Ophelia Essay - 1494 Words

Ophelia A play with great value and quality would best describe one of Shakespeare’s intriguing plays, Hamlet. Events, dilemmas, action, and the characters all contribute greatly to make the play interesting and appealing. Every event that occurs leads to the outcome of dilemmas and action. The characters personalities is what makes the action is even more exciting. Each character has got their own special significance in the roles they play. However Ophelia, the daughter of the Lord Chamberlain Polonius, allows an atmosphere of simplicity and delicacy to surround the play. Her simple nature causes inner thoughts that allow us to question her true character. From the start of the play Ophelia seems to always keep her distance and†¦show more content†¦She had been scared from his appearance and the way he looked at her. She exclaims, â€Å"O, my lord, my lord, I have been so affrighted.† (2.1. 74) â€Å"As if he had been loosed out of hell to speak of horrors - he comes before me† (2.1. 82-83) after having met Hamlet. She describes his bizarre looks and believes, as her father does, that the cause of his distraction is his love towards her. Hamlet had been trying to find relief for his deep grief in her. However, her naà ¯ve character didn’t allow her to infer that there was something so much worse gnawing at Hamlet. Her father drags this incident to Claudius and Gertrude who agree to devise a plan to spy on Hamlet, using Ophelia. She doesn’t object. For the sake of obedience and loyalty to her father, she looses Hamlet’s love. She is greatly terrified by Hamlet’s actions and when he dec lares that he doesn’t love her. â€Å"You should not have believed me†¦I loved you not† (3.1. 118-121) After being very feisty and robust with her she exclaims her sorrow by saying, â€Å"And I, of ladies most deject and wretched, that sucked the honey of his music vows†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (3.1. 154-155) At this situation she is gullible and very vulnerable. Hamlet had hurt her bluntly and left her to deal with the sorrows she felt. However, that was due to him knowing of her betrayal, agreeing to help them spy on him. He needed Ophelia for comfort and was raging when he found nothing. During the play ‘Mouse-trap’ that HamletShow MoreRelatedRelationship Between Ophelia And Ophelia1437 Words   |  6 PagesThe kind of relationship Hamlet and Ophelia had was not only complex but it was very problematic. I believe that Ophelia truly thought she would marry Hamlet even though her father and brother told her to stay away from him because â€Å"she could never end up with a man like that.† Laertes stated â€Å"Hamlet might love you now, he is subject to his birth. He also told her before he left for school again â€Å"Fear it, Ophelia; fear it, my dear sister, And keep you in the rear of your affection, Out of the shotRead MoreOphelia Essay2131 Words   |  9 PagesHamlet there contains two woman who exactly that. Ophelia and the woman from the poem both topple off the edge. These two women show us just how easy feeling too much can lead us to absolute insanity. Both of these women face unspeakable tragedies that lead to their lives in upheaval. S omething of equal importance is that by the end of this misadventure Ophelia is not left standing while the other woman is, this can be deduced by the fact that Ophelia is forced to feel the pain alone contrary to theRead MoreGertrude and Ophelia 1014 Words   |  5 Pagesare portrayed to deserve their fate because of their inability to be independent and their ability to be easily influenced. In the play, Shakespeare demonstrates that both Gertrude and Ophelia deserve their fate. The women deserve their fate because of their inability to be independent. Polonius instructs Ophelia to be aware of her shallow emotions and to display herself as more valuable by not responding to Hamlets every command. When Polonius says, †¦ these blazes, daughter, Giving moreRead MoreReviving Ophelia1717 Words   |  7 PagesThe book, Reviving Ophelia, is about the hardships girls go through when they are growing up and trudging through puberty. As the author Mary Pipher states it, adolescent girls tend to lose their â€Å"true selves† in order to fit in and comply with the standards that society sets for women. Pipher, a practicing therapist, uses her own case studies to show how pressures put on girls forces them to react in often damaging ways. In most case studies she tells the audience how she helped these girls healRead MoreOphelia And Hamlet1903 Words   |  8 Pagescreation of Hamlet, Shakespeare uses the voice of Ophelia as a means to battle the gender norms that had been placed on Elizabethan society. A good women was seen as someone that was quiet and submissive. If a man could not control a woman’s tongue, there would be no chance that the man would be able to control her body. Though Ophelia’s character was more than capable of exhibiting reason, the control that her father, Polonius, held over her let Ophelia to the the madness that would claim her life byRead MoreHamlets Love for Ophelia1231 Words   |  5 Pagesprimarily between Hamlet and Ophelia. From Act one until the final scene of the play, Hamlet struggles with the decision to kill Claudius while he concurrently tries to comprehend the chaos surrounding him. As the story unfolds and the tensions build between Hamlet and his loved ones, Hamlet’s relationship to Ophelia is profoundly impacted. One common argument that rises from studying the tragic story of  Hamlet  is the questioning of Hamlet’s love; specifically for Ophelia.   Many often conclude thatRead MoreOphelia, By William Shakespeare Essay766 Words   |  4 PagesOphelia, as a person, is essentially formed by the men in her life. This is not a radical idea: it has been embraced by centuries of Shakespeare critics. However, to go slightly deep er, one could consider what exactly the absence of Hamlet, Polonius, and Laertes has on her identity (outside of madness). This scene serves to force her into a new persona, as one without a personality. Ophelia is no longer a maid. She says this herself with, â€Å"And I a maid at your window, to be your Valentine...OutRead MoreThe Madness Of Hamlet And Ophelia1131 Words   |  5 PagesThe Madness of Hamlet and Ophelia Hamlet is one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays. In it, a young, Danish prince struggles with the death of his father and the betrayal of his mother. This struggle is so profound; it shakes its main character Hamlet to the core and brings him to the brink of sanity. Shakespeare uses madness to convey important information throughout the play especially through Hamlet and his love interest, Ophelia. Hamlet does not always appear to be mad, in fact throughoutRead MoreOphelia And Feminism Essay1471 Words   |  6 Pagesthe play Hamlet Written by William Shakespeare Ophelia is objectified based upon her gender and virginity by her brother Laertes, and is cast aside and treated like a powerless second class citizen by Hamlet. The Oxford Dictionary defines feminism as â€Å"The advocacy of women s rights on the grounds of the equality of the sexes.† Applying the feminist ideal as stated in the previous definition to Ophelia’s situation we can reach the conclusion th at Ophelia was not treated with the respect and given theRead More Hamlet: Branaghs Ophelia and Showalters Representing Ophelia1989 Words   |  8 PagesHamlet: Branaghs Ophelia and Showalters Representing Ophelia      Ã‚  Ã‚   Ophelia falls to the floor, her screams contrasting eerily with the song pieces she uses as her speech.   In an instant she is writhing and thrusting her pelvis in such a gross sexual manner that it becomes clear that, in his film interpretation of William Shakespeares Hamlet, Kenneth Branagh wants to imply a strong relationship between female insanity and female sexuality.   Such a relationship is exactly what Elaine Showalter