An introduction to Ophelia from Hamlet by William Shakespeare Introduction to Ophelia in Hamlet Of all the pivotal characters in Hamlet, Ophelia is the most static and one-dimensional. She has the potential to become a tragic heroine -- to overcome the adversities inflicted upon her -- but she instead crumbles into insanity, becoming merely tragic. It appears that Ophelia herself is not as important as her representation of the dual nature of women in the play. The extent to which Hamlet feels betrayed by Gertrude is far more apparent because of Ophelia's presence. Hamlet's feelings of rage against his mother can be directed toward Ophelia, who is, in his estimation, hiding her base nature behind a guise of impeccability, just as is Gertrude. Through Ophelia we witness Hamlet's evolution, or de-evolution into a man convinced that all women are whores; that the women who seem most pure are inside black with corruption and sexual desire. And if women are harlots, then they must have their procurers. Gertrude has been made a whore by Claudius, and Ophelia has been made a whore by her father.

In Act II, Polonius makes arrangements to use the alluring Ophelia to discover why Hamlet is behaving so curiously. Hamlet is not in the room but it seems obvious from the following lines that he has overheard Polonius trying to use his daughter's charms to suit his underhanded purposes. In Hamlet's distraught mind, there is no gray area: Polonius prostitutes his daughter. And Hamlet tells Polonius so to his face, labeling him a "fishmonger" (despite the fact that Polonius cannot decipher the meaning behind Hamlet's words). As Kay Stanton argues in her essay Hamlet's Whores: Perhaps it may be granted...that what makes a woman a whore in the Hamlets' estimation is her sexual use by not one man but by more than one man.... what seems to enrage [Hamlet] in the 'nunnery' interlude is that Ophelia has put her sense of love and duty for another man above her sense of love and duty for him, just as Gertrude put her sense of love and duty for her new husband above her sense of love and duty for her old.

Gertrude chose a brother over a dead Hamlet; Ophelia chooses a father over a living Hamlet: both choices can be read as additionally sexually perverse in being, to Hamlet, 'incestuous' (Stanton, New Essays on Hamlet) To the rest of us, Ophelia represents something very different. To outside observers, Ophelia is the epitome of goodness. Like Gertrude, young Ophelia is childlike and naive. But unlike Queen Gertrude, Ophelia has good reason to be unaware of the harsh realities of life. She is very young, and has lost her mother, possibly at birth. Her father, Polonius, and brother, Laertes, love Ophelia tremendously, and have taken great pains to shelter her. She is not involved with matters of state; she spends her days engaged in needlepoint and flower gathering. She returns the love shown to her by Polonius and Laertes tenfold, and couples it with complete and unwavering loyalty. "Her whole character is that of simple unselfish affection" (Bradley 130).

Even though her love for Hamlet is strong, she obeys her father when he tells her not to see Hamlet again or accept any letters that Hamlet writes. Her heart is pure, and when she does do something dishonest, such as tell Hamlet that her father has gone home when he is really behind the curtain, it is out of genuine fear. Ophelia clings to the memory of Hamlet treating her with respect and tenderness, and she defends him and loves him to the very end despite his brutality. She is incapable of defending herself, but through her timid responses we see clearly her intense suffering: Hamlet: ...I did love you once. Ophelia: Indeed, my, lord, you made me believe so. Hamlet: You should not have believed me...I loved you not. Ophelia: I was the more deceived. Her frailty and innocence work against her as she cannot cope with the unfolding of one traumatic event after another. Ophelia's darling Hamlet causes all her emotional pain throughout the play, and when his hate is responsible for her father's death, she has endured all that she is capable of enduring and goes insane.

But even in her insanity she symbolizes, to everyone but Hamlet, incorruption and virtue. "In her wanderings we hear from time to time an undertone of the deepest sorrow, but never the agonized cry of fear or horror which makes madness dreadful or shocking. And the picture of her death, if our eyes grow dim in watching it, is still purely beautiful". (Bradley, Shakespearean Tragedy 132-3). The bawdy songs that she sings in front of Laertes, Gertrude, and Claudius are somber reminders that the corrupt world has taken its toll on the pure Ophelia. They show us that only in her insanity does she live up to Hamlet's false perception of her as a lascivious woman. How to cite this article: Mabillard, Amanda. Ophelia. Shakespeare Online. 20 Aug. 2000. < >. References Bradley, A.C. Shakespearean Tragedy. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1966. Stanton, Kay. Hamlet's Whores. In New Essays on Hamlet. Ed. Mark Burnett. New York: AMS Press, 1994.

______________ Mistrusted Love: Ophelia and Polonius _____ On Hamlet's Love for Ophelia... "Hamlet's love, though never lost, was, after Ophelia's apparent rejection of him, mingled with suspicion and resentment, and that his treatment of her was due in part to this cause. And I find it impossible to resist this conclusion. But the question how much of his harshness is meant to be real, and how much assumed, seems to me impossible in some places to answer. For example, his behaviour at the play-scene seems to me to show an intention to hurt and insult; but in the Nunnery-scene (which cannot be discussed briefly) he is evidently acting a part and suffering acutely, while at the same time his invective, however exaggerated, seems to spring from real feelings; and what is pretence, and what sincerity, appears to me an insoluble problem". A. C. Bradley. Read on... _____ Hamlet: Ophelia | Character Analysis | CliffsNotes Character Analysis Bookmark this page Manage My Reading List Ophelia is a difficult role to play because her character, like Gertrude 's, is murky.

Part of the difficulty is that Shakespeare wrote his female roles for men, and there were always limitations on them that restricted and defined the characterizations devised. In the case of an ingenue like Ophelia, a very young and lovely woman, Shakespeare would have been writing for a boy. The extent to which a boy could grasp subtle nuances might have prevented the playwright from fleshing out the character more fully. We do know that Ophelia is torn between two contradictory poles. Her father and brother believe that Hamlet would use her, that he would take her virginity and throw it away because she could never be his wife. Her heart has convinced her that Hamlet loved her, though he swears he never did. To her father and brother, Ophelia is the eternal virgin, the vessel of morality whose purpose is to be a dutiful wife and steadfast mother. To Hamlet, she is a sexual object, a corrupt and deceitful lover. With no mother to guide her, she has no way of deciphering the contradictory expectations. Just like Hamlet, the medieval precept that the father's word is unquestionable governs Ophelia. But her Renaissance sense of romantic love also rules her.

