Gertrude And Patriarchy In Hamlet

William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet is perhaps one of his most intriguing and scandalous pieces of work. One character who is liable for much of this excitement and outrage is Hamlet’s mother, Queen Gertrude. To some readers and critics, Gertrude is conceived as an erratic, superficial and sensual woman. Others discern the Queen as an earnest, intellectual and sagacious woman whose tragic fault is her yearning for sexual satisfaction. Throughout the text, there are several legitimate arguments for both sides, but in the end, Hamlet seems to sum up the Queen’s true persona with the words “Frailty, thy name is woman”. Evidence of Gertrude’s true nature can be found in many instances through out the play such

In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, there are only two outstanding female characters: Ophelia, Hamlet’s lover, and Gertrude, the Queen of Denmark, and Hamlet’s mother. Both female characters face discrimination in different ways, but they share one commonality in the way they are controlled as the play progresses; both women are treated as manipulable possessions, rather than individual humans with their own sets of needs, wants, and emotions. Ophelia only acts when commanded by a male character, be it her father, brother, or Hamlet himself, her actions none of her own. On the other hand, Gertrude is viewed by is viewed by male characters as a possession to own, and is treated as though her only redeeming quality is her sex. In short, the female characters of Hamlet face heavy objectification, and are treated as possessions

Overall, we can conclude that Gertrude is a complicated character but her most revealed characteristics are self-serving and scheming. Most of the time she doesn’t seem to truly love Hamlet but towards the end of the play we can catch glimpses of her motherly love and instincts coming out. This is apparent especially when talking to Ophelia. She loves the attention that she receives from Claudius. She takes every opportunity she can find to keep that attention fixated upon her. Many times through the play she acts very self-centered and more concerned for herself then for those around her. While we may not know if she was involved with her late husband’s murder we are told that she feels guilty by both the ghost of Old Hamlet as well as herself.

Queen Gertrude is an important character in Hamlet. Her description, significance, change, and contrast to Hamlet are significant aspects of the play which should not be ignored. Through the few lines she has, Queen Gertrude can be seen as a reserved and uncertain character. Gertrude is aware that Hamlet is affected by her marriage to Claudius, as shown when she says, “I doubt it is no other but the main, His father's death and our o'erhasty marriage”(2.2.56-57).

Many stereotypes exist that can support the feminist theory and how it is used in Hamlet, but Shakespeare creates the stereotype of being weak that is given to Gertrude along with the minor role that she takes on throughout the play. Gertrude is the Queen of Denmark and should have more power and respect throughout the play. In the scene where Polonius is slain by Hamlet he begins to aggressively say “Such an act/That blurs the grace and

Hamlet can be viewed through a feminist lens by focusing on Ophelia and Gertrude and how various other male characters treat them. Ophelia and Gertrude are dismissed as characters through the entire play because they are women. Hamlet refers to women as “frailty,” implying that they are weak and are dependent on men. Reason suggests that with out the males, Ophelia and Gertrude would simply have no story.

Like many Shakespeare characters, Gertrude subversively breaks the molds of a woman in the Elizabethan era by having the same amount of ambition and greed as much as any other character, but the difference is she doesn’t have the luxury to outright show it. At the beginning of Hamlet, Claudius reveals that Gertrude and him

All of Hamlet's hatred for women began with his mother, Gertrude, and then it was taken out on the unwary Ophelia. Gertrude, the Queen of Denmark and Hamlet’s mother, is the first female introduced in the play. Even though she is the Queen, her actions are vulgar and linger on the minds on those affected. In the play, Shakespeare had the opportunity to make Gertrude a noble character, but every time Gertrude sees something that causes her distress, she is easily influenced on her decision.

Throughout the play, Hamlet criticizes Gertrude for being a woman, with his most notable insult being “frailty, [Gertrude’s] name is woman!” (I. ii. 150). The. Hamlet belittles Gertrude by blaming her quick marriage to Claudius on her weak nature. Not only is Hamlet betraying Gertrude by speaking down on her, but he is also betraying all women by suggesting that women’s poor decisions result only from their gender’s weakness.

