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Ophelia's Character Analysis

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Another female character portrayed as a “weakling” in Shakespeare’s Hamlet is Ophelia. Ophelia is represented as a character that was typical of women in the 1600s, one who was too submissive and directed by the people around her; sort of a younger reflection of Gertrude. At first, Ophelia 's character seemed much too simplistic- one that is emotionally directed and inconsequential, in a sense. However, when her words are taken apart along with her intentions and state of mind, it appeared that there was a greater sense of understanding, an underlying motive that is well-structured by her words. Unlike Gertrude’s character, Ophelia has her own opinions and standpoints on matters at hand, and possessed a larger capacity for independent thought than the people she …show more content…

It seemed that the opposite may be true, in which Hamlet had his mind set to marry Ophelia. Since during that time, a person of royalty was expected to be betrothed to either someone who was of the nobility or of the royal family in a different land. The relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia (who was of the nobility) was very legitimate, it was unlikely that this relationship would end soon or be based on purely sexual acts. If anything, Hamlet may want to end the relationship with Ophelia for both of their own good, but Laertes points to the fact that Hamlet is under the influence of the royal family. It is unclear how much of Denmark 's populace knew about this relationship, but there were people in Denmark 's nobility who were aware of the situation. If royal advice was to be put in this relationship, it would have been to keep everything on the down low, as there was enough controversy occurring in the kingdom as it is. A typical woman in that time period would have willingly obeyed to these claims, especially in circumstances concerning love. Ophelia, however, didn’t immediately respond in that manner. Ophelia tells her

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