How can she be obedient to her father and true to her love? When she lies to Hamlet and tells him that Polonius is home when he is concealed in the room eavesdropping, Ophelia proves she cannot live in both worlds. She has chosen one, and her choice seals her fate. The dilemma also forces her into madness. She has no way to reconcile the contradictory selves her men demand that she be and still retain an equilibrium. Ophelia's desperation literally drives her crazy, and she has no means with which to heal herself. Ophelia’s Madness | Shakespeare I Ophelia’s Madness 13 Replies by Sam Ruck (Circle 5) Ophelia in the fourth act of Hamlet is demonstrably insane, but the direct cause of her slipped sanity is something that remains debatable.

While it is evident that Ophelia is grieving over the death of her father, Polonius, as Horatio says of her “She speaks much of her father, says she hears / There’s tricks in the world, and hems, and beats her heart” (4.5.4-5), a secondary cause of Ophelia’s madness may be in fact about her failed relationship with Hamlet as well. The evidence suggesting that she is simply mourning her father is obvious, as lines from one of her many “songs” points towards grieving over an aged relative “His beard as white as snow / All flaxen was his poll” with flaxen here indicating a white or grayed head of hair (4.5.190-191). This line directly references an older man and because of this detail, Polonius’s death has obviously taken its toll on Ophelia’s psyche, causing her to spout such wild and woeful songs. Further explicit references to Ophelia’s father, such as “I would give you some violets, but they withered all when my father died.

They say a made a good end.” give more credence to Ophelia’s shattered mental state, as she is constantly fixating on the death of Polonius, so much so that every single thing reminds her of his passing (4.5.180-181). Ophelia’s madness is perhaps overtaking her so much so that she does not even recognize whom she is talking to in this instance–her brother Laertes. Because Polonius was such a vital figure in her life, she is likely bereaved beyond help and thus does not recognize her brother. However, the explicit sexual references in Ophelia’s songs perhaps account for her obsession with the now absent Hamlet, as in “promising his love” to her earlier in the play and then being scorned, she is doubly heartbroken alongside the death of her father. With lines like “Young men will do’t if they come to’t / By Cock, they are to blame” signifies a strange and perhaps oblique reference to a promiscuous or simply flighty man who promises love (or sex here with the word “cock”) but backs out after a brief time (4.5.59-60).

This is compounded on by a following line, “You promised me to wed, / So would I ‘a’ done, by yonder sun, / An thou hadst not come to my bed.” and it is this part of Ophelia’s song that likely damns Hamlet as a cause of her mental fracturing (4.5.62-64). Though the man in the song has promised the speaker that they will soon wed, he has left her for no apparent reason and like Hamlet’s alleged claims of love and marriage to Ophelia, so too has Hamlet broken those vows for reasons unbeknownst. It is likely that Ophelia has fixated upon Hamlet’s “detestable” oath breaking so much so that in not requiting her love, Hamlet has broken both her heart and her poor mind. Ophelia exists as a tragic character in Hamlet and one that is entirely pitiable because of unfortunate circumstances that she has been put through. This entry was posted in Uncategorized on Shakespeare's Ophelia Shakespeare's Ophelia Many people stumble upon this site looking for my and my site's namesake, Shakespeare's Ophelia.

While she's not the theme of my site, this little page has some info about her, since for obvious reasons I'm interested in her too. At Ophelia's Store: Ophelia 1894, J. W. Waterhouse There's rosemary, And there's pansies, that's for thoughts. There's fennel for you, and columbines. There's rue for you, and here's some for me. We may call it herb of grace o' Sundays. Oh, you must wear your rue with a difference. There's a daisy. I would give you some violets, but they withered all when my father died. They say he made a good end. --Ophelia Hamlet Prince of Denmark Act IV Scene V Ophelia appears in Shakespeare's Hamlet. She is Hamlet's lover. She watches the development of his apparent madness, suffers his coldness and strange behavior as he rejects and humiliates her (part of his strategem to make good his claim of insanity,) she is used by her father as a pawn towards manipulating Hamlet, and then finally, discovers that her beloved has violently murdered her father.

In the face of this, Ophelia falls into (genuine) madness, and eventually drowns herself. Part of the tragedy of her character is not the manner of her death, but the incidental treatment it is given. She fades like the flowers for which she is so well known, and dies quietly offstage. Many Pre-Raphaelite and other painters through history have created their own version of Ophelia. Which is not a surprise, as the tragic and romantic aspects of her character, along with the imagery of the young woman floating amongst the flowers and billowing fabric of her gown and slowly sinking to her death while singing peculiar tunes is practically irrisistable, particularly to the high-strung and romantic artists of the nineteenth century. Even today, she still remains a popular, iconic subject for painters.

There is a willow grows aslant a brook, That shows his hoar leaves in the glassy stream; There with fantastic garlands did she come Of crow-flowers, nettles, daisies, and long purples That liberal shepherds give a grosser name, But our cold maids do dead men's fingers call them: There, on the pendent boughs her coronet weeds Clambering to hang, an envious sliver broke; When down her weedy trophies and herself Fell in the weeping brook. Her clothes spread wide; And, mermaid-like, awhile they bore her up: Which time she chanted snatches of old tunes; As one incapable of her own distress, Or like a creature native and indued Unto that element: but long it could not be Till that her garments, heavy with their drink, Pull'd the poor wretch from her melodious lay To muddy death. Act IV Scene VII From Ophelia 1852, John Everett Millais In film, Ophelia has been portrayed in many ways. The following list shows flim versions of Hamlet, with the name of the actress who played her, and a picture if available.

Unfortunately, for most pictures I was unable to find a shot from the actual film, or in many of the older cases, any pictures at all. There are a few existing film versions of Hamlet I have not included in the list, as I was unable to find the name of the actress portraying Ophelia. I've also included the name of the actor playing the title role, as versions of Hamlet as most often identifiable by their leading man. Julia Stiles Hamlet - Character study of Ophelia. - A-Level English - Marked by Teachers.com Hamlet - Character study of Ophelia. Extracts from this document... Introduction 2nd Draft In the play written by William Shakespeare, "Hamlet", Ophelia is seen to be a very interesting and intriguing character. Shakespeare has written Ophelia in a way that leaves the audience puzzled as to her true character. Many critics have placed Ophelia's character at completely contrasting ends of a continuum some people believe that Ophelia is not the innocent young girl others believe she is. Some people believe Ophelia to be a wanton, sexually knowledgeable young woman, while others believe that she is harmless and pious.

