As one incapable of her own distress… To muddy death” (IV, vii, 164-185). Here readers see that truly Ophelia’ madness has quite literally driven her to her death. While it is unknown if her death was an accident or suicide, it is clear to see that if it were not for her delusion, she would have had the ability to be cautious and self aware, thus preventing her drowning. The culminating effects of her father dying and Hamlet’s abandonment have driven Ophelia not only to a delusional state, but to her death.
In Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, Ophelia intentionally kills herself. Ophelia, stricken to her core by the heinous murder of her Father, Polonium, began experiencing hysteria. Spiraling into despair, Ophelia quickly drifted into madness eventually unable to coherently answer questions. In her final hours, Ophelia surrounded herself with the beauty of nature.
He is disappointed to see that Ophelia is displaying irrational behavior when she begins to sing “They bore him barefac’d on the bier; Hey non nonny, nonny, hey nonny; And on his grave rains many a tear.” She is so mentally ill that she must be locked in a padded room during the day. At other times, she is in a straight jacket to prevent her from hurting herself. It seems as if nothing can help her mental madness.
Hamlet could have caused Ophelia emotional agony due to their relationship ending or from killing her beloved father, which leads her to the action of killing Ledford 4 herself. Hamlet seems to be very complex and he may not be as deranged as Shakespeare makes everyone in the play to think he is. When readers think into detail about the way he could have possibly “mentally killed,” Ophelia or directed her to this spot in her life, we realize he is actually quite smart if it is part of his use of violence to seek revenge. Shakespeare constructs Hamlet to be a character that everyone can love and feel sorry for at times because we as readers can relate to him in some aspects.
When Ophelia returns all his letters and gifts he tells her that he has never loved her and that she should “get thyself to a nunnery.” This is one example how his mood changes throughout the play. Then after all this her father, Polinous, is murdered by Hamlet. The Hamlet is sent away to England All of these actions result in her feeling such stress that she becomes insane in the end.
Ophelia goes mad throughout the story. She is overwhelmed by the loss of her father and the rejection of Hamlet. Her character is seen spiraling down a dark path that also ends in death. Ophelia is depicted as not having control over her actions; speaking and acting erratically. While Hamlet is speaking erratically and behaving oddly, he still maintains control over his actions and movement throughout the story.
I believe that Ophelia’s act was that of despair. Ophelia suffered a great deal of emotional trauma throughout the course of the play. The man she loves viciously rejects her before leaving Denmark, which leaves her feeling betrayed and heavy-hearted. Not only this but, Hamlet is believed to have gone insane and was the one who took her father’s life. With all of this going on, her brother and confidant, Laertes is off in England.
Interpretations Of Ophelia In Different Hamlet Film Adaptations Across all different movie interpretations of Hamlet, Ophelia’s character has always been subjected to a tragic fate. Spiraling into madness after the death of her father, Ophelia acts strange--singing and dancing in front of the king, queen, and her brother. While some directors may make different stylistic choices when interpreting the scenes of her madness, each scene helps to effectively portray Ophelia's grief and madness. By comparing the scenes that showcase Ophelia’s madness (Act 4 scene 5) across several different adaptations, the true nature of Ophelia’s character and the different interpretations of Ophelia can be determined. While some interpretations are stronger and
In “Hamlet” William Shakespeare uses the character Ophelia to get to the men around her. She’s portrayed as a weak, trusting woman that tells her father and brother everything. They see her as a virtuous, unsuspecting, loyal daughter. Hamlet sees her differently. He sees her as an object, easily disposable.
When we consider each character at the beginning and end of this play, they were all impacted negatively—some more than others—by their psychological thought processes. Representing femininity, Ophelia was driven to the point of death that was deemed suicide by the
Her displays of madness have become more and more prevalent by now in the book. She speaks in rhymes prances around the castle, and hands out “flowers” that are just weeds. In addition, she sings songs that make you question whether she is all there. She sings “He is dead and gone, lady, He is dead and gone, At his head a green-grass tuft; At his heels a stone” (4.4 30-33). Ophelia’s descent into madness is a gradual but sure
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.
Saying this, Hamlet’s behavior towards Ophelia is crude, rough, and full of anger. Despite Hamlet’s harsh treatment towards Ophelia, he really did love her, but because she was not his main focus, the
She later states that “Late Augustan stereotypes of female love-melancholy were sentimentalized versions which minimized the force of female sexuality, and made female insanity a pretty stimulant to male sensibility,” (Showalter 288). This idea further emphasizes the belief that Ophelia’s madness was purely the result of “female love-melancholy” originating from her sexual indiscretions with
At the beginning of the play, Ophelia didn’t have the strongest mind in the room, but she certainly wasn’t broken as she was towards the end of the tragedy. There were certainly clues of Ophelia’s downfall, as she was easily broken and constantly used as a political tool instead of being treated as a human being. Shakespeare has the reader notice this, which makes them uneasy from the start about Ophelia’s character. There are constant moving parts in this play, most of which have the consequence of being negative to Ophelia. The suspense in the play builds regarding Ophelia’s character when Hamlet admits that he never loved her, making the reader worry about the girl since it was cruel and Ophelia truly loves Hamlet.
