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Examples Of Misogyny In Hamlet

432 Words2 Pages

Jordan Cox
AP English 12, Period 8
Mrs. Schwartz
November 2, 2017
Misogyny in Hamlet During the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, English society had very few places for women. At the time, many women were seen as sexual objects, due to the immense levels of prostitution that plagued many of England’s cities, as well as mentally inferior, due to lack of formal education provided for women. In his play Hamlet, William Shakespeare explores the theme of misogyny heavily, to provide a form of social commentary, through the character of Prince Hamlet. Ultimately, Shakespeare uses language and speech to accentuate the severity of Hamlet’s misogynistic views and beliefs, allowing him to created a play that accentuate the times he lived in. Because he feels …show more content…

In particular, he displays a strong preoccupation with female sexual desire, as he perceives it to be the root of ethical corruption. When Hamlet shouts at Gertrude, “Frailty, thy name is woman!”(1.2.150), he expresses his distaste for her sexual habits, for he believes that is why she married the new king, Claudius. Hamlet not only extends his misogyny and hatred towards his mother, he also applies it to the innocent and confused Ophelia.. Through the uses of his language and speech, Hamlet often implies that he solely views Ophelia as a sexual object and a deceitful and treacherous whore. After encountering Ophelia in the palace of Elsinore, Hamlet tells her to, “ Get to a nunnery…get thee to a nunnery…to a nunnery go

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After Hamlet's dissolution with Ophelia, the main character carries a misogynistic personality towards all women in the play. QUOTE. In this quote, Hamlet accuses Ophelia (and the entire female population) of being a "breeder of sinners" and orders Ophelia to a "nunnery". Of course, this brash attitude stems from Gertrude's decision to remarry not even two months after the death of the King. Hamlet also believes that if Ophelia were to marry, she'd turn her husband into a "monster" (A "cuckold") because she would inevitably cheat on her spouse.

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He grows wary of all around him and nearly goes insane as he begins to question his love, Ophelia, on her true intentions with him. Hamlet asks Ophelia whether she is “honest” and “fair” then explains he had loved her but also tells her, “I loved you not.” Ophelia feels deceived and Hamlet shouts expletives towards her and expresses she should “go to the nunnery,” another term for a

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To a nunnery!" (Act 3, Scene 1, 120), a religious community vowed to chastity, insinuating that she is impure. When Ophelia reminds Hamlet of his history of loving gestures, suggestive of affection, he bluntly retorts that "[he] lov'd [her] not" (Act 3, Scene 1, 118). Additionally, Gertrude, his mother,

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Misogyny, by definition, is the dislike towards women for a particular motive. In William Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet, Shakespeare elucidates his misogynistic tendencies through the characters in the play—particularly Hamlet. The role of women in Hamlet is little short of misogynistic as Hamlet consistently displays throughout the play evidence of misogynistic behavior through his views of women being cruel, adulterous, and frail. Fundamentally, there are merely two female characters in Hamlet; Ophelia and Gertrude. Though Ophelia does not intend on wounding Hamlet emotionally, she does so for being submissive to her father which conforms to the misogynistic attitude of women being powerless and pathetic as Ophelia is under control by

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