This is due to the manner that Shakespeare has written Ophelia's character, it means that Ophelia's language and actions can be interpreted in many different factions. This can be shown by the way in which Ophelia reacts in different circumstances, while some believe that it shows that she is sexually knowledgeable others believe it shows a lack of knowledge and even slight embarrassment. I believe that Ophelia was written by Shakespeare to be an innocent young woman that is corrupted by the events occurring around her. I believe that Hamlet treats Ophelia brutally and that her innocence and shy character during these events lead to her depression and her end. ...read more. Middle Ophelia reacts very calmly as though it doesn't affect her, but the audience know that she didn't expect it. Shakespeare uses Ophelia's reaction to display her character to the audience and gain sympathy for her cause. "I was more deceived" Shakespeare uses very calm language to show that Ophelia is very shy and innocent and uses different prose during Hamlets onslaught on Ophelia to help show a change in the mood of the play with the dark atmosphere and the crude dialogue. This shows Ophelia's character to be very passive and certainly not volatile.

This proves to the audience that Ophelia is the untainted, drawn-back young woman she is portrayed to be. She even finds the courage to carry on talking to Hamlet in a controlled fashion. This shows that although Ophelia is very shy she is also resilient and has a lot of pride not to show her true feelings. When Hamlet starts to heavily insult Ophelia she finds good in Hamlet, when she says; "I'll give thee this plague for thy dowry" She replies "O heavenly powers, restore him" Ophelia seems to find good in everybody's character, as many would quite rightly blame Hamlet she simply blames an external factor like God or that Hamlet has been taken over by an evil spirit. ...read more. Conclusion Also the period of the play meant that Ophelia would have been the honest virginal character Shakespeare portrays to the audience. Women of her social standing and class would have meant that he would have to play the untainted and person created by Hamlet because that is what would have been expected by those around royalty. I believe that Ophelia has an Honest, passive, inert and untainted character who is virginal.

Shakespeare uses passive calm and un-abrasive language to show to the audience Ophelia's innocence. This is used to create an un-responsive character to the sexual-innuendo and personal insults directed to her. I can see why some critics have interpreted Ophelia's innocent and na�ve character to be coyness, but I believe this to be untrue. This can be shown by her interaction with those around her. When Hamlet subjects her to sexual-innuendo she replies unknowingly and quite honestly which shows her to be virginal. Shakespeare uses Ophelia as the person who is dramatically effected by the events in the play, she is used as the love interest to Hamlet, daughter of the kings corrupt councillor and an innocent bystander to the volatile environment around her. I believe that Shakespeare uses her to link many of the complex themes surrounding her and to show the effects that such dealings can have on people. ...read more. The above preview is unformatted text This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our AS and A Level Hamlet section. Found what you're looking for?

Start learning 29% faster today 150,000+ documents available Research Paper on Shakespeare: Hamlet. Essays, Term Papers on Hamlet And Ophelia Essay, Research Paper: Hamlet And Ophelia Shakespeare: Hamlet Free Shakespeare: Hamlet research papers were donated by our members/visitors and are presented free of charge for informational use only. The essay or term paper you are seeing on this page was not produced by our company and should not be considered a sample of our research/writing service. We are neither affiliated with the author of this essay nor responsible for its content. If you need high quality, fresh and competent research / writing done on the subject of Shakespeare: Hamlet, use the professional writing service offered by our company. The character Ophelia in William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet plays a very interesting and important role in the elaboration of the plot. In the beginning, she starts off in a healthy state of mind, in love with her boyfriend Hamlet, yet controlled by her father in regard to their relationship. During the play she encounters several troubling experiences involving Hamlet which cause her to become distressed.

Near the end, the death of her father leaves Ophelia mentally unstable and in a state of madness that eventually leads her to death. So, due to all of the unfortunate events that took place with the people she loved the most in her life, Ophelia gradually becomes mad, and in the end passes away. Ophelia’s and Hamlet’s love for each other in the beginning was very real. Following the death of his father Hamlet falls in love with her, and is much attracted by her beauty. It is not uncertain, however, that Ophelia is very much controlled by her father. She is the daughter of Polonius, the chief advisor to the new King Claudius, and a highly respected man. Her father demands that she tell Hamlet at once that she can no longer be with him and tells her "I would not, in plain terms, from this time forth have you so slander any moment leisure as to give words or talk with the Lord Hamlet. Look to’t, I charge you. Come your ways." (I.iii.132-35). It is clear that here Polonius is making decisions for his daughter, regardless if she really loves Hamlet or not.

She feels very unimportant and helpless now, and because of this develops a lack of emotional confidence and strength. All she can reply is "I do not, my lord, what I should think." (I.iii.104). She is used to relying on her father’s direction and has been brought up to be very obedient. As well, her brother Laertes agrees with what their father is saying. He also tells Ophelia that Hamlet is no good for her "Perhaps he loves you not" (I.iii.16). He thinks that Hamlet only loves her because he wants to seduce her, and demands his sister to never see him again. Ophelia can only accept her father and brother’s beliefs and writes Hamlet a letter which informs him that she can no longer see him. As a result, she begins to feel alone with very little independence. At this point in the play Ophelia’s emotions are what help contribute to her madness. There are a few other incidents in the play which help in the course of Ophelia’s madness. When Hamlet receives the letter from Ophelia he is affected terribly by her words.

The next time she sees Hamlet she is surprised and even a bit frightened by his behavior. He did not look like he usually does, and he acted very strange towards her. He held her by the wrists and stared deeply into her face, long and hard, then storms out, leaving her intensely troubled and saddened. After that she tells her father, and he believes that Ophelia’s love is what made him mad. "That hath made him mad" (II. i.110). Polonius then goes to tell the King and Queen of Hamlet’s strange behavior and plans to spy on Hamlet to prove he’s gone mad. Ophelia now is left feeling guilty. When she sees Hamlet later on she tries to speak with him, but is rejected coldly. He does not listen to her and screams harsh words leaving her feeling worthless and embarrassed. "...I loved you not." (III.i.119). "Get thee to a nunnery." (III.i.121) "... you jig, you amble, and you lisp, and nickname God’s creatures, and make you wantonnes your ignorance.

