Polonius' Mistakes Essay

In another scene, Polonius orders Ophelia to return the gifts that Hamlet gave her, and to make her rejection of him unmistakable and absolute. Polonius believes that if she is the cause of Hamlet’s madness, this would be the proof. “That Hamlet loses his mental stability is arguable from his behavior toward Ophelia…” (Foster, par.16) In Branagh’s version, we see how terribly this tears Ophelia’s heart. When Hamlet sees her, he walks up to her, telling her how much he loves her. After Hamlet kisses her, she returns the love letters that he wrote back to him. She sees how crushed he is, which makes her feel even worse; but she also believes she has to do this because her father ordered her to. Hamlet tells her “Get thee to a nunnery” (William

Tender yourself more dearly, or—not to crack the wind of the poor phrase, running it thus—you’ll tender me a fool” (31). Here, Polonious clearly shows that he does not care as much as for Ophelia as he does for his reputation, suggesting that he thinks that women are inferior. In addition, Ophelia’s lack of refusal to being pushed around while submitting to her father’s oppression contributes to her being portrayed as a weak, frail woman. The single response to her father’s lecture on her relationship with Hamlet is “I shall obey, my lord” (31). She truly has no say in important decisions either. For example, she was asked to spy on Hamlet by her father and Claudius, and no option was provided to say no, simply because it was expected of her to follow the orders of the males present. As Polonius and Claudius spy on Hamlet and Ophelia, Hamlet and Ophelia’s dialogue shows the degradation of females. Hamlet says, “…for wise men know well enough what monsters you make of them. To a nunnery, go, and quickly too” (31), describing his disgust and lack of trust for women in marriages, thinking they are all uncommitted deceivers. Hamlet, as the plot progresses, eventually accidentally kills Polonius, leaving Ophelia with no close family and influences left. When she comes to the King and Queen insane, Claudius says, “Oh, this is the poison of deep grief. It springs all from her father’s death, and

Ophelia’s father, Polonius, wishes to keep his family’s honor in tact, and fears that Ophelia’s open regard for Hamlet will diminish his honor. Both Polonius and Laertes, Ophelia’s brother, believe that Ophelia’s preference for Hamlet will only end in disgrace for their family, as Hamlet would never marry her due to her lower social standing, therefore, they counsel her to break off any understanding with Hamlet. As a woman, Ophelia realizes her duty to her father and her brother, and therefore decides to disregard her own feelings about Hamlet and do as her father and brother wish.

[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:

Polonius’ image and plans take precedence over his daughter’s physical and mental wellbeing. This leaves her vulnerable and in danger in regards to Hamlet. When Ophelia describes Hamlet accosting her, Polonius’ reacts by saying:

Polonius teams up with King Claudius and once again places demands on Ophelia which require her to disregard her own self to fulfill their wishes of deceiving Hamlet into revealing the cause of his erratic behavior. And once again, it is Ophelia’s duty to her father and this time to the king to be obedient. Disobedience to the king and his advisor are not an option. Polonius wants the king to look on him in good favor and he is willing to step on his daughter to get this admiration. He neglects Ophelia’s feelings by not even thinking of how his requests will affect her. He feels at liberty to request whatever he would like. He is purely worried about himself. Polonius holds a position of unquestioning authority over his daughter. He treats her as though she is not intelligent enough to make her own decisions and he knows that she will inherently obey him. To him her feelings are irrelevant and immature which he states when saying “Affection, puh, you speak like a green girl.”(1.3.101) Following her fathers instructions, she loses her lover and a piece of her happiness.

Polonius shows the need to manipulate a situation regardless if it concerns him or not. This is especially seen through the relationship with his children. Without even knowing the full situation, Polonius has jumped into trying to

Ophelia tries to obscure the truth because she is afraid of disobeying her father. It is obvious that Hamlet is already well aware that Polonius is watching after he states “Let the doors be shut upon him, the he may play the fool nowhere but in’s own house.”(3.1.132-133) Ophelia could have easily told Hamlet the truth, but due to her undying love for her father chooses to deceive Hamlet. Ophelia’s deceit leads Hamlet to start questioning her honest nature. Hamlet begins tearing apart by Ophelia because he is so irritated with her for being insincere to him. He states to Ophelia that “you should not have believed me: for virtue cannot so inoculate our old stock but we shall relish of it: I loved you not.” (3.1.117-119) Hamlet states that he does not love Ophelia because he believes that through this scheme, Ophelia will reveal the truth that Polonius is in fact behind their “unplanned” meeting. Ophelia had betrayed Hamlet by lying to him, thus Hamlet felt the need to betray her. If Ophelia had just been honest with Hamlet he would have not become so discourteous towards her, but she was not which resulted in him denying his love for her. Just as Hamlet was deceived, Ophelia was also because it was her lies that led to the ending of their love. Ophelia’s dishonesty resulted in her becoming a mockery of Hamlets antic disposition. Hamlet uses Ophelia to uncover

