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Examine Hamlet as tragedy
Tragedy in the hamlet
Role played by women in Hamlet
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Role of Women in Hamlet Introduction Gender issues have become paramount in societies today. In the past, one sex dominated the society as the other one remained inferior- male ruled over female. In most stances, female missed out in the civil discussions and only featured in house chores and domestic affairs such as digging. However, with globalization and introduction of the millennium development goals, it dawned that all genders need equal treatment as there is none that outdoes the other. In all typical setups, literature is the mirror as it reflects everything trending in the society- evil or good happenings. In the traditional culture of Denmark, women had lesser value to the society as opposed to male. In that light, Shakespeare wrote the Hamlet as a tragedy that exposed all the evils in society such as corruption and decay. He used female characters with varying character traits so as to unveil how the community continually eroded due to the cheap and annoying occurrences. The playwright uses different images and symbols as developed by female actors to ease his communication on various circumstances that drew the Denmark community backwards. In his play, he uses the Denmark society as the setting so as to …show more content…
Both Ophelia and Gertrude develop the theme of betrayal in the play. When Hamlet stages his vengeance plans and kills Polonius, he pesters the mother not to unveil what happened. However, Gertrude goes against her promises and opens up to Claudius concerning the action. Similarly, Polonius and Claudius arrange to capture Hamlet through Ophelia. She betrays her son by lacking concern about Hamlet’s life but instead becomes part of the evil plans. She is always ordered by Claudius the entire play, and obeys; a betrayal to her killed husband- King Hamlet, “Come away” (Shakespeare, I.II, 15). She always appears swayed and easy to convince in the whole drama- traits that show women as inferior and
Of all Shakespeare’s thirty-seven plays, perhaps the best known and loved is Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. Many people think that it is unforgettable because of its poetic language and style. But, while these are factors that mark the play as a classic, it remains timeless because it explores many of the issues that are still important to people today. These issues, including loyalty to family and country, protecting loved ones, and deception are still prevalent around the world, and are especially prominent in the United States government. Another play that addresses major issues that are still relevant to society, especially women, is Susan Glaspell’s Trifles. Because Glaspell’s play shows women that they are certainly just as capable as men of completing any task, it encourages women to take a stand against the supposed supremacy of their husbands. It also forces men to consider more seriously the opinions and concerns of women. While Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Hale in Trifles do this in a quiet manner, they still remain defiant against their husband’s beliefs that they are only competent enough to worry about “trifles” (Glaspell 1618). Therefore, Hamlet, Prince of Denmark and Trifles explore many issues that are still relevant to society today by questioning, supporting, and criticizing some of them, especially loyalty, gender roles, protecting loved ones, and deception.
Hamlet is one of the most controversial characters from all of the Shakespeare’s play. His character is strong and complicated, but his jealousy is what conduces him to hate women. He sees them as weak, frail, and untrustworthy. He treats Ophelia, the women he loves, unfair and with cruelty. Similarly, he blames his mother for marrying her dead husband’s brother, who is now the King of Denmark. Hamlet’s treatment for women stems from his mother’s impulsive marriage to his uncle who he hates and Ophelia choosing her father’s advice over him.
Ophelia is a crucial character because the role she plays in setting up Hamlets antic disposition, she is used by a number of characters including her father for the sole purpose to deceive and gather information and “misjudges Ophelia’s” ability to gather accurate information due to Hamlet’s deceitful character (The World Of Hamlet 260). Hamlet is the first to use her when he sets up his antic disposition early in the play, which ignites many of the events that lead to the tragic ending of Hamlet. After Polonius speculates that Hamlet has gone mad with love for Ophelia he reports this info to the king. To confirm this, he watches their interaction in the nunnery scene. Polonius wants to prove his theory and deception is what leads him to investigate more thoroughly, believing Hamlet is truly mad with love for Ophelia he ease drops on Hamlet and Gertrude’s conversation and it ends up bringing about his death. Once again, we see that deception is the most important theme of Hamlet because it is responsible for moving the plot along through
One way that feminism is shown is through how the characters think that the men in the book act like women. Since the beginning of the book the author subtlety hint that the way Hamlet acts loses his respect because of the way he acts. Such as when the king states” ‘Tis sweet and commendable in your nature, Hamlet, to give these mourning duties to your father.... but to persever in obstinate condolement is a course of impious stubbornness. 'Tis unmanly grief. It shows a will most incorrect to heaven, a heart unfortified, a mind impatient, an understanding simple and unschooled” (1.2.90-92; 96-101). For this reason just because he shows his emotions he gets called a girl. Meanwhile hamlet soon starts making horrible comments about how he acts.
The Role of Women in Hamlet in William Shakespeare's Play Gertrude and Ophelia, the only two women in Hamlet, reflect the general status of women in Elizabethan Times. Women were suppressed by the males in their lives (brothers, fathers, and partners) and were always inferior. Ophelia and Gertrude have little or no power due to restricted legal, social and economic rights that were found in Elizabethan society. The male characters in Hamlet reflect this sexist view point, represented by Hamlet’s judgement that “frailty, thy name is woman”. This view was not uncommon in Shakespeare’s time and heavily influenced Shakespeare to present women the way he does in Hamlet.
