Hamlet A Misogynist Analysis

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Recommended: Mother and son relationship in hamlet

Previously to this class, I have read Hamlet one other time but this time when going through it I couldn’t help but feel more emotion towards the woman in this play. Specifically, I dove deeper into the character of Ophelia and Gertrude. I took a big interest in how they have developed and how Hamlet has affected them and vice versa. Hamlet being the lunatic character that he is has a very distinct way of feeling about women, more specifically, I would say, he is a misogynist. Hamlet’s hatred for women all starts with his mother, Gertrude. When the ghost of the King first shows up and speaks about Hamlet’s mother it seems as though they had a very meaningful and for the most part “normal” mother/son relationship. Because of Gertrude marrying Claudius shortly after the King passing away it changed Hamlet’s entire perspective not only on his mother but also the other …show more content…

She swears by everything in her that Hamlet loves her truly while everyone else around her, including Hamlet, is telling her that he doesn’t love her. Hamlet writes Ophelia a not very well constructed letter on how much he loves her, which is one of Ophelia’s driving motivations to prove that he does love her. As the scenes go by we take a look at another perspective in their relationship, the nunnery scene. By this point, Hamlet has taken a turn for the worst and while speaking to Ophelia he is indirectly speaking to his mother because he knows they are being spied on. He speaks passionately about women having “two faces”. He then makes the claim that he doesn’t believe that anyone should get married because it would prevent men from getting hurt. For Ophelia, Hamlet’s resolution is to send her to become a nun, that way she could live a pure life where she cannot procreate and have a chance to hurt another man. Their relationship settles when Ophelia dies and Hamlet confesses his longing and meaningful love for her, claiming he loved her more than anyone

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