Go to, I’ll no more on’t;" (III.i.146-48) This incident causes Ophelia to become slightly disturbed. She sits weeping while her father and the King practically step on her weak body to find out more reason for Hamlet’s actions. In this depressed state all she can say is "O! woe is me, to have seen what I have seen, what I see!" (III.i.163-64) So, because of Hamlet’s rudeness and rejection through this part of the play, Ophelia is driven even more closer to insanity. Perhaps the biggest cause of Ophelia’s madness was the death of her father. The news of Polonius’ death was just enough to throw her over the edge of insanity. What’s worse, she finds out that her dearest father was murdered by the one she loves, Hamlet. Ophelia now goes completely mad and has lost all control over her mind. She begins singing songs to herself that don’t really make sense to anyone. "He is dead and gone, lady, he is dead and gone..." (IV.V.29-30).

The King now feels pity for her because she has lost so much, "O! this is the poison of deep grief; it springs all from her father’s death." (IV.V.75-6). It becomes clear now, when she sings the song about a maid on St. Valentine’s day, that the way Hamlet treated her was a great contribution to her insanity. In this song she says "Quoth she, before you tumbled me, you promis’d me to wed" (IV.V.62-3) You can tell by the words she sings that she is upset because Hamlet slept with her during their relationship and had promised her they’d get married. These are now the final stages of Ophelia’s madness. When Laertes comes to visit he is greatly confused by his sister’s behavior. She does not talk to him now as herself, she sings and speaks of rosemary’s and pansies which are invisible to everyone else. She says goodbye to her brother for the last time, leaving him filled with rage and grief. A short while after, Ophelia is found dead in a river, having drown that afternoon. Some believe her death was suicide and some assume that it was an accident.

Unlike the other characters in the play, Ophelia died from loving too much, being too innocent, and too pure. She died because of her virtues, while others perished because of their faults. She did nothing wrong, but so many wrongs were dealt to her. Therefore, it was these factors, especially the loss of her father, which caused her to become mad. Ophelia’s madness progresses throughout the play as she comes across more and more unfortunate incidents. She starts off happy with Hamlet by her side, but due to the fact that her life was under so much control by her father she lost him. The occurrences after their breakup were even more unsettling to Ophelia because of the unpleasant way Hamlet treated her. The death of her father is more than she can bare, and she ends up going completely insane. Ophelia’s madness and the events that lead her to it are key parts in the plot in Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet. 2 Good or bad? How would you rate this essay? Help other users to find the good and worthy free term papers and trash the bad ones. Like this term paper?

Vote & Promote so that others can find it Get a Custom Paper on Shakespeare: Hamlet: Free papers will not meet the guidelines of your specific project. If you need a custom essay on Shakespeare: Hamlet: , we can write you a high quality authentic essay. While free essays can be traced by Turnitin (plagiarism detection program), our custom written papers will pass any plagiarism test, guaranteed. Our writing service will save you time and grade. Related essays: Essay about Characters in Hamlet and Ophelia - 1002 Words Characters in Hamlet and Sister Ophelia Essay ...Hamlet is a play by William Shakespeare that displays multiple themes and motifs throughout the text. Some main themes are incest and violence. Incest is a key aspect in the play. Hamlet’s uncle, Claudius, kills his father and then marries his mother to become King of Denmark. Hamlet shows a great sense of concern for Gertrude, his mother about remarrying and her sex life with Claudius, which is shown when he cries to her and rapes her. Laertes also shows...

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1742 Words | 5 Pages Characters in Hamlet and Frightening Ophelia Essay ...Ophelia the Victim In William Shakespeare's Hamlet, the character of Ophelia is being portrayed quite like a victim. This simple, innocent young woman falls victim to many things. She is the victim of Hamlet's harassment, the victim of manipulation by many, the victim of her own flaws of being obedient, indecisive, and weak both mentally and eventually physically. Ophelia is unfortunately not very strong... 1584 Words | 5 Pages Characters in Hamlet and Sister Ophelia Essay ...Hamlet is a play by William Shakespeare that displays multiple themes and motifs throughout the text. Some main themes are incest and violence. Incest is a key aspect in the play. Hamlet’s uncle, Claudius, kills his father and then marries his mother to become King of Denmark. Hamlet shows a great sense of concern for Gertrude, his mother about remarrying and her sex life with Claudius, which is shown when he cries to her and rapes her....

1534 Words | 4 Pages Hamlet a Modern Character Reading ...The character of Ophelia from Hamlet has been interpreted in widely different ways: from virginal, pathetically innocent victim to a spirited, sexually experienced lady. Modern audiences can see this character as closer to the latter possibility, but it is nevertheless clear that she is a loyal and obedient to her family, almost to the point of subservience. The first time Ophelia speaks and is spoken of in the play, it... 852 Words | 3 Pages Ophelia Opheliaï¿½s Realization, Madness, and Tragedy Shawna Maki Hamlet is a revenge tragedy which focuses primarily on Hamletï¿½s desire and attempt to avenge his fatherï¿½s death. Part of the tragedy of Hamlet revolves around the character Ophelia and his relationship with her. Usually, critics regard the tragedy of this subplot to stem from Hamletï¿½s loss of love. Elaine Showalter notes that Ophelia is only present in 5 of the 20 scenes in the play and that very little is known about her background.

Another scholar, Lee Edwards, adds that ï¿½We can imagine Hamletï¿½s story without Ophelia, but Ophelia literally has no story without Hamletï¿½ (qtd. in Showalter 283). Despite her relative absence, Ophelia still holds much of the readersï¿½ and play goersï¿½ attention. Perhaps she gains so much attention because her character and her circumstances are so tragic. As Annette Wyandotte observes, ï¿½One could argue that Opheliaï¿½s death is the true tragedy of Hamlet.ï¿½ Opheliaï¿½s life certainly seems tragic based on Aristotleï¿½s definition of tragedy. She experiences the reversal of fortune, but in order for her death to be truly tragic, she must experience anagnorisisï¿½a realization of her powerlessness without the men in her life. In her madness, Ophelia eventually does make this realization and because of her lack of alternatives, she accepts death. Even with only five appearances in the play, the text provides enough support that the audience can come to understand something about Ophelia and her own tragedy.

Ophelia has limited options as a woman in a patriarchal society and this is what separates her from Hamlet, who has the freedom to change his own fate. Ophelia needs to be obedient and is not allowed to express herself and her true feelings. What happens in her life is determined by the whims of the men who control her. She is obedient to her father and brother and also to the king, and although she tries to do what is right, she is often pulled along by these men. Unlike Hamlet, who can act according to his own will and speak his mind as he wants, Ophelia must find an alternative to express herself. The only out that she sees is in madness and eventually death. As a mad woman, Ophelia would not be bound by the societal restrictions of women; she could voice herself; however, even in madness she is not free. Even though she is able to have a voice, she still has no freedom of choice and she is ultimately regarded as nonsensical and her words are taken to be simply mad-talk. Whereas Hamlet has the power and potential to change his fate, Ophelia does not and her death is tragic because the only escape she sees from her oppression is madness and death.

