Ophelia Character AnalysisEven as a minor record in the play sm accomplishly town, the typesetters case Ophelia plays a bouncy part in the develop handst of two the piece and thematic ideas. However, Ophelia is an passing perplex face as she can be read in many different ways. This in establish ca designs the readers or auditory modality to be more(prenominal)(prenominal) insightful and gain a great deriveing of the plan and thematic ideas in the play such as ?Love and Loyalty,? and ?Madness.? When exploring the character of Ophelia we must take into know personal beliefs, knowledge and external criticisms which may affect our course session of the character. For example, if the reader analyses Ophelia?s character from the perspective of feminism, concerned with the equalise rights and fair interposition of women, or historical context, an sense of what it was equal in the period of term of m the play was both scripted and set; their views of the chara cter impart differ, which then provokes the reader to start a more in depth infering of the plot of ground and papers. Ophelia is present in only a few scenes of the play. This is repay fitting to the fact that when the play was indite in the Elizabethan period fair sexlys were considered to be very ? reclusive? sort of people. There muse was to stay home, look aft(prenominal) the family and complete the housework. They were non allowed to transact and and so there argon very few junior-bearing(prenominal) characters in Shakespeare?s plays. If a play did be of female characters they were generally played by young boys, which effectively ca employ restrictions and limitations amongst characterisation. development feminism draw ins it possible to recall that Ophelia is non to pose as a main character of the play, moreover to act as a ?foil,? to champion the interview agnize the more grievous characters in the play. small town?s alienation and Ophelia?s f eelings of love for both junction and her ! set about are prime examples of the use of Ophelia as a foil. In both instances she is being used to help the audience identify the emotions and discrepancies of juncture and her bugger off. Unfortunately, as Ophelia?s straw man is limited it is believed that her character, although important, is indisposed developed and therefore provides readers with the opportunity to make up their own judgement. Ophelia can be argued as a character that despite her beauty is weak, frail and slowly controlled. Her privation of self confidence makes her an easy target for Hamlet?s abuse. Ophelia has a very connected family with her brother, Laertes, and get down, Polonius, but unfortunately she allows them to recognize her how to live her life. An example of this is where Laertes warns Ophelia against having a relationship with Hamlet:For Hamlet, and the coquetry of his favour,Hold it a fashion and a trifle in blood,A over-embellished in the youth of primy nature,Forward, not permane nt, sweet, not lasting,The perfume and suppliance of a minute,No more. (Act 1: Scene 3 lines 5-10)He suggests to Ophelia that Hamlet may not actually love her, he proficient wants a missy because that is the ?fashionable? thing to do. That is what everyone else his age is doing and therefore it is not square everlasting love. Furthermore, Polonius uses his ?parental power? to move Ophelia that she is a resembling young and doesn?t interpret that her decision to go with Hamlet would be a bad option. He to a fault explains to Ophelia that as they are noble, continuing her relationship with hamlet pass on affect not only her life but alike(predicate) the lives of her family members:Marry, well bethought. ?Tis told me he hath very oft of lateGiven private time to you, and you yourselfHave of your audience been most free and bounteous. If it be so ? as so ?tis prepare on me,And that in way of management ? I must tell youYou do not understand yourself so clearlyAs it behoves my daughter and your honour. What is between you? G! ive me up the truth. (Act 1: Scene 3 lines 90-98)These two bureaus both demonstrate the withalth root of ?Love and Loyalty.? In both instances Ophelia is being warned against her love for Hamlet. She is regurgitate in the situation of having to choose between her love for Hamlet or her fealty to her family. However, as the play continues so does the situation between ?Love and Loyalty,? and we begin to notice that Ophelia lacks an identity of her own. She is strung-out on the men in her life as is unmingled in Act 3: Scene 2 (line 126), where she narrates ?I think nothing, my Lord.? At this point she has been hurt so poorly and is so confused that she doesn?t consider her thoughts to be important. Unfortunately, as time goes on the conflicts continue and Ophelia is forced to choose faithfulness over love causing her to go into a bow of rabidness. Madness is a theme evident throughout the faultless text. It is evident in Hamlet, Ophelia, Polonius and Laertes. When d iscussing Ophelia?s character, her madness is almost ever at the centre of controversy. Some people believe that Ophelia?s madness was caused by ?erotomania,? which the Elizabethans referred to as ?female love-melancholy.? Ophelia has also been come across as a young girl who ?felt? too much and mosthow allowed theses feelings to overcome her. It would be quite unprejudiced-minded for such an natural action to causal agent a person to madness, plainly as Ophelia was drive mad.
If this was the cause of her madness it suggests that it stemmed from some sort of foil erotic passion between herself and Hamlet. However, a more enkindle suggestion is that Ophelia! ?s madness was caused by the death of her father or more importantly, the removal from all the male connections of the hierarchy. Ophelia was hold in a patriarchal dry land where women were extremely dependant on men. Once all the men in Ophelia?s life were gone she could not look at as she relied on them for advice and direction. If this is the case Ophelia then becomes the victim. This type of madness no doubt causes a different reaction by the audience toward the character. Instead of being just some unhappy girl who drove herself insane, Ophelia becomes the ?innocent? woman who loved her father so dearly that someone else has caused her grief and goaded her mad. However, when channelise the perspective of a feminist we begin to see the ?madwoman? as a heroine, a powerful figure that rebels against both the family and favorable order. At first glance Ophelia seems like a sincere character. However, an in depth reading of her character proves otherwise. Although Ophelia c an be argued as a woman who is weak, frail and ultimately driven to madness by the death of her father and her love for Hamlet, an cause of feminism and historical context helps the audience to better understand Ophelia?s complicated character which can have nine-fold readings. However, as a poorly developed character we are able to make our own judgement and hypothesise the plot and thematic ideas. In essence, Ophelia?s character is just like a book in which you ?choose your own ending.? Her character is both limited and incomplete. Therefore, in order to gain an understanding of the plot and the thematic ideas of, ?Love and Loyalty,? and ?Madness,? we must create a complete perception of Ophelia. However, no matter what interpretation you choose, you will exempt come out in the end with a woman represented poorly. Mabillard, Amanda. Shakespeares Ophelia. Shakespeare Online. 10 Dec. 2000. (11 October.2007) < http://www.shakespeare-online.com/opheliachar.htmlHelena Faucit Martin , Shakespeares Female Characters, blackwood and Sons! , Edinburgh, 1888. p.7-9Anna Brownell Murphy Jameson, Shakespeares Heroines:Characteristics of Women (1889), AMS Press, peeled York, 1967. 2000, [On-line]http://www.cliffsnotes.com/WileyCDA/LitNote/Hamlet-Character-Analysis-Ophelia.id-121,pageNum-360.html If you want to get a broad(a) essay, order it on our website:
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