Ophelia is one of the main characters in the play, Hamlet, as the daughter of the chief counsellor of the king, Polonius, the sister of Laertes and the romantic interest of Hamlet. Ophelia is one of the very few female characters in the play and Ophelia and Queen Gertrude are both used to be contrasted. Ophelia is a loyal character, which the opposite of Queen Gertrude because Gertrude betrayed her husband, King Hamlet, by poisoning him and marrying his brother, now King Claudius. She is a loyal character and the prime example is shown by the way she acts with her father. She clearly has so much respect for him and values whatever he says to her. For instance, in Act One, Scene 3, when Ophelia was talking to Laertes about Hamlet, and then their father comes in, Polonius tells Ophelia: “For Lord Hamlet, Believe so much in him that he is young, And with a larger tether may he walk than may be given you. In few, Ophelia, Do not believe his vows, for they are brokers not of that dye which their investments show, but mere implorators of unholy suits, breathing like sanctified and pious bawds, and the better to beguile. This is for all: I would not, in plain terms, from this time forth, have you so slander any moment leisure, as to give words or talk with the Lord Hamlet. Look to’t, I charge you. Come your ways”. (Hamlet, Act 1, Scene 3, 24-35) Then, to which Ophelia replies: “I shall obey, my lord.”(Act 1, Scene 3, 36) She is clearly obeying her father when he tells her that she should not be seeing Hamlet ever again. It can also be inferred that she is naïve because throughout the entire part of their conversation, she thought that Hamlet was being totally honest with her and she never considered what kind of person Hamlet might ...
Both female characters in Hamlet are depicted as weak, dependent, and powerless. They are controlled by the male characters in the play, and never stand up to any authority regardless of the effects this has on themselves.
Ekici, Sara (2009). Feminist Criticism: Female Characters in Shakespeare's Plays Othello and Hamlet. Munich: GRIN Publishing.
Because of Hamlet 's powerful belief in his mother 's guilt, he takes his anger out on Ophelia, who Hamlet may think is just another insincere woman like his mother. Hamlet is determined to use the play to get at his mother 's conscience in addition to Claudius '. But Gertrude reacts casually after watching. Gertrude does not show guilt about her relationship with Claudius but
In Hamlet, gender plays a huge role in the assumed capability of people. Queen Gertrude had to remarry instead of rule the kingdom by herself. If she wouldn’t have gotten remarried, it would have been likely that her kingdom would have been usurped by a chauvinist male ruler; who felt that women couldn’t rule a kingdom.
For many years in the past women played a small role socially, economically, and politically. As a result of this many works in literature were reflective of this diminutive role of women. In Elizabethan theatres small boys dressed and played the roles of women. In contrast to this trend, in Shakespeare's Hamlet the women in the play are driving factors for the actions of many other characters. Both Gertrude, Hamlet's mother, and Ophelia, Hamlet's love, affected many of the decisions and actions done by Hamlet.
Women in Shakespeare’s Hamlet Hamlet is one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays. In this essay I will look at Hamlets perception of women in general, but particularly Gertrude and Ophelia. I will also look at the historical presentation of women, comparing Hamlets time to today and seeing if the symbolic role that the female characters have is related to the period. Also I will look at Hamlets madness, whether it was real or not and also whether women could be the cause of it. Finally, I will look at a possible ‘Oedipus complex’ in Hamlet.
It would be ideal for Hamlet to be viewed under a gender scope, as under such is where the majority of the problems facing both pro- and antagonists, especially later on, can be found within the play. From various subjects like Hamlet’s Oedipus Complex situation with his mother, his domineering mentality over Ophelia, and Gertrude’s self-loathing at no fault of her own.
Women in Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet”. Throughout Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet” women are used as a method for men to get what they want. The men in Hamlet, either directly or indirectly, continuously use women to acquire something from other men. The only two women in the entire play are Gertrude and Ophelia, who are consistently used by the current king, Claudius, Polonius, and Hamlet.
By paying close attention to the woman's part in Shakespeare's plays, we can see his works with a new perspective. But we must remember that we are examining a male dramatist of extraordinary range writing in a remote period when women's position was in obvious ways more restricted and less disputed than in our own period. Sandra Gilbert writes in The Madwoman in the Attic that literature is defined as a mirror held up to society and nature, "the mimetic aesthetic that begins with Aristotle and descends through Shakespeare implies that the poet, like a lesser God, has made or engendered an alternative, mirror-universe in which he actually seems to enclose or trap shadows of reality" (Madwoman 5). While some artists do not necessarily duplicate in their art the "realities" of their culture, they may exploit them to create character or intensify conflict, or struggle with, criticize, or transcend them. Shakespeare, it would seem, "encompasses more and preaches less than most authors, hence the centuries-old controversy over his religious affiliation, political views, and sexual preferences" (Lenz 4). His attitude toward women are equally complex and demand as much examination.