Thus, her limited options in a patriarchal society and her realization of those limitations are what make Ophelia's death the true tragedy of Hamlet. As a woman in a society dominated by men, Ophelia has few choices in life. While unmarried she would have to obey her father and once married she would have to obey her husband. It is clear from the text that Ophelia is a proper woman for her time. She obediently does as her father tells her without complaint. Even if she does not want to comply with the rules, when her father gave the order, she obeyed. Her real attitude is clear when she has a conversation about chastity, first with Laertes, her brother, then with Polonius, her father. After Laertes rather explicitly warns Ophelia to fear losing her virginity, she replies by telling him not to lecture her, ï¿½Whiles, a puffed and reckless libertine, / Himself the primrose path of dalliance treads, / And recks not his own redeï¿½ (1.3.48-50).

She is able to rebuke her brother to some extent, but when her father gives her the same lecture and tells her not to accept Hamletï¿½s advances, she simply replies, ï¿½I shall obey, my lordï¿½ (1.3.135). This early scene in the play sets up Opheliaï¿½s frame of mind. Although Ophelia wants to believe Hamlet is true to her and ï¿½Hath given countenance to his speechï¿½ / With almost all the holy vows of heavenï¿½ (1.3.112-13), her fatherï¿½s word is law and what he says she must follow, for ï¿½if she refuses Polonius, she risks social ostracism and grave insult to the man who capriciously controls her futureï¿½ (Campbell 58). Essentially, Ophelia was the property of her father.

Mary Floyd-Wilson explains that ï¿½Poloniusï¿½ application of economic terms to Hamletï¿½s overtures transforms Ophelia into a commodityï¿½The issue of Opheliaï¿½s chastity concerns Polonius as a parent and a politicianï¿½a virginal Ophelia has a better chance of attainting Hamletï¿½s hand in marriageï¿½ (401). As such, Opheliaï¿½s feelings and desires are suppressed by her inability to freely voice herself in a strict patriarchal society that views her as a sexual object for trade. Although Opheliaï¿½s complacency seems extreme, during the Renaissance, she would have been diagnosed with hysteria. Women of Opheliaï¿½s time had little autonomy and their lives were reduced to the will of their father or husband. In an essay exploring madness and suicide in literature, Erin Campbell explains that ï¿½Ophelia suffers from hysteria, a malady often ascribed to upper class women who bide their time in their fathers' homes while awaiting fulfillment of their culturally mandated roles as wives and mothersï¿½ (53).

Hysteria was a common diagnosis for women during the Renaissance. It was believed that women became hysteric because of the movement of their wombs within their bodies. Common symptoms included ï¿½choking and muteness.ï¿½ Opheliaï¿½s muteness, or inability to speak her mind, stems from her repressed desires and wandering womb. According to Jordon, physicians would have diagnosed marriage as the cure for this malady because it was believed that the womb wandered as a result of ï¿½the cessation of menstruation, due to sexual inactivity. Renaissance physicians believe menstrual fluid is a by-product of sexual intercourse and that lack of sex causes the body to retain rather than release such bloodï¿½ (qtd. in Campbell 54). This would suggest that Ophelia has not had a sexual relationship with Hamlet; although even if she wanted to, she would not be allowed because her father has forbid her from seeking a relationship with Hamlet. Thus, if Ophelia is suffering from a form of hysteria, she has little she can do to solve it.

Marriage to the man she loves is not an option because she must obey her father whoï¿½s ï¿½prerogative [is] to arrange his daughterï¿½s marriageï¿½ and to protect ï¿½her reputation and that of her houseï¿½ (Kincaid 104). The patriarchal society that Ophelia lives in associates hysteria with women in order to control them and prevent them from expressing sexual desires. Although men could also be diagnosed with hysteria, it was generally recognized as a condition that affects women. Men considered madness and hysteria to be womenï¿½s diseases and used them to maintain patriarchal authority over women, who needed to be protected from their own desires. Carol Thomas Neely proposes that "[t]he context of [Ophelia's] disease, like that of hysteria later, is sexual frustration, social helplessness, and enforced control of women's bodies" (qtd. in Campbell 54). Ophelia wants to be able to express herself and her desires, but the patriarchal authority does not allow her to. Because of her obedience, Ophelia is easily manipulated and used by the men in her life.

At one point, Hamlet pursues her as a lover. After plotting his revenge, he attempts to use Ophelia in order to maintain an image of madness. Knowing that Ophelia will report to her father, Hamlet appears to her in a dismal state. He goes to her private room ï¿½with a look so piteous in purport / As if he had been loosed out of hell / To speak of horrorsï¿½ (2.1.80-82). Ophelia, frightened by the ordeal, tells her father. When Polonius hears this he immediately devises a plan of his own. As Cameron Hunt observes, ï¿½Polonius [is] more active than reactive, and his manipulation of Ophelia in order to investigate Hamletï¿½s madness serves a strategic purpose as he vies for favor with the King and Queenï¿½ (14). He sees potential gain for himself if he reveals the cause of Hamletï¿½s madness to the King.

He says ï¿½This must be known, which, being kept close, might move / More grief to hide than hate to utter loveï¿½ (2.1.116-17). Before this point, it may have been dangerous for Polonius to suggest that Hamlet loves Ophelia because of her lower social status. Now, Polonius has the opportunity to reveal the affections in hope that the King will favor him or allow the relationship which would also benefit him. Again, Ophelia displays her deference towards her father who does not once ask her how she feels about the situation. Eventually her need to obey forces her to choose between her father and Hamlet. Because she is unmarried, she chooses to obey her father, as a good daughter should. After all, as Arthur Kincaid explains, ï¿½The fatherï¿½s position in the household was that of a ruler. He was expected to be strictï¿½ (105). In addition, Claudius, the King himself, has requested that Ophelia play her part. Thus, even if Ophelia wanted to object, she could not.

