How Does Gertrude Present Ophelia's Death

    The Shakespearean tragedy Hamlet features two female characters in main roles, Ophelia and Gertrude. They are similar in a surprising number of ways. This essay proposes to elucidate the reader on their likeness or similarity.

However, it would be erroneous to assume that the nobility cannot discern that Ophelia’s death was suicide altogether. Gertrude’s admission that Ophelia appeared “As one incapable of her own distress/or like a native creature and indued/ Unto that element” (4.7.203-205) reveals her awareness of Ophelia’s despondency. Still, though,

There are a variety of factors that can contribute to one’s demise. In the context of the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare many possibilities can be identified that pertain to Ophelia’s sudden death. Ophelia’s death was triggered by her mental breakdown due to the loss of her father. In the midst of her inner turmoil, her depression worsens as she learns that Hamlet, the man she loves departs to England. When she dies, Gertrude reports her death to Claudius and Laertes. Gertrude, The Queen of Denmark, is responsible for Ophelia’s death. By looking at Gertrude’s over protective relationship with Hamlet, her lack of initiative on the situations around her in a time of tragedy, as well as her vivid account of Ophelia’s death, evidence that

Not only is Ophelia's death marked much less significant than the other male deaths noted in the previously mentioned articles, but Ophelia’s death is articulated as a passive accident, one that happened to occur, to no avail. Every other death in the play is met with vigorous analysis and criticism, unphased by the death of Ophelia, inadvertently caused by men. Ophelia is also described as “mermaid-like” adding to the previously set notion that women are sexual objects- even at death. At this point of the play, Hamlet proclaims in a bipolar and seemingly fraudulent manner that he has always loved Ophelia (although he ordered her to “get thee to a nunnery” and was the root of her abrupt madness and suicide), while Laertes threatens that he loved Ophelia more. The attention and passion are still not recognized and respected with Ophelia even after her death but is used as a game between two men to satisfy their guilt and build their ego, competing for the love of Ophelia that was only disrespected when she was

Since the beginning of the 17th century when William Shakespeare’s Hamlet was first performed by the crew of a ship Red Dragon, the play itself has gone on to become one of the most famous literary tales of all time, creating four centuries’ worth of legacy. Attracting lead actors of all backgrounds, the titular character’s convoluted personality and life has spawned countless variations and interpretations of the play for 400 years. In William Shakespeare’s Act 5 Scene 1 of the play particularly, the scene introduces the gravediggers who argue as to why Ophelia is being buried. Christian theology claims that because she committed suicide, she is to not be given a proper burial. However, Claudius insisted that she deserves one, even if it’s

Body 1 Gertrude appears to be a grieving widow but is actually not all that sad rather she wanted to be with claudius all along. Gertrude seems to not relate to Hamlet’s grief almost as if she is not grieving at all. Gertrude says to Hamlet, “Good Hamlet cast thy nighted colour off, and let thine eye look like a friend on denmark. do not forever with thy vailèd lids seek for thy noble father in the dust.

The painting of Ophelia, by John Everett Millais, displays Ophelia as the main focal point of the piece of art. Ophelia is shown in the center of the art-work surrounded by shades of greenery. She also illustrated wearing a brightly colored dress. In the painting Ophelia's the only article represented with vivid colors, and she is surrounded by radiant flowers. Ophelia is displayed in the core of the painting, lying horizontally, and all around her is the landscape.

The circumstances of Ophelia’s death and burial, although not entirely certain, suggest suicide. The gravediggers introduced at the beginning of act five discuss openly the manner of Ophelia’s death, the First Clown questioning why she is “to be buried in Christian burial that willfully / seeks he own salvation” (5.1.1-2). That he phrases this inquiry in terms of a “pursuit of salvation” suggests the religious implications of suicide, in that the individual, despairing of salvation from God, acts on his own behalf. There is likewise the implication of active pursuit rather than the cultivation of Christian patience and long-suffering. Yet, despite Ophelia’s obvious display of insanity, the Second Clown speculates that “if this had not been / a gentlewoman, she should have been buried out o’ Christian / burial” (5.1.22-24). Seeing the approaching funeral procession, Hamlet observes the “maimed rites,” suggesting in his awareness of the implications of such a subdued funeral ceremony that he is conscious of the ramifications of committing suicide. The amount of speculation on Ophelia’s death and burial in the play, even among lowly gravediggers, points to the growing discussion surrounding suicide that emerged at the beginning of the seventeenth century.

