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Ophelia In Hamlet

Ophelia in William Shakespeare's Hamlet

Hamlet is a very complex play based upon the relationships within the
walls of Elsinore Castle in Denmark. Hamlet is the main character and
is the base for all the emotions and feelings in the play. Gertrude
(Hamlets Mother), Claudius (Hamlets Uncle and his Mother's new husband
and the new King) play major roles in the play. Ophelia is outside the
family connections of these three characters but still has a major
impact on the audience of the play. Many people have become fascinated
by Ophelia. William Hazlitt wrote:

"Ophelia is a character almost too exquisitely touching to be dwelt
upon. Oh rose of May, oh flower too soon faded!"

A Victorian Actress wrote:

"When we see Ophelia first this 'Rose of May' is just budding; and,
indeed, it is as a bud, never as a full flower, that she lived her
brief life"

Many people over the years have viewed Ophelia as a pure, perfect
young girl, however, through studying the play in depth I have found
out that Shakespeare may not have anticipated her being viewed in this
way. This is because Ophelia has two sides to her character, the
quiet, calm Ophelia and a darker side, when she becomes mad. Which
view of Ophelia did Shakespeare wish us to focus on? I think that the
dark side of Ophelia shocks us more so therefore this is the image of
Ophelia we remember.

There are two women in the play, Ophelia and Gertrude. Shakespeare has
written Ophelia as the prominent female in the play. Is this because
she has a closer relationship with Hamlet or because there are two
sides to Ophelia, a happy lively side and a dark sinister point which
becomes more dominant later in the play?

Ophelia is a character who has been viewed differently by audiences
from different ages. A modern audience would view her as weak and
timid in comparison to today's women. She obeys the males and fulfils
what she believes to be her duty. A Victorian...