Claudius and Polonius set Ophelia up to test Hamlet while they watch in secret; ï¿½Polonius [and Claudius] snoop behind the arras, and she becomes the bait to catch the conscience of the Princeï¿½ (Hunt 15). Some scholars argue that Hamlet overhears this plot to use Ophelia to get to him. For this interpretation, certain stage directions must be givenï¿½Hamlet must enter the stage before he gives his ï¿½To beï¿½ speech. Unlike other scenes where characters overhear other speeches, this scene does not make it clear whether or not Hamlet has overheard the Kingï¿½s plan. According to Kincaid, ï¿½the device of overhearing or overseeing seems to be one of Shakespeareï¿½s favorite tricks, and the techniques he uses to convey it are invariably clear to the audienceï¿½ (100) and that the characters usually let on that they have overheard a conversation by ï¿½asides commenting directly on what they sayï¿½ (99).

Because of this uncertainty, it is difficult to say if Hamletï¿½s harsh speech towards Ophelia is because he knows about the plot to use her against him. Whether or not Hamlet overhears the plan, one question he asks suggests that he feels Opheliaï¿½s loyalty lies with her father; he asks ï¿½Whereï¿½s your father?ï¿½ to which Ophelia replies ï¿½At home, my lordï¿½ (3.1.130-131). Hamletï¿½s response may indicate that he knows better; ï¿½Let the doors be shut upon him that he may play the fool nowhere but inï¿½s own houseï¿½ (3.1.132). Hamlet knows that Polonius is the meddling sort and even if he doesnï¿½t realize Polonius is there at the moment, he understands that he could be plotting something. Hamlet then rejects Ophelia for choosing her father and the King over himself. In this case, Ophelia was obedient as she should be, but she is punished for it.

Another interpretation of Hamletï¿½s attitude toward Ophelia is that his disgust is with his motherï¿½s sexuality and he projects his feelings of Gertrude onto Ophelia. Women had strict codes of conduct they needed to follow and during the time, ï¿½influenced by religious literature, the attitude taken by most writers of deportment manuals reflect the theologiansï¿½ traditional dislike and distrust of womenï¿½ (Kincaid 103). One of the most famous manuals on womenï¿½s conduct, written by a churchman named Luis Vives, explains that ï¿½Woman is a frayle thinge, and of weake discretion, and that may lightly be deceyued, which thing our fyrste mother Eve showethï¿½ (qtd. in Kincaid 103). Hamlet as the text indicates, was well-read and was probably influenced by the general attitude regarding women of the time. Although there is no indication that Ophelia has broken the codes, Hamlet clearly feels his mother has.

He says of Gertrude and her hasty marriage: ï¿½Tis an unweeded garden That grows to seed; things rank and gross in nature Possess it merely.that it should come thus, But two months deadï¿½nay, not so much, not two! ï¿½ Let me not think onï¿½t. Frailty, thy name is woman! (1.2.135-138, 146). Hamlet takes out his frustration regarding his mother on Ophelia. He chastises her for her faults as a woman, even though up to this point, Ophelia has shown the proper traits of a good woman. In his speech, Hamlet also suggests the one possibility in life for all women; the nunnery. It is not made clear whether or not Ophelia has lost her virginity to Hamlet, but either way, Hamlet sees this as her only option. He says ï¿½If thou dost marry, Iï¿½ll give thee this plague for thy dowry: be thou as chaste as ice, as pure as snow, thou shalt not escape calumny.

Get thee to a nunneryï¿½ (3.1.135-37). Even if Ophelia remains pure and chaste, she cannot escape her fate as a woman. She is restricted by the moral codes of the day and is disdained because of the general attitudes which labeled women as distrustful. At this point in the play, Ophelia begins to realize that she cannot always simply trust the men in her life. After Hamlet leaves, she exclaims, ï¿½Oh, woe is me, / Tï¿½have seen what I have seen, see what I seeï¿½ (3.1.159-60). In this remark she reveals that her eyes have been opened. Mark Taylor explores the possible meaning of this line and explains that it could refer to any number of understandings. One possible interpretation is that ï¿½The present perfect tenseï¿½recalls the good old days of their romance before the death of Hamlet's father and then the interference of Polonius, and the present tense announces the broken affair we see in the play along with Hamlet's great mental perturbationsï¿½ (Taylor 5).

Before her very eyes she sees the fall of a noble and model man. She trusted Hamletï¿½s word and naively let him pull her along. Hamlet tells her that he did not love her, to which she replies ï¿½I was the more deceivedï¿½ (3.1.121). Another possibility, one that makes Ophelia seem more sympathetic towards Hamlet, is that ï¿½What she has seen and what she sees have both caused her woeful stateï¿½the former because of the way Hamlet treated her, the latter because of her knowledge of her own involvement, however passive, perhaps even unwilling, in the act of spyingï¿½ (Taylor 6). In this case, Ophelia actually understands her part in the plot and her guilt shows that she wishes she had not been a part of it. She sees the consequences of her blind obedience to her father. She has lost some of her naivety; however, she does not yet realize the extent to which she is dependent upon the men in her life. Even after losing Hamlet, she is able to get along fairly well during the play scene despite his rude comments to her.

He again attacks her in regards to her sexuality and asks ï¿½Lady, shall I lie in your lap?ï¿½ (3.2.105) and follows with suggestive assertions as to what lies between a ladies legsï¿½ï¿½nothing.ï¿½ Showalter explains that in the Elizabethan Era, ï¿½nothingï¿½ was a slang term for the female genitalia (284). During this scene, Ophelia is reminded once again about how she is viewed as a woman in society. She sees that often times, as is this case with Hamlet, women are viewed and valued mainly for what their bodies offer. It is not until she loses her father that Ophelia is finally able to realize how dependent she is on men and how helpless she is without them. Even after her realization of powerlessness, Ophelia maintains composure, but losing her father causes her to crack. At this time, the characters believe that Ophelia has descended into madness.

The Gentleman tells the Queen that: She speaks much of her father, says she hears Thereï¿½s tricks Iï¿½the world, and hems, and beats her heart, Spurns enviously at straws, speaks things in doubt That carry but half sense. Her speech is is nothing. (4.5.4-7) Although the Gentleman says ï¿½her speech is nothing,ï¿½ he also suggests that her speech has meaning. He notes that ï¿½She speaks much of her fatherï¿½ which shows that he was a major influence on her life. Without him, she has trouble making sense of the world, but she is also more aware of what is going on around her. She notices the deceit, feels the troubles of life, and is offended by the trivial things in life she didnï¿½t notice before. Her fatherï¿½s death causes her to see her true station in life, her naivety, and her dependence on men to tell her what to do. Because the other characters believe she is mad, Ophelia is able to express herself and break the strict social conventions that she is bound by as a woman.

