The Character of Ophelia

518 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Hamlet character development

The Character of Ophelia

In Shakespeare’s tragedies, the characters all have flaws that eventually lead to

their undoing. In the play Hamlet, the character of Ophelia is ultimately killed by her flaw.

It is apparent that Ophelia is an obedient person but, upon closer inspection, the audience

can see that she is not merely obedient. Ophelia’s thoughts and actions go beyond

obedience to show that she is a weak and entirely dependent character. Nothing that she

says or does is a representation of herself but mostly that of her father.

Ophelia’s cruel actions towards Hamlet, which go against her feelings for him,

demonstrate her obedience to her father. In the beginning of the play, Ophelia tells her

father that she likes Hamlet but her later actions sacrifice these personal feelings under the

order of her father. She does as her father says regardless of how it could affect her own

life. In particular, Ophelia agrees not to see Hamlet anymore after the request from her

father: “I shall obey, my lord...”(act 1, scene 4). Ophelia’s actions show that Polonius has

complete control over her because she sacrifices her personal feelings to please him.

Ophelia’s obedience goes deeper than her trying to please her father and shows

what a weak character she is. When Hamlet harasses her and tells her to go to a nunnery

where she can no longer harm anyone, she does not try to defend herself. Instead, she just

feels sorry for herself. Ophelia could not su...

Show More
Related

  • The Innocence of Gertrude and Ophelia in William Shakespeare's Hamlet

    719 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Pretty Ophelia,” as Claudius calls her, is the most innocent victim of Hamlet’s revenge in Shakespeare’s play Hamlet. Hamlet has fallen in love with Ophelia after the death of his father. Ophelia “sucked the honey of his music vows” and returned Hamlet’s affection. But when her father had challenged Hamlet’s true intentions, Ophelia could only say: “I do not know, my lord, what I should think.” Ophelia was used to relying on her father’s directions and she was also brought up to be obedient. This allowed her to only accept her father’s views that Hamlet’s attention towards her was only to take advantage of her and to obey her father’s orders not to permit Hamlet to see her again.

    Read More

  • Comparing Maki And Ophelia In Hamlet By Shawna Maki

    1073 Words  | 3 Pages

    Often overlooked in Shakespeare’s famous play Hamlet, Shawna Maki analyzes Ophelia’s restricting role as a woman in a patriarchal society and how it essentially leads to her death being the true tragedy of the play. Maki supports this argument by stating, “Whereas Hamlet has the power and potential to change his fate, Ophelia does not and her death is tragic because the only escape she sees from her oppression is madness and death.”. The comparison between Hamlet and Ophelia is a common parallel because both characters are inevitably labeled as tragic deaths due to the quick deterioration of their state of mind.

    Read More

  • The Deceptive Character of Polonius in William Shakespeare's Hamlet

    1005 Words  | 3 Pages

    Ophelia to think of him as a wise, moral, and respectable father as shown in the following lines:

    Read More

  • Ophelia Hamlet Analysis

    763 Words  | 2 Pages

    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”

    Read More

  • Ophelia Character Analysis

    1373 Words  | 3 Pages

    He tells Ophelia that no matter how good she is as a wife she will always be perceived as a harlot, and that if she was to marry she needed to marry a fool because no one else would believe her loyalty. This quotation is filled with rage towards the female sex. Polonius and Laertes also attack Ophelia many times during the play for being a women. Warning her that men (Hamlet) only want her for body and chastity. Gabrielle Dane in his paper, “Reading Ophelia’s Madness” relates the way they treat her as an incestous stranglehold. They have made themselves Ophelia’s decision makers in every matter. Polonius makes remarks such as, “You do not understand yourself so clearly” and “Think yourself a baby” (1. 3. 96, 105) to Ophelia. These show that even her own family treat Ophelia with no respect or dignity

    Read More

  • The Symbolism of Ophelia's Death

    1278 Words  | 3 Pages

    It is widely believed that “Living life without honor is a tragedy bigger than death itself” and this holds true for Hamlet’s Ophelia. Ophelia’s death symbolizes a life spent passively tolerating Hamlet’s manipulations and the restrictions imposed by those around her, while struggling to maintain the last shred of her dignity. Ophelia’s apathetic reaction to her drowning suggests that she never had control of her own life, as she was expected to comply with the expectations of others. Allowing the water to consume her without a fight alludes to Hamlet’s treatment of Ophelia as merely a device in his personal agenda. Her apparent suicide denotes a desire to take control of her life for once. Ophelia’s death is, arguably, an honorable one, characterized by her willingness to let go of her submissive, earth-bound self and leave the world no longer a victim.

    Read More

  • Hamlet And Ophelia Analysis

    1066 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, written by William Shakespeare, is considered to be one of his most perplexing plays. The tragedy follows the story of Prince Hamlet as he undergoes states of insanity, depression, and eventual death. Theories regarding Hamlet’s relationship with Ophelia are developed through subplots and leave the reader questioning as to whether Hamlet truly loved her. Arguments can be made that Hamlet and Ophelia love one another, but there are many obstacles that prevent them from rightly being together. The couple face a series of cascading problems, including the high expectations set forth by their friends and family. As the story develops, these problems cause major setbacks that become impossible to

    Read More

  • The Tragedy of Lady Ophelia in Shakespeare's Hamlet

    1356 Words  | 3 Pages

    Melancholy, grief, and madness pervade Shakespeare's great tragedy, Hamlet.  The emotional maladies presented within Hamlet, not only allow the audience to sympathize with prince Hamlet, but also with the tragic lady Ophelia as well.  It is Ophelia who suffers at her lover's discretion because of decisions she was obligated to make on behalf of her weak societal position.

    Read More

  • Shakespeare's Hamlet

    1035 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...nly woman he only loved and Hamlet lost Ophelia the only woman he truly loved but was foolish enough to tell her the whole truth before she passed. Interestingly enough both of our protagonists were forced to experience not only the death of their true loves but also society’s silent disdain on the fact that they committed suicide.

    Read More

  • The Analysis of the Character Ophelia on Hamlet

    1284 Words  | 3 Pages

    In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Ophelia is the most static character in the play. Instead of changing through the course of the play, she remains suffering in the misfortunes perpetrated upon her. She falls into insanity and dies a tragic death. Ophelia has issues surviving without a male influence, and her downfall is when all the men in her life abandon her. Hamlet’s Ophelia, is a tragic, insane character that cannot exist on her own.

    Read More

  • Religion In Jane Eyre

    1274 Words  | 3 Pages

    as an immoral person. She speaks up for her herself when she knows she is not

    Read More

  • Hamlet's Relationship With His Parents

    894 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hamlet loved his father the way that any child does. A part of him and his life was taken from him when he heard of his father’s death. Instead of spending time with her son like she should have been, Gertrude was spending more time with her quickly married husband, Claudius. This quick marriage to Claudius made Hamlet wonder if his father had just died, or if he was murdered. If his father was murdered, his mother must have known about the murder, or she would not have married Claudius so quickly. Gertrude was absent in Hamlets life too often, which turned him to acting like he was crazy.

    Read More

  • Role of Women in William Shakespeare's Hamlet

    1159 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Ophelia In Hamlet

    1165 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hamlet is one of the best of Shakespeare’s plays. The ability to compose speeches and

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Gertrude And Ophelia

    892 Words  | 2 Pages

    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

    Read More

More about The Character of Ophelia

Open Document