Hamlet: Ophelia And Gertrude
Ophelia and Gertrude. Two different women who seem to be trapped in the
same circumstances in relation to Hamlet.
Gertrude, Hamlet's mother and the Queen of Denmark. She is married to
the present King, Claudius, who is suspected by Hamlet to have killed his father,
King Hamlet, who also happens to be Claudius's brother. Gerturde has somehow
ended up in the plot of King Hamlet's death and in the eyes of her son, seems to
be a monster and an aide to an adulterating deed.
Ophelia, the daughter of Polonius who is the King's trusted councilor
and is later killed in the play and he forbids his daughter to see Hamlet
because of the possibility that he beseech her name and her virginity. She ...
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I believe does not
develop but rather stays identical to the scene in which she is introduced(Act I,
scene II). She is shown to be a quiet, "stand by your man" type individual who
is easily influenced.
This is my belief because in the second scene of the play, Hamlet is
shown to be crushed by his mother's hasty remarriage. If marriage within the
family was common in the days of Shakespeare, then this is understandable, but,
in any other case, this would be considered an act of betrayal that was
obviously brought on by some outside pressure, probably from Claudius.
There is, however, a slight change in her personality that is not quite
noticeable. At the end of the play, the King and Laertes(Polonius's son) have
plotted to kill Hamlet for reasons that are irrelevant to my point. One part of
the plot was to have Hamlet drink out of a poisoned cup. It so happens that, in
some confusion, the Queen ends up with the cup in her hand. Even after the
King's warnings not to drink from the ...
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in the attitude toward Gertrude.
The one other time in the play that we see the Queen standing up for
herself or actually giving some sort of argument is when she and Polonius decide
to confront Hamlet on his behavior toward the King. Since the revealing of
Claudius's involvement in Hamlet's father's death, Hamlet has been putting on an
act of madness.
After some very rude gestures on the part of Hamlet, Polonius and the
Queen decide to confront him on his rudeness to the King. Here, the Queen is
very strict and domineering which irritates Hamlet. He threatens her and after
some confusion, Hamlet kills Polonius who is hiding behind the curtain listening
to the conversation.
This ...
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Hamlet: Ophelia And Gertrude. (2005, October 25). Retrieved April 23, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Hamlet-Ophelia-And-Gertrude/35439
"Hamlet: Ophelia And Gertrude." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 25 Oct. 2005. Web. 23 Apr. 2024. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Hamlet-Ophelia-And-Gertrude/35439>
"Hamlet: Ophelia And Gertrude." Essayworld.com. October 25, 2005. Accessed April 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Hamlet-Ophelia-And-Gertrude/35439.
"Hamlet: Ophelia And Gertrude." Essayworld.com. October 25, 2005. Accessed April 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Hamlet-Ophelia-And-Gertrude/35439.
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