Hamlet's Frailty, Thy Name Is Woman

Firstly, Shakespeare has used developmental structure to demonstrate how the character of women is not frail. When Hamlet first said, “Frailty, thy name is woman” (Act 1, Scene 2), he reveled his true state of mind. Hamlet’s severe depression after his father’s death and his obsession with his mother’s quick and incestuous marriage to his uncle took the best of him. As a symptom of his depression, Hamlet stated his personal view of his mother’s remarriage onto his view of all women. According to him, because his mother is frail, all women are frail. However, this is faulty logic and demonstrates Hamlet’s frame of mind as unusual. Even though he is melancholy about his father’s death, he is much more bothered about his mother’s remarriage. Therefore,

Do not for ever with thy vailed lids seek for thy noble father in the dust. Thou know’st ‘tis common; all that lives must die, passing through nature to eternity.” (Act 1, II, 68-73). This shows how mentally strong Gertrude is. She did not let her husband’s death affect her or her country. In fact, she is trying to advise poor Hamlet to carry on with life like she did, because it is common knowledge to him that everyone must die one day and it is not correct to mourn over that for so long. The decision that Gertrude made portrays her as a tough person because she does not mourn over old Hamlet’s death and chooses to marry Claudius. By doing this she maintains herself as Queen of Denmark, a position she loved having. Moreover, this in itself is a tactful plan to preserve the throne for Hamlet and maintain the power of Denmark with a smooth transition of leadership especially in times of potential war against Norway. Gertrude, without a doubt, is the center upon which the setup of the entire play revolves. Consequently, she is the driving force behind Hamlet’s choices and offers lots of insights into his