When individuals lack the ability to defend their ideas and personal preferences to others, with confidence they will lose their identity and sense of self as they allow others to control their opinions and thoughts. Ophelia’s lack of confidence in herself solidifies both Laertes and Polonius into occupying a dominant role expected of men in the 16th century. Polonius assures Ophelia that her obedience is the best thing for her, and creates this illusion of himself as a crutch she needs to respond to competing demands. Subsequently, when Ophelia finds herself torn between two loyalties – her love for Hamlet, and her father’s expectations, Polonius sways her to compliance with his ideas. “I shall obey, my lord.” (I, iv, 145 )This complete obedience of her father ultimately eliminates Ophelia’s self-preservation that would ensure her best outcome. It is clear her father’s requests of her are not out of love and concern for Ophelia but for his own issues of vanity and securing his status. This can be seen in misalignments in Polonius’ claims, and the condescension in his words to Ophelia. As Laertes prepares to leave, Polonius grants him with advice, “This above all: to thine own self be true.” (I, iii, 84). He contradicts

Issues of power are foremost in Polonius' mind. He immediately seeks the King in order to legitimate his accusations concerning Hamlet. By doing this, not only does Polonius gain power over Hamlet, but also with the King himself. Polonius tries to control the way Hamlet is seen around the court so as to rise in stature himself. Through his manipulation of Ophelia, Polonius becomes a character not as much concerned with familial ties as one whose concern rests within the world of court intrigue and position.

           Ophelia allowed herself to become a sort of marionette in Polonius' schemes toward understanding the seemingly mad prince. While her relationship with Hamlet was on the line, she allowed Polonius to commandeer the strings that determined her actions. Polonius was determined that Hamlet's supposed madness stemmed from lovesickness for Ophelia. He convinced Ophelia that her betrayal of Hamlet was a necessary evil and she began to relay all of Hamlet's messages and attempts at communication to him. He told the king and queen:

Ophelia is in love with Hamlet. She shares herself with him and is beginning a relationship, she wants to be with hamlet and believes he loves her "My lord, he hath importuned me with his love in honorable fashion"(pg 17 line 110). Polonius instructs Ophelia to stop seeing Hamlet. Polonius states that Hamlet doesn’t really love her and is only with her for one thing, and as soon as he gets enough he will want no more.

When Ophelia tells Polonius, her father, what she and Laertes were talking about, Polonius reiterates exactly what Laertes said and forbids her from seeing Hamlet, saying later that the prince is “out of [her] star (II.2.150).” Yet, Gertrude later, at Ophelia’s funeral, says that she had hoped that Hamlet and Ophelia would marry, which shows that whether Hamlet, Ophelia, and her family knew it or not, Ophelia would have been approved by the King and Queen for Hamlet and was not considered beneath him, at least not by the Queen (V.1.255). Though, there may be some indication that the Queen was beneath Hamlet’s father’s station as well, so she would be more excepting and sympathetic to Ophelia and her feelings (I.5.55-59). But, when the ‘adults’ discuss the cause of Hamlet’s madness, no one listens to the Queen’s astute understanding that her son is unhappy about her marriage, and the King listens instead to the other man in the discussion, Polonius and Polonius’s idea that Hamlet is mad for love. When Ophelia is sent to talk to Hamlet in Act III, both the King and Polonius hide behind a tapestry instead of trusting her to tell them what was actually said. Perhaps the reason Hamlet is so horrible to her after his soliloquy is because he realizes that the King and Polonius are listening in on them and he feels betrayed.

Polonius’s relationship with his children is far worse that Hamlets relationship with his biological parents. In the first act, Laertes warns Ophelia not to fall for Hamlet because he simply cannot marry outside of royalty. Polonius overheard their conversation and chipped in, “Tender yourself more dearly, / or you’ll tender me a fool”. (I.iii.107-109) As an unmarried daughter, Ophelia has no choice but to be obedient to her father. This means that Polonius is free to force Ophelia to break up with Hamlet. He’s also free to use his daughter as bait to spy on

As with many plays, actors in Shakespeare’s, The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, are at liberty to alter the portrayal of their characters. Because of this, the significance and subtleties of various characters can be lost in varying adaptations of the play. This holds true for the character Polonius, who is often incorrectly portrayed as a oblivious and foolish yet caring father. Rather, Shakespeare implicitly and explicitly establishes Polonius as a character in full control of his wits. Polonius’ interaction with other characters throughout the play highlights his cunning, wit, and selfishness.