Female characters in media are often portrayed as weak. They are not able to make their own decisions, and they cannot handle problems without help from ale characters. This is not the case in Hamlet by William Shakespeare. The female characters in Hamlet, Gertrude and Ophelia, are strong, and this is demonstrated through their actions, their interactions with other characters, and even their deaths. Gertrude marrying Claudius only several months after the death of her husband is not a sign of her frailty. Many people use the fact that Gertrude only waited a few months after the death of King Hamlet as proof that Gertrude is weak, but it actually shows the opposite. First of all, Hamlet takes place in the late middle ages, so Gertrude did not have many options outside of marriage. In many cases, a women’s identity and power were tied to the men in her life, so Claudius may have just been a convenient way to deal with that reality. Additionally, she may have just been acting in the best interest of her country. If she had not remarried, …show more content…
However, it can also be argued that her suicide indicates her strength rather than her cowardice. Ophelia kills herself after the death of her father because she could not handle the grief while Hamlet, whose situation is even worse, does not. While people may disagree on whether or not suicide is cowardly, in the context of this play, suicide is the braver choice. Earlier in the play, during his 3rd soliloquy, Hamlet contemplated the options of killing himself or continuing to live. He comes to the conclusion that, “Thus conscience does make cowards of us all.”(3.1.91). He comes to the conclusion that overthinking what happens after death makes people too cowardly to commit suicide. This means that, in this play, Ophelia was stronger than Hamlet because she found the courage to kill herself where he could
She gave up to the point where it could be argued that Ophelia committed suicide. Unlike Hamlet, the amount that Ophelia fights for her own self-preservation changes very little over the course of the play. From the beginning to end she is willing to let other people dictate her actions despite the emotional consequences that they have on her. And finally, her death is very fitting to the character, simply letting nature take control of her life and not fighting to even preserve her own life when she falls into the river. This creates a foil to Hamlet's character who died fighting for what he believed in and refused to let people go against what he thought was morally right.
Hamlet’s cowardness and unsureness are what in the end cause the downfall of characters near to him. Hamlet is so entrapped in the idea of “madness” that he fails to see what he is shutting out. He killed Polonius Ophelia’s father and told the love of his life that he did not love her. This led to the insanity expressed by Ophelia and to her death. “I loved Ophelia.
His pent up frustration against his mother results in an outburst against Ophelia whereby Hamlet verbally assaults her- “go thee to a nunnery.” Ophelia is also guided by her Id since she desires Hamlet and upon being abused by the latter, she loses her sanity and her will to live, showing the reign of Thanatos, thus, prompting her suicide. Her father, representing her superego, attempts to control her behavior along the lines of morality, but the consequence is rather disastrous as her Id
Throughout the play Ophelia experiences many hardships. The death of her father and the rejection of Hamlets love take a toll on Ophelia mentally and emotionally. In the play Hamlet kills Polonius by stabbing him in the chest. When Ophelia found out about the death of her father she slipped into a depressive madness state of mind. The audience can see Ophelia singing about her fathers death: Ophelia: He is dead and gone, lady, He is dead and
Her death is doubtful, and, but that great command…” (V.i. 234). It’s not directly stated that Ophelia killed herself although it’s very likely because Hamlet tells her that he does not love her and she believed him. The emotion of love has drawn Ophelia to kill herself. Not everyone thinks this to be truth,
Gertrude, on the other hand, has in reality acted in a sinful or at least disgraceful was. There is legitimate reason to ridicule or resent Gertrude, especially from Hamlet’s position, for it is indisputable that the time between the elder Hamlet’s death and her marriage to Claudius was not appropriate and that she should have mourned longer. Hamlet’s distaste for marriage was birthed from Gertrude’s marriage to his uncle, and he now sees the whole ordeal as something unsavory. Couples appear in love but Hamlet is convinced that they are not, and they will not stay true to one another, since Gertrude was not true to his father. In
Gertrude’s character had no set beliefs and was consistently tossed in different directions by the men in the story. She was used by both Claudius and Hamlet to help prove their own agendas. This is a clear example of Shakespeare implying that women in this society were used to help the men and purely support their ideas rather than standing for what they really
This provokes him to say that god gives women one face, but they use make up to paint on another one. This quote suggest that Hamlet sees woman as naive and gullible creatures, as he sees Ophelia as nothing but an object that is owned by her father, as she is helping him with all of his dirty work. Hamlet believes that woman cannot be trusted as they have are deceiving. He also sees Ophelia as a grown women who is unable to make her own decisions. Hamlet is utterly disgusted by how feeble Ophelia is as she was following her father's scheme.
Ophelia is grieving the loss of her father after Hamlet kills him. Ophelia doesn't know that Hamlet killed her father. But Ophelia has gone mad from learning about her father's death. Also, after Hamlet telling Ophelia that she needs to go to a nunnery, Ophelia is a little bit discouraged. She is discouraged because Hamlet had told her before that if Ophelia would sleep with him that they would get married.
Death is one of the most prominent themes in Hamlet, appearing in different forms. Shakespeare displays death through the suicide of Ophelia, Hamlet’s own thoughts and eventual suicide, and the murder of King Hamlet and Polonius. Hamlet displays suicidal tendencies throughout the play through his soliloquies. The first time that Hamlet contemplates committing suicide is when Gertrude and Claudius tell him that he has to stay in Denmark in Act one. “Oh, that this too, too sullied flesh would melt, thaw, and resolve itself into a dew, or that the Everlasting had not fixed his canon ‘gainst self-slaughter!
The character of Ophelia enters as an innocent young woman. She enters a world of madness. She is incapable of rational thinking, so her death may have been accidental rather than a suicide. An indicator that supports the argument that her death was accidental is that typically in Shakespeare’s plays, suicides have their own dramatic scene. In Hamlet, Ophelia’s death was not seen; she was found dead after drowning.
Her death was doubtful” (5.1.234). Queen Gertrude says this to Laertes to let him know of the news about Ophelia. Ophelia ends up going insane and committing suicide from the way Hamlet uses her and the harmful love he provides
At these points, Hamlet recognizes that he is at impasses, he has nothing to lose or protect, his mother and lover both dead. Therefore, he shows his brave side and kill the king, died together. Ophelia also has one of the composition of tragedy, anagnorisis throughout the play. When she knows that his father is dead, her brother is far away in France, and her lover Hamlet laugh at her, “ Get thee to a nunnery. Why wouldst thou be a breeder of sinners?”(III.i.
Hamlet does not value Ophelia 's feelings he belittles her. In Hamlets defense this is the way he was brought up to treat women, during that time this was a common way to treat a women. Even though in today 's society it is not at all ok to treat women with such disrespect. He also likes for everything to go as planned and this may result in why he can not have a stable relationship with a woman. This also causes him to have many stumbling blocks in his life that causes some emotional pain
Hamlet was a great and marvelous son, but know the good Hamlet has almost disappeared in the story. Now with the suicide of Ophelia, the soul of Hamlet is more dark, because he is suffering the mental illness of depression making him to have the possibility of fallow Ophelia in her decision, showing by his phrase “To be, or not to be: that is the question” that is one of the most important