a conversation about chastity, first with Laertes, her brother, then with Polonius, her father. After Laertes rather explicitly warns Ophelia to fear losing her virginity, she replies by telling him not to lecture her, “Whiles, a puff'd and reckless libertine, / Himself the primrose path of dalliance treads, / And recks not his own rede” (1.3.48-50). When polonius gives her the same lecture and tells her not to accept Hamlet’s propositions, she simply replies, “I shall obey, my lord”
I agree that Ophelia and Laertes both respect their father very much and seem to be a close-knit family. Laertes respect for Polonius is evident when he’s about to leave for France, he says “A double blessing is a double grace. Occasion smiles upon a second leave” (I, iii, 53-54). Laertes is happy that his father is there once again to see him off to France and give him some final words of wisdom. Ophelia shows respect for her father because of her quick obedience in whatever he asks of her. “No, my good lord. But as you did command/I did repel his fetters and denied his access to me” (II, i, 8-10). It’s clear that both Ophelia and Laertes truly love their father and would do whatever it takes to please him. And as you said, Ophelia
Leaving her only with the response saying “I shall obey, my lord”(1.3.145 ). Why Ophelia is unable to say more than a few simple words is made clear by societal expectations of the time. During this time daughters were the property of their fathers and were obligated to do their bidding. Campbell says “if she refuses Polonius, she risks social ostracism and grave insult to the man who capriciously controls her future” (58). Ophelia fears the backlash of disobeying her father, believing there is no other choice than doing what he has asked her to do. Even though a woman's virtue is a sacred and a very personal choice, her father leaves Ophelia with one option: to do what he says. “The issue of Ophelia’s chastity concerns Polonius as a parent and a politician—a virginal Ophelia has a better chance of attaining Hamlet’s hand in marriage” (Floyd-Wilson 401). This relationship Ophelia has between her father is very one-sided and unhealthy. It is formal and proper with very few emotions attached to each other. However, because Polonius is the only parental figure Ophelia has and loves him, his death was extremely difficult for her. Her father, hasn’t left her like Laertes and hasn’t rejected her like Hamlet. Making his unexpected death the final straw to her losing her sanity. Without someone to guide her, she is lost. She is unable to blindly follow a man but is to racked with emotion to think clearly.
During Hamlet, Polonius and Laertes use Ophelia for their own self-gain not taking her feelings in consideration. In the article “Jephthah's Daughter's Daughter: Ophelia,” Cameron Hunt reveals that Polonius disregards Ophelia’s wants for his ...
Polonius immediately calls to question Ophelia’s ability to reason with his opening remark, “I must tell you / You do not understand yourself so clearly.” (1.3.104-105). This statement along with his suggestion to, “Think yourself a baby” (1.3.114) in regards to how she feels about Hamlet show his commanding nature and instant mistrust of how Ophelia could possibly behave in the best way. Ophelia, to her credit, responds with a curt, “I shall obey, my lord” (1.3.145), which shows her maturity and respect by avoiding conflict through a calm demeanor. However, given how she responded to Laertes, this response also comes across as snide and mocking showing her independence through a resilient, almost defiant, statement. Ophelia, for the second time, faces immediate threats to her power over herself and deals with both calmly and intelligently by not provoking a reaction while still showing abject
If Polonius was to give his son Laertes the advice he gave him in modern time, the meaning behind his advice would still be the same, but the choice in words would be different. When Polonius says, "There, my blessing with thee. And these few precepts in thy memory Look thou character". His advice today will sound more like, "I will give you my blessing, you will need to remember these rules in your life," When analyzing this line its clear to see Polonius cares deeply for Laertes, he wants the best for him and nothing can replace that. Continuing on, through his advice the next line he says " Give thy thoughts no tongue, nor any unproportioned thought his act.
I agree with the statement that Polonius, adviser in the court of King Claudius of Denmark, is a good father who desires what is best for his children. Although he may be a fussy and overcautious old man, Polonius constantly gives good advice and his best wishes to both his children, Laertes and Ophelia.
In William Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet, Polonius, Laertes and Ophelia’s father, gives a long lesson and advice when Laertes going to aboard to Paris. During the lesson, Polonius tells Laertes to “ Give thy thoughts no tongue,/Nor any unproportioned thought his act.” (Shakespeare I.iii.60-61). From these line, audience can understand that Polonius is a careful thought person. He did not allow his son to express his opinion and even you consider something in you brain, just don’t act it out. He’s advice seems restricting the action of his son. I believe the reason he really care about how he’s son act outside of his control is important because he afraid the inappropriate action and saying might affect the family’s honor. This information gives
Polonius is the father of Laertes and Ophelia. His contribution to the ideology of sexism and incest is not as direct as the other characters but it is just as significant. His daughter, Ophelia, is deeply in love with the title character, Hamlet. Polonius constantly observes the suspicious relationship between Ophelia and Hamlet. He tries to intervene between his daughter’s relationships with Hamlet. Since her love for Hamlet is so strong, Ophelia becomes disobedient and rebellious to her father just so that she could make a way to fulfill the needs of Hamlet. Polonius tries to help Ophelia understand that she is basically “bait” to Hamlet and she must avoid falling for his word but she refuses to listen. Along with Polonius, his son Laertes is also attempting to protect Ophelia from Hamlet.
He always wants to keep up the appearance of a loving and caring person, which is evident through his love and care of his son. Laertes. Polonius speaks to his son with advice that sounds sincere. but in reality it is rehearsed, hollow and without feeling. Page Number -.
However, Hamlet shows a strong hatred for Polonius and his daughter Ophelia by saying this: “Let her not walk i’th sun conception is a blessing, but, as your daughter may conceive, friend, look to ‘t”. (2.2.197-199)Before Polonius and Hamlet spoke the king queen and Polonius were talking about Hamlet and Ophelia one day getting married. Then Haml...