Gertrude and Ophelia

When problems with Ophilia and Hamlet arise, Claudius simply sees this as another opportunity to quiet Hamlet. He encourages the relationship, hoping if Hamlet is seeing Polonius? daughter, he wont speak out about his suspicions of Claudius. Although, when Gertrude gets word of these news, she sees this as a completely different opportunity. She, unlike her new husband, encourages the relationship in hopes that it will cheer up her son and he will return to normal. She says to Ophilia, ?And for your part, Ophelia, I do wish that your good beauties be the happy cause of Hamlet's wildness. So shall I hope your virtues will bring him to his wonted way again, to both your honors? (Shakespeare 3.1.136). Gertrude only thinks of her sons well being. In which case, if she had been involved in King Hamlets murder, she would probably be more worried about not being caught instead of how to make Hamlet happy again.

People have mostly seen women inferior to men because women have been thought of as simple-minded and could not take care of themselves. Shakespeare’s Hamlet shows how men treated and thought of women during the 1500s. There was an order most did not interfere with; however, some did. In the 1500s, women were supposed to conform to men’s wishes. Throughout the play, Ophelia first obeyed her father and brother’s wishes, ignored the social norms later, and then went mad, which caused her to never gain her own identity.

Throughout Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet” women are used as method for men to get what they want. The men in Hamlet, either directly or indirectly continuously use women to acquire something from other men. The only two women in the entire play are Gertrude and Ophelia, who are consistently used by the current king, Claudius, Polonius, and Hamlet. Ophelia is exploited by Polonius and the King (mainly together), and is also used by Hamlet. Gertrude is used by the King, as well as Polonius. In “Hamlet,” the women throughout the play are used as pawns for men to get what they want, mainly from the other men.

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.

Describing Gertrude and women in general, Hamlet exclaims, “Let me not think on 't; frailty, thy name is woman” (1.2.146). Gertrude’s role in Hamlet is to show how women represent ‘frailty’, which means weak. Gertrude is susceptible to lustful desires, which is proven by her hasty marriage to Claudius. Hamlet recognizes his mother’s vulnerability to manipulation by Claudius’s charm and it skews his view of all women in general, ultimately tainting Hamlet’s view of women. His new distorted view of women makes him reject Ophelia’s affections and makes her a target of his rage and sadness during his episode of feigned madness. Later in the play, Hamlet confronts Gertrude in her room. In a fit of rage he speaks rudely to her and reminds her about her incestuous marriage all in one scene. Overcome with emotions and visions of reality, Gertrude blurts out, “O Hamlet, speak no more! Thou turn 'st mine eyes into my very soul, and there I see such black and grained spots, as will not leave their tinct” (3.4.88–91). Gertrude plays another crucial role in the play, which is constantly bringing the reality of situations to light. In “The Character of Hamlet’s Mother”, the author acknowledges this trait that Gertrude exhibits at multiple points in the play. The author asserts, “If there is one quality that has characterized, and will characterize, every speech of Gertrude 's in the play, it is the ability to see reality clearly, and to express it”

[Done in] England” (4.3.66). Gertrude with no control over his decisions agrees to everything Claudius suggests about Hamlet’s exile. Gertrude trusts Claudius which allows him to control her in the actions and decisions he makes. The lack of lines Gertrude has throughout the play proves her trust for Claudius proving that she has nothing against what he decides. Similarly, Ophelia is controlled by Polonius, her father. Polonius controls Ophelia due to immaturity and her ignorance of her relationship with Hamlet. “Affection? pooh! you speak like a green girl, / Unsifted in such perilous circumstance, / Do you believe his tenders, as you call them?” (1.3.101-103). Not only Polonius but Laertes, her brother, constantly advise her to avoid Hamlet because he is just counterfeiting love and his intention is to hurt Ophelia:

As a result of Gertrude’s absence in Hamlets life during the time of his father’s death, Hamlet felt like he was invisible. He felt as if nobody loved him or was paying attention to him. Because he felt like nobody noticed him, he turned to acting like he had gone crazy. Gertrude was only paying attention to Claudius, and if Hamlet acted like he was crazy, it may draw the attention to himself