In William Shakespeare's "Hamlet”, Hamlet's character's grief is most directly in response to the death of his father. Grief extends beyond the immediate loss of a parent. It surrounds the broader theme, and breaks down his family and the changes in his life. The death of King Hamlet not only leaves Hamlet without a father but also results in the rapid remarriage of his mother, Queen Gertrude, to his uncle Claudius. This situation adds complexity to Hamlet's grief and contributes to his sense of loss of family unity, existential anguish and betrayal.

The play Hamlet by William Shakespeare, is a heartbreaking tragedy with the observable decline of characters laying out right before the reader's eyes. The most clear and distinct instance of a character decline is Hamlet's lover, Ophelia. Hamlet, on a quest to avenge his father's death by fooling Claudius, the current king and the brother of Uncle of Hamlet, comes up with the idea to make Claudius think he is crazy and incapable of killing Claudius. Ophelia falls into the plan and becomes an unknowing participant of Hamlet's plot. Ophelia in this story is broken-up with, ridiculed, lead on and even insulted all by the man she loved, Hamlet, the son of dead King Hamlet.

‘Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’ continues to engage audiences through its dramatic treatment of the role of women’ through Shakespeare’s characterisation of Gertrude and Ophelia. Within my studies, I had interpreted the tragedy of Hamlet as universal and a critical discussion of women within Elizabethan England, a misogynistic time where man were deemed strong and independent in comparison to women who were deemed to be weak and dependent.

There is more to the deaths of Gertrude and Ophelia other than the fact that the book Hamlet is a tragedy and they were not just killed off by accident;

In William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, Ophelia, Polonius’s innocent child, overwhelmed with grief drowns herself in a brook. Many instances led to her unfortunate death. The first situation was Polonius’s ploy to see if Hamlet was mad because he loved Ophelia or from other causes. Hamlet, continuing to portray himself as a madman, ruthlessly scolds Ophelia. She is confused as to why he’s fanatically yelling at her since they loved each other. As the story nears its conclusion, Hamlet is bitterly criticizing Gertrude, his mother. In the heat of their discussion, Hamlet unsheathes his rapier and fatally wounds Polonius mistaking him as King Claudius. When Ophelia discovers the fate of her father, she is depressed. In conjunction, with Hamlet’s

It is widely believed that “Living life without honor is a tragedy bigger than death itself” and this holds true for Hamlet’s Ophelia. Ophelia’s death symbolizes a life spent passively tolerating Hamlet’s manipulations and the restrictions imposed by those around her, while struggling to maintain the last shred of her dignity. Ophelia’s apathetic reaction to her drowning suggests that she never had control of her own life, as she was expected to comply with the expectations of others. Allowing the water to consume her without a fight alludes to Hamlet’s treatment of Ophelia as merely a device in his personal agenda. Her apparent suicide denotes a desire to take control of her life for once. Ophelia’s death is, arguably, an honorable one,

Hardships and sufferings are common in an average person’s life, but enduring a certain amount can push a person past their limits. At times, one's actions can lead to other people's limits being broken resulting in unexpected consequences. Hamlet by William Shakespeare involves two characters named Ophelia and Gertrude who both suffer from Hamlet's verbal and physical abuse; of the two, Ophelia suffers to a greater extent because of her decision to commit suicide. The cruel insults Hamlet addresses Ophelia with hurts her deeply due to them being false, whereas the harsh words Hamlet uses to describe Gertrude with are mostly true. Ophelia gets traumatized from both Hamlet’s sayings and actions, causing her to suffer an incredible amount. Queen Gertrude, who is the mother of Hamlet, is humiliated with abusive language by her son, which causes a particularly large amount of emotional distress on her since these words are coming from her very own child. First, the two suffer major harm from Hamlet due to his insults that cause them to feel worthless and violated. Gertrude becomes extremely offended by everything Hamlet says to her. Ophelia is greatly saddened, but at the same time she is worried about Hamlet. The death of Ophelia’s father causes the devastated daughter to fall into a state of depression, ultimately ending with the young woman taking her own life. On the other hand, the mother of Hamlet does not suffer from her son's torment as much as Ophelia because her death is the result of an accident, not the outcome of tremendous emotional suffering which Ophelia’s death resulted from. Additionally, Ophelia and Gertrude go through emotional suffering due to Hamlet’s verbal insult.