When Ophelia starts singing songs and wandering about dreamily, the other characters assume that she is suffering from ï¿½the extremity of her emotions, which in such a frail person led to melancholy and eventual breakdownï¿½ (Teker 114). She is able to speak her mind because she is believed to be mad. Her first speech with the Queen is a shift from her usual, pure, demure attitude, to a more bawdy and sarcastic attitude. As Campbell observes, Ophelia, in her madness, moves outside of time and ï¿½by publicly alluding to sexual experience, Ophelia reveals a deeper understanding of worldly issues than an aristocratic virgin should ever admit, rejecting the essentialized female codes her father dictated to her and blurring the demarcations between innocence and subversionï¿½ (58). While her speech pattern is different from before, it is not random. She tells about the bakerï¿½s daughter who was turned into an owl for not giving bread to a beggar, who was Jesus in disguise. She then says, ï¿½They say the owl was a bakerï¿½s daughter.

Lord, we know what we are, but know not what we may be. God be at your tableï¿½ (4.5.42-44). This may be a question about identity. Ophelia understands what she is and what her role is, but she does not understand her options, what she may be. It may also reflect her recent understanding that people cannot be judged by appearances or station alone. For example, while Hamlet appeared to be noble of character, he ultimately rejected her and lied to her. Her next songs may also reflect her disappointment with Hamlet. These songs are about the loss of virginity. In one song, the man, ï¿½Let in the maid, that out a maid / Never departed moreï¿½ (4.5.54-55). The woman in the next song says, ï¿½Before you tumbled me, / You promised me to wedï¿½ (4.5.62-63). These songs may indicate how Ophelia feels like she was treated by Hamlet. If she lost her virginity to him, she knows that she has lost her value. Maintaining her chastity was something her father taught her to value.

Her songs reflect the fear that was instilled in her by her father and brother regarding losing her virginity. They also reflect her fear of shaming herself and her family. Ophelia was expected to remain virginal until marriage, and was expected to do as her father ordered. She may have wanted to express her feelings to Hamlet and felt he was genuine, but everything falls apart as her father and brother told her it would. Even after death it is possible that her father still greatly influences her thoughts and the lessons he taught her are still heavy on her mind. In her final speech, where she hands out flowers to the people in the court, Ophelia shows that she finally understands the people around her. Each flower has meaning and if given to the right person, this scene shows that Ophelia is too aware to be truly mad. Laertes even makes the comment, ï¿½This nothingï¿½s more than matterï¿½ (4.5.169); that her speech seems like nothing, but it is actually quite moving and revealing. Rosemary, for remembrance, may be intended for King Hamletï¿½they should not forget about his death.

They may also be intended for Laertes, as he is the last to speak before Ophelia. Flowers, during the Renaissance, were often used in the context of funerals, thus Laertes may need to remember his father (Persoon 70). Pansies, for thought, may be given to Hamlet because he is a thinker, not an actor. Also, James Persoon explains that ï¿½Pansies are the same flower that elsewhere in Shakespeare are known as love-in-idelness, called that by maidens because they are ï¿½purple with loveï¿½s woundï¿½ (Midsummer Nightï¿½s Dream.2.1.167-168). Not only are the flowers ï¿½woundedï¿½ purple; maidens like Ophelia are also bruisedï¿½ (70). It is also possible that the rosemary and pansies suggest sexuality.

These flowers were used as ï¿½abortifacients in folk medicine or as inducers of menstruation [and] suggest the mostly unspoken sexual nature of the relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia and highlight the many images of sex and pregnancy in Opheliaï¿½s bawdy song fragmentsï¿½ (Persoon 70). Thus, these flowers could be another indication of Ophelia expressing sexual desires in spite of the repressive society. As she continues to give out flowers she shows her understanding of people and of herself. Rue, for repentance, can be given to the Queen and to herself. She says ï¿½you may wear your rue with a differenceï¿½ (4.5.176-77), suggesting that they have different reasons to be repentant. Ophelia may feel that she has failed her duties as a woman and so has the Queen by forgetting her husband or remarrying too quickly.

Ophelia probably remembers her fatherï¿½s advice to ï¿½Tender yourself more dearly, / Orï¿½not to crack the wind of poor phrase, / Wronging it thusï¿½youï¿½ll tender me a foolï¿½ (1.3.106-8). If her earlier flowers suggested sexuality, then Ophelia knows she has shamed her family and self and needs to repent. The daisy, for dissemblance, may be given to the King, who, after the play scene, shows that he may be hiding something. She says that violets, for faithfulness, withered when her father died. She still loves her father and believes he did what was best for her. Although the text does not make it clear who Ophelia gives each flower to, it still shows that she has some awareness that each flower symbolizes something. If she were truly mad she would not be able to understand the deeper meaning of giving someone these flowers. Opheliaï¿½s final song before her death shows that she is conscious of what death means and that she feels the people around her may all have reason to repent.

She sings: And will ï¿½a not come again? No, no, he is dead, Go to thy deathbed, He never will come again. ï¿½ God haï¿½ mercy on his soul And of all Christiansï¿½ souls. God be wiï¿½you (4.5.184-93). Ophelia knows that death is the place ï¿½from whose bourn / no traveler returnsï¿½ (3.1.80-81). Her father is gone forever; he will never be there to guide her and she will always feel guilty for letting him down. Also, asks God to have mercy on all souls, perhaps showing that she sees corruption everywhere and that everyone needs Godï¿½s mercy. Although Ophelia is free to speak in her madness, she is still not able to change her fate. Because the other characters believe she is mad, they do not chastise her for her speech, but they also do not take her seriously.

Although Laertes initially claimed Opheliaï¿½s flower speech had meaning, after she finishes he remarks, ï¿½Thought and afflictions, passions, hell itself / She turns to favor and to prettinessï¿½ (4.5.181-82). Even in madness, Ophelia is a feminine object, she is pretty and pitiable. Even though Opheliaï¿½s speeches are deeply revealing about herself and the society that surrounds her, everyone is able to ignore her truths because they can simply claim she is mad and that there is ï¿½nothingï¿½ in her speech. The evils of which she speaks are made pretty because she is a woman and in madness she is almost adored even more.