Yet to Hamlet, Ophelia is no better than another Gertrude: both are tender of heart but submissive to the will of importunate men, and so are forced into uncharacteristic vices. Both would be other than what they are, and both receive Hamlet’s exhortations

Another time Ophelia was important in Hamlet's life was after not seeing Ophelia for a while Hamlet stumbles upon a grave site being dug in the middle of the woods, but at the time he doesn’t know who for. When Hamlet find out that Ophelia is the one that is being put to rest he starts to go crazy again. He says “I loved Ophelia. Forty thousand brothers, if you added all their love together, couldn’t match mine. What are you going to do for her?” ( V, I, pg.12. lines 247-249). Hamlet is basically trying to say that even if they don’t believe him he really did love Ophelia. Gertrude responded by saying, “This is pure insanity. He’ll be like this for a little while” (V, I, pg. 12 lines 247-249). When Gertrude says this she basically means that he has gone crazy before that this is normal he will calm down soon. Therefor Ophelia played a huge role in Hamlet’s life without necessarily being there all of the time.

Gertrude to Ophelia, "And for your part, Ophelia, I do wish that your good beauties be the happy cause of Hamlet's wildness; so shall I hope your virtues will bring him to his wonted way again, to both your honours." (3.1.43-7)

Moreover, as mother to Hamlet, she acts largely as a reflection of the evils within Claudius. Much of the antagonism Hamlet directs towards her is, thus, aimed clearly at the elements of her that mirror Claudius: her lustfulness and corruption. In return, however, Gertrude offers Hamlet a level of motherly love and understanding. When she says "Let not thy mother lose her prayers, Hamlet. / I pray thee, stay with us, go not to Wittenberg," she quite clearly is expressing simple love and a desire to remain close to Hamlet. While Claudius is purely destructive towards Hamlet, Gertrude's ability to filter her lustfulness and corruption through her womanhood allows her to act, at least on some level, as a positive force on Hamlet.

It is quite obvious that both Gertrude and Ophelia are both motivated by love and a desire for quiet familial harmony among the members of their society in Elsinore. Out of love for her son does Gertrude advise:

The play Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare, is set in an anti-feminist era. Women traditionally have been seen inferior to men. This was an intellectual as well as a physical issue. Women were to raise a family, cook, clean, be pretty and not be smarter than any man. The main characters Ophelia and Gertrude are both depicted with these characteristics as powerless and frail people. This illustration of helpless women affects one's understanding of what their true selves could be.

“Frailty, thy name is woman” (1.2. 150)! This controversial line, followed by several more from the play Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, displays a common view towards women that portrays them as being weak and reliant on men. Throughout the play, two women, Ophelia and Gertrude, are shown to be dependent on the men in their lives. They both take on a senselessly obedient state of mind. Even though they share this common characteristic, Ophelia and Gertrude are very different characters. Ophelia is a beautiful, young woman who is the love interest of the protagonist, Hamlet. Ophelia obeys her father, Polonius, without hesitation and has very little experience with making her own decisions. Gertrude was the wife of Old Hamlet, and is now the wife of Claudius, the current king and Old Hamlet’s brother. Gertrude desires affection and status more than she cares about the truth of what happened to her late husband. The men in this play have no sense of how they treat the females. This patriarchal way of life was prominent in the late 16th century and early 17th century which was about the time that Hamlet was written and performed. This relationship between the genders is interconnected within the play and with society during that particular time period. The characters of Ophelia and Gertrude were solid examples of how women were viewed as inferior to men during this time in history.

Love in the forms of parent to child and from lover to lover is an addictive element which can result in loneliness and lead to madness to those who lose it forever. Hamlet's relationship with Gertrude and Ophelia is quick to fall apart after he learns key information about his parentage. Both Gertrude and Ophelia provide him with love but are absent at a time when he needs it most; during the reign of his madness. Hamlet's madness is partly evident due to his poor relationship with Gertrude and Ophelia, since they falsely love him then reject him by moving on with their lives. Both females have heavily contributed to the misogyny Hamlet develops. Ophelia and Gertrude disappoint Hamlet which leads him to become a misogynist which