Ophelia is a device used by Shakespeare to portray themes, reveal traits of other characters, and become a plot point in the end. She is a completely dependent character on everyone around her, and is consistently taken advantage of. She is obedient and demure in her actions and is also a reflection of women of the time period. They were ruled and controlled by men. Ophelia serves as a foil to many characters, specifically Hamlet. Her madness was genuine and severe, while Hamlet’s was faked and arduous. While he rambles on about nonsense, Ophelia’s “nonsense” reveals her true ailments and struggles to continue her life. Her two main issues in Act 4 Scene 4 are the death of her father and the loss of her love, Hamlet. Ophelia’s singing is only further evidence of her insanity, as no sane person sings everything they say and think. One of her …show more content…
They take advantage of her and Hamlet’s relationship, and Polonius specifically controls her and their relationship, resulting in a confusion over whether or not their feelings for each other were true. It becomes clear how strongly Ophelia feels for him when he begins treating her maliciously. Hamlet belittles Ophelia and tells her that her beauty doesn’t match her honesty, asking, “are you honest?...Are you fair?...”(II.i.105-107). Hamlet lashes out at her and laments about her father, adding, “Let the doors be shut upon him, that he may play the fool no where but in ’s own house,” (III.i.133-134). Ophelia’s participation in the games the adults play is a representation of the appearance vs reality theme. Ophelia’s suicide is her only independent act in the play, however, she was driven to that point by other characters. Ophelia’s suicide was caused by her loss of purpose. Without the controlling factors in her life, Hamlet and Polonius, she couldn’t take over the hole it left. Without her purpose, she saw no reason to
Ophelia’s mental strength quickly dissipates due to multiple happenings in the play. The man that she once thought she was in love with kills her father, driving her into the dark abyss of grief. She begins to fall into madness, “...speaks things in doubt /That carry but half sense /Her speech is nothing” (3.3.7-8). She begins to jabber on about nonsense. She loses her ability to think, “...poor Ophelia /Divided from herself and her fair judgment” (4.5.91-92). Others see her as an emotional wreck, falling farther and farther into insanity. She finally can’t take it anymore, so she ends her own life, “As we have warranty. Her death was doubtful” (5.1.234). Others saw Ophelia in a dark light, saying that she took her own life, and that she did not deserve a nobel burial. Ophelia was driven into mania by a combination of negative things, that in the end, lead to her taking her own
In Shakespeare's tragedy, Hamlet, the audience finds a docile, manipulated, scolded, victimized young lady named Ophelia. Ophelia is a foil to Hamlet. Plays have foils to help the audience better understand the more important characters in the play. The character of Ophelia is necessary so that the audience will give Hamlet a chance to get over his madness and follow his heart.
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
Ophelia was driven mad by the death of her father Polonius and how Hamlet betrayed her love with his own wave of madness which was just an act. In her madness, Ophelia talks about her father and his death and about the “Tricks in the world” (terrible things that happen to people). Ophelia’s madness was also the extent of her being used by her father so he could spy on Hamlet to see if he was truly crazy and then by Hamlet when he claimed he no longer loved her and that he didn’t send her any letters (remembrances). Ophelia’s speech and her fragments of songs are unsensible. Her song was about her father’s death “He is gone, He is gone” (4.5.220), and a maiden who is tricked into losing her virginity with a false promise of love and the possibility of marriage. “To be your valentine, then up he rose and donned his clothes and duped the chamber door” (4.5.56-58)
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 ...
...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.