Many critics have also felt this way; for example, William Hazzlitt states that Ophelia is "a character almost too exquisitely touching to be dwelt upon" and called her "a flower too soon fadedï¿½ and another critic, Strachey, adds that "in the study of Ophelia's character [ï¿½] there [was] more to be felt than to be said [...] because she [was] a creation of such perfectly feminine proportions and beauty" (qtd. in Teker 113). Thus, Ophelia is nothing more than a beautiful, mad maiden who the characters pity, but do not take seriously. Ophelia understands that it is her madness that allows her to freely express herself, and she also realizes that she has few options left for herself. Her father is dead, Hamlet has rejected her, and her brother is preoccupied with revenge. She has no one to turn to and everyone believes she is mad. Although Ophelia may not have actively sought out her death, when she accidently falls into the water, she accepts it.

Gertrude explains that Ophelia fell into the water, at ï¿½Which time she chanted snatches of old lauds, / As on incapable of her own distressï¿½ (5.1.176-77). Even though she is not capable of making a choice of whether or not save herself, she is at peace. She accepts the fact that she is unable to act without someone to tell her what to do. Some critics have argued that Ophelia did not kill herself; she was killed by Gertrude. Scholars assert that Gertrude knew the details too well and left too many questions unanswered, such as why she did not try to save Ophelia (Loberg 59). With no clear answer to these questions, many have argued that Gertrude killed Ophelia; however, the queenï¿½s failure to save her may have resulted from her realization of Opheliaï¿½s tragedy. Gertrude and Ophelia had many similar dilemmas regarding their sexuality and their ability to express it.

Gertrudeï¿½s witnessing of Opheliaï¿½s death may show that she understands what Ophelia has gone through and knows the realities of their patriarchal society. The queen does not help, because like Ophelia, she knows that there is no other escape; she is free in madness, but still has no autonomy or power. One explanation for Opheliaï¿½s suicide is that she overheard Hamletï¿½s ï¿½To beï¿½ speech, and was then able to contemplate the subject of life and death herself. In her essay exploring Opheliaï¿½s madness and death, Magda Romanska remarks, ï¿½With Ophelia absent from ï¿½to be or not to be,ï¿½ her madness and subsequent death comes somewhat randomly and inexplicably.

We are prone to assume, following Claudiusï¿½ oversimplification, that ï¿½itï¿½s the poison of deep griefï¿½ over the death of her father that pushes her over the edgeï¿½ and ï¿½She becomes a character whose thinking we cannot follow: an empty space of inexplicable and irrational drives prompted by a somewhat unfounded emotional breakdownï¿½ (492-93). Opheliaï¿½s earlier speeches indicate that her grief extends beyond the loss of her father. Also, it seems possible that Ophelia could have overheard Hamletï¿½s speech. As Romanska observes, the stage directions of the different versions of the play do not have Ophelia exit the stage. In the Second Quarto direction reads, ï¿½Enter Hamlet. [Ophelia pretends to read.].ï¿½ As she pretends to read, she could be listening to Hamletï¿½s speech. Hearing the speech ï¿½gives an intellectual dimension and existential awareness to her character.

By listening to Hamlet, she does participate in manï¿½s, or rather, the human existential tragedy and commits a very conscious act of ending her own life as an alternative to the philosopherï¿½s heaviest questionï¿½ (493). Ophelia may have become conscious of some of the evils of the world as she listened to Hamletï¿½s speech and after seeing his conduct and losing her father, she understands ï¿½The heartache and the thousand natural shocks/ that flesh is heir toï¿½ (3.1.63-4). Ophelia, then chooses for the peaceful death Hamlet describes, ï¿½To die, to sleepï¿½/ No moreï¿½ (3.1.61-2). Because of the restrictions on women by society, Ophelia is limited in the actions she can take to change her situation. Without a man to attach herself to she has no power and no word. She can choose to live a powerless, essentially ï¿½deadï¿½ existence, or to actually die and be free from the will of society.

She tried to do what was expected of her; she obeyed her father despite her own feelings and desires, but she ultimately suffered for it. She loved Hamlet, but she could not be with him because her father would not allow it. Hamlet rejects Ophelia either because she chooses her father over him or because of his perceived view of her sexuality. In a world dominated by men, Ophelia has little influence or power. She cannot express herself except in madness, and even then she is still a feminine object. Opheliaï¿½s death is tragic because she is not allowed to take control of her own fate. Hamlet has the means to set his life straightï¿½he is a man and furthermore, he is a prince. He spends his time contemplating whether or not to act, but Ophelia does not even have the choice to act, which is why her character is more tragic than Hamletï¿½s. She starts well off, loved by her family and by Hamlet, and then she loses everyone. Her brother leaves, Hamlet abandons her, and her father is killed. Throughout her life she has been pulled along by men and the expectations of society.

Unlike Hamlet, she is unable to change her fate even after she realizes what is happening to her. This realization and powerlessness to fix her life are what make Opheliaï¿½s death the true tragedy of Hamlet. Works Cited Campbell, Erin E. "Sad Generations Seeking Water": The Social Construction Of Madness In O(Phelia) And Q(Uentin Compson)." Faulkner Journal 20.1/2 (2004): 53-70. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 Dec. 2012. Floyd-Wilson, Mary. "Ophelia And Femininity In The Eighteenth Century: `Dangerous Conjectures In Ill-Breeding Minds'." Women's Studies 21.4 (1992): 397. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 Dec. 2012. Hunt, Cameron. "Jephthah's Daughter's Daughter: Ophelia." Anq 22.4 (2009): 13-16. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 Dec. 2012. Kincaid, Arthur Noel.

"Hamlet's Cue For Passion In The Nunnery Scene." Shakespeare Studies 10.(1977): 99. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 Dec. 2012. Loberg, Harmonie. "Queen Gertrude: Monarch, Mother, Murderer." Atenea 24.1 (2004): 59-71. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 Dec. 2012. Persoon, James. "Shakespeare's Hamlet." Explicator 55.2 (1997): 70. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 Dec. 2012. Romanska, Magda. "Ontology And Eroticism: Two Bodies Of Ophelia." Women's Studies 34.6 (2005): 485-513. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 Dec. 2012. Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. New York: WW Norton &, 1011. Print. Showalter, Elaine.

ï¿½Representing Ophelia: Women, Madness, and the Responsibilities of Feminist Criticism.ï¿½ Hamlet. 281-297. Print. Taylor, Mark. "Shakespeare's HAMLET." Explicator 65.1 (2006): 4-7. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 Dec. 2012. Teker, Gulsen Sayin. "Empowered By Madness: Ophelia In The Films Of Kozintsev, Zeffirelli, And Branagh." Literature Film Quarterly 34.2 (2006): 113-119. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 Dec. 2012.

Question: In which Shakespeare play would you find the character Ophelia?
Answer: Hamlet