Women in Shakespeare’s Hamlet Essay - 1167 Words

Women in Shakespeare’s Hamlet Hamlet is one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays. In this essay I will look at Hamlets perception of women in general but particularly Gertrude and Ophelia. I will also look at the historical presentation of women, comparing Hamlets time to today and seeing if the symbolic role that the females characters have is related to the period. Also I will look at Hamlets madness, whether it was real or not and also whether women could be the cause of it. Finally I will look at a possible ‘Oedipus complex’ in Hamlet. ‘Hamlet’ as the title suggests is based around the character Hamlet Prince of Denmark. This is why women are often presented the way that Hamlet sees them. Also Hamlet lives in a very enclosed world†¦show more content†¦A good example of this is when Laertes tells Ophelia to stop seeing Hamlet and she replies ‘I shall obey, my lord.’ Because we are led to believe that she is in love with Hamlet, this we be exactly what she do esn’t want. In medieval times when Hamlet was set, women were expected to obey their fathers and brother until they got married and could obey their husbands. This is why Ophelia had little choice but to say this. This is why Ophelia’s madness has such an importance in the play. It gives Ophelia the freedom to say what she could say before, for example giving columbines to Laertes to represent ingratitude’s and infidelity ‘There’s fennel for you and columbines’ Also her loss of innocence finishes with her eventual suicide. At the time suicide was a sin against God and so people who commit suicide weren’t allowed a proper funeral. Ophelia’s innocence is somehow preserved by allowing her a funeral even because of her suicide. We also see how Gertrude is treated by her Claudius and Polonius. The both boss her around and tell her what to do, even Polonius who has no right, by not being related to her. We see this when Polonius tell Gertrude that he is going to hide in her room and listen to her conversation with Hamlet. This backfires on him though as it eventually leads to his murder by Hamlet. Hamlet claims that he is faking madness but at times his madnessShow MoreRelatedHamlet And Ophelia And Women In Shakespeares Hamlet1306 Words   |  6 Pageseyes of God, solidified by the church. Hamlet adored the connection between his mother and late father. However, following his father’s murder, the lack of sympathy from his mother alters his outlook on the institution of marriage. Consequently, this changes how Hamlet views Ophelia and women in general. There once was love between Hamlet and Ophelia, but the union of Claudius and Gertrude shifts the strength of their relationship. 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