Throughout “Hamlet,” woman’s place within the domestic sphere is carefully established through the relationship, and marriage, of Claudius and Gertrude. Gertrude, from the beginning when she marries Claudius immediately after Ole King Hamlet’s death, seems to need men in order to establish her own sense of self. Despite the fact that Gertrude seems to manage all right on her own, especially when put in a position that involves societal expectation (i.e. when beside Claudius as the Queen), she seems to still be unable to define her own sense of self. For instance, in Act I, Scene II, Gertrude makes a short comment about Hamlet’s travels, stating, “Let not thy mother lose her prayers, Hamlet, I pray thee stay with us, go not to Wittenberg.” While Hamlet also replies curtly, Claudius takes this instance to go into an eight-line speech regarding how “loving and fair” Gertrude’s response to Hamlet was; as if she needed immediate validation. Claudius, in this instance as well as throughout the overarching story-line, seems to jump to the occasion to speak for both himself and Gertrude; asserting himself as the “man in charge.” However, the one thing Gertrude does seem to be able to maintain is her ability to have her own thoughts and control over her own actions. While she does rely on the main male characters,

Linette Martir Ms. Given Honors English 21 December 2017 Queen Gertrude and Ophelia as Servants in a Royal Castle of Males “We need everyone to be a feminist. Feminism is the fight for the equality of sexes, not for the domination of one sex over another” (Vallaud-Belkacem). Literary theories are lenses through which one can see in literature. An example of a literary theory is the feminist theory, which is created to enlighten others on social problem that are ignored or misinterpreted. Feminism existed since the 1500’s but the theory was created in the 1900’s. Due to the creation of the feminist theory, an audience can look through the feminist lens when reading a book or even watching a movie. This allows an audience to detect how women are portrayed or treated. Throughout the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare, Gertrude and Ophelia are unimportant to the plot. They are not only unimportant, they are also mistreated. Examining through the feminist lens in the 16th century, William Shakespeare reveals the way in which women are mistreated by men in Hamlet utilizing Gertrude and Ophelia as victims. With that in mind, the male roles in Hamlet are dominant because women are lower than men. Both Hamlet and Polonius mistreat Gertrude and Ophelia as if it is normal. The reason Shakespeare normalizes their controllable ways, is because during the time period Hamlet takes place mistreating women was not unusual. Since it is normal, Polonius and Hamlet treat the women poorly without realizing they are incorrect. Shakespeare realized this was an issue so he decided to expose the problem through his writing. Ironically, Gertrude is the Queen and the mother of Hamlet, but that does not stop him from having control over her. To explain further, in Gertrude’s bedroom Hamlet disrespects his mother greatly by making her feel guilty for her choices. He believes “...Gertrude is a moral self who must be brought to account for her sins and must work through the same confrontation of guilt as every other member...” (Montgomery 102). As Hamlet’s mother, Gertrude should have power over him and have the strong voice that can stop him. Instead Hamlet controls Gertrude and demands her to do things such as never to “let the bloat King

Hamlet, a tragic play written by Shakespeare in the 1600s, portrays the struggle of young Hamlet in the face of avenging his father’s death. While major themes throughout this tragedy include death, loss, madness, revenge, and morality, another important theme to include in discussion is the theme of womanhood. The only two female characters in a cast of thirty-five include Queen Gertrude and Ophelia, both of whom die unfortunate deaths. The importance of womanhood and female sexuality is shown through several literary techniques; though, most importantly, the characters Queen Gertrude and Ophelia are both symbols for female sexuality. Both characters are developed as negative and positive sides to womanhood through dialogue as other characters approach them, their own actions, and most importantly, their individual deaths.

Queen Gertrude is accredited as/for being a main character in William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Hamlet, King of Denmark even though her character has only 155 lines. Most productions portray Gertrude as a shallow, self-satisfying woman and fail to recognize her as a guilt ridden individual frustrated by her inability to please both her son and husband. While both Kenneth Branagh and Mel Gibson occasionally show Gertrude's desire to please Hamlet and Claudius in their depictions of Hamlet, they mainly portray Gertrude to be a scheming adulteress. Even though Gertrude is an object of lust in the play, Gertrude herself is not lustful, but rather submissive to power and her desire to please both Claudius and Hamlet.

Despite the fact that Gertrude has very little role and few lines in the play still she is central to the action of the play. Prince Hamlet hatred and disgust for her mother as she marries Claudius, is one of the main important reflections of the play. This is because in times of Shakespeare, marrying husband's brother after husband's death was considered as a sin and act of being disloyal with the husband. Secondly, Prince Hamlet also considered Claudius inferior to his father, the late King Hamlet, in all aspects of life.

It is tempting to condemn Gertrude as evil, but it is probably more sensible to consider her as weak and inconstant. Hamlet's heartfelt line "Frailty, thy name is woman" sums up his view of her actions early in the play. Like many of Shakespeare's women characters, she is "sketched in" rather than drawn in detail. We know that she has a deep affection for her son, which is commented on by Claudius in Act 4 "The Queen, his mother, lives almost by his looks." and we may assume that she has not gone to Claudius's bed unwillingly, although there is a lack of evidence that she returns the King's obsession with her.