Many believe that Ophelia genuinely lost her mind and became suicidal towards the end of the play. This is very self explanatory due to the fact that both her father and brother died and they seemed to play a big part in her life. Ophelia’s genuine madness exposes Hamlet’s counterfeit madness because Ophelia shows signs. In Act 4, Scene 5, Ophelia is constantly singing songs about death and basically ignores anything that anyone says to her. For example, in Act 4, Scene 5, she sings, “He is dead and gone, lady, he is dead and gone. At his head is a patch of green grass, and at his feet there is a tombstone.” This continues on and on until one day she is in a meadow and she ends up drowning. She ends up dying before she can even see her brother, Laertes ever again. When Laertes finally returns, he wants to say his final goodbyes to his younger sister and while he’s doing this, Hamlet is hiding in the bushes listening and he begins to cry. This is another way that Hamlet exposes that he isn’t truly mad the way he made himself seem. He forced himself to treat Ophelia poorly so many times throughout the play and it was all just a part of his madness act. Him releasing his emotions for Ophelia in this moment showed everyone that he truly did care for her. Even if he wasn’t madly in love, he definitely cared for her. This is the last main event that shows that Hamlet wasn’t truly a mad, emotionless, heartless
The tragedy Hamlet, one of the most renown Shakespearean shows, displays an impressive amount of ambiguity. The show is well loved by many because the ambiguity allows people to relate to Hamlet in ways not often seen in literature. One of the biggest ambiguities in the tragedy has to do with Hamlet’s love interest, Ophelia. At the beginning of the show it is revealed that Ophelia is receiving love letters from Hamlet and is advised by her father not to reciprocate as Hamlet is far above her station and could easily break her heart and ruin her reputation. Later we see Ophelia play the role of the spy and check up on Hamlet under the orders of Claudius and her father. Finally, after the death of her father, we see Ophelia break. She is considered
The story of Hamlet is a morbid tale of tragedy, commitment, and manipulation; this is especially evident within the character of Ophelia. Throughout the play, Ophelia is torn between obeying and following the different commitments that she has to men in her life. She is constantly torn between the choice of obeying the decisions and wishes of her family or that of Hamlet. She is a constant subject of manipulation and brain washing from both her father and brother. Ophelia is not only subject to the torture of others using her for their intentions but she is also susceptible to abuse from Hamlet. Both her father and her brother believe that Hamlet is using her to achieve his own personal goals.
The reader is left guessing on Hamlet’s true feelings for Ophelia through his various insults, sexual innuendos, and admitted desire. Hamlet’s claim, “God hath given you one face, and you / Make yourselves another.” (3.1.155-156) is laced with irony and hypocrisy given Hamlet’s own deception regarding true feelings. This proclamation comes at the end of a lengthy tirade against Ophelia and womankind in general for their conniving deceit leading men astray. The fact that Hamlet cannot see this duplicity in his very own actions shows the double standard he holds for females. Ophelia’s immediate reaction is one of shock and defense due to the aggressive nature of Hamlet’s attack. She calls out “O, woe is me!” (3.1.174) in distress to the ferocity of Hamlet and is unable to form a particularly coherent response akin to the ones seen against Laertes and Polonius. She does show her intelligence and rebellion from this assumption of power by Hamlet in her songs while Hamlet is gone. While many attribute her madness to the death of her father, a large portion of her instability should be attributed to Hamlet and his earlier actions. In her first introduction as insane she sings, “And I a maid at your window, / To be your Valentine. / Then up he rose and donned his clothes / And dropped the chamber door, / Let in the maid, that out a maid / Never departed more.” (4.5.55-60). Due to her references to sexuality and deceit the
“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.
Polonius meets with Claudius and Gertrude and suggests an arranged meeting of Hamlet and Ophelia. Because of his great devotion to Ophelia, he is very skeptical of Hamlet. Later, he crosses paths with him during a poison induced craze. This makes him dislike Hamlet more, Ophelia doesn’t know how much Polonius dislikes Hamlet. When Rosencrantz and Guildenstern arrive, Hamlet quickly discovers that they were sent by Claudius even though he is in a poisoned state. Hamlet tells them that he is frustrated that he is sometimes sane and sometimes isn’t. Beyond this, Ophelia has been acting two-faced towards him. Hamlet can’t understand what is happening to him or why Ophelia is constantly changing her feelings towards hi m. The actors arrive and one of them gives a speech. Hamlet is drawn to the actors for their ability to ease between different personalities. He believes everyone around him is two-faced and the actors can demonstrate how easy people can be deceiving. He devises the plan for his own play as a way to clarify in his own mind what is actually
Two of Ophelia’s difficulties arise from her father and brother. They believe that Hamlet is using her to take her virginity and throw it away because Ophelia will never be his wife. Her heart believes that Hamlet loves her although he promises he never has (“Hamlet” 1). Hamlet: “Ay, truly, for the power of beauty will sooner transform honesty from what it is to a bawd than the force of honesty can translate beauty into his likeness. This was sometime a paradox, but not the time gives it proof. I did love you once.” Ophelia: “Indeed, my lord, you made me believe so.” Hamlet: “You should not have believed me, for virtue cannot so inoculate our old stock ...
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.
Ophelia is manipulated by Hamlet to display to the King and the rest of the court that he is in fact mad. When Hamlet enters her room wearing disheveled clothing and acting quite strange towards her, he knows that Ophelia will tell her father and the King. Ophelia then reports this strange occurrence to her father, telling him about his strange composure of taking her “by the wrist and” holding her hard and then “shaking” when he was about to let go. (Act 2, Scene 1 Lines 86-91) The team of Polonius and the King also exploits Ophelia in order to dig deeper into Hamlet’s madness.