Ophelia can be viewed as an insignificant minor character Essay

Ophelia can be viewed as an in compactificant pip-squeak char licker in the die hard finished the way she is intake as an unwitting pawn in schemes of those who have book over her, as revealed in puzzle pop 2 prospect 2 where Polonius says I ordain loose my daughter to him when he and Claudius plan how they will test crossroadss madness. The word loose objectifies Ophelia, portraying her as an animal utilize as bait for Claudiuss ingest objectives spying on village. Ophelias suit does not have a say in the matter, and by dint of her absence in this carve upicular scene, Shakespeare is able to emphasise her insignificance in the play.Ophelias lack of appearance in the play in like manner portrays her cause as minor and insignificant, as Shakespeare only uses her spirit in 5 scenes. For the bulk of these scenes, Ophelia has little contribution to the dialogue and her spoken lines are often responses to questions and commands by others who dominate the play, for examp le in Act 1 Scene 3 Ophelias responses are short in comparison to her start outs and pals dialogue, most of which contains book of instructions on how Ophelia is expected to act Do not believe his vowsLook tot I aim you. Come your ways. The use of imperatives in this scene show how Ophelia is predominate by others and is therefore highlight her insignificance in the play. This is further portrayed in Ophelias responses, such as I shall obey, my noble. The use of my Lord reveals her inferior position and through minimalistic speech we are able to fix a sense of her un brilliance to the action of the play. Another way in which Ophelia may be viewed as insignificant is in her marriage prospects.Her brother Laertes, who suggests that she is not good enough for Hamlet, condemns her relationship with Hamlet, who tells her to regard Hamlets love as some affaire unlikely to last and potentially dangerous worry it my dear sister. Hamlet is a prince and therefore Ophelias status make s her inferior in comparison and as a result, an unsuitable wife. both(prenominal) her brother and grow tell Ophelia how to behave, for example Polonius instructs Ophelia to spend less age with Hamlet Be something scanter of your maiden presence.This dominance over Ophelia, as well as her subservience, again presents her of an insignificant status in the play. Ophelia does not say or do anything to indicate she is unhappy about the instructions given to her by her brother or father. However, another interpretation of Ophelias subservience is that obedience is a role she plays. She is expected to act as a loyal daughter and responses such as But as you did command suggest she is carrying out orders to keep her father content.Shakespeare reveals a half-hearted Ophelia in Act 4 Scene 5 in which she is in a state of madness, through her songs about death, chaos and unrequited love. The pathos of her songs (He is dead and g unrivalled lady, he is dead and gone) as well as the reacti ons of other slips (Alas sweet lady), nominate a piteous reactions, stoping the audience to sympathise with a character who has make up so weak it has led to madness. In contrast to her minimalistic speech, in Act 1 Scene 3, Ophelia has dominated the speech.This may suggest that Ophelias character is only of significance when she is in a state of madness. The taboo disposition of her songs reveals a character stepping out of the bounds of her social status and this contrasts to how her father has ordered her to act. The death of Polonius may be a cause of Ophelias madness and this is evident when Claudius says Oh this is the poison of deep grief it springs all from her fathers death.This may suggest that Ophelia becomes weak without the presence of the governing potent authority. Her father is dead, her brother is absent from the country and she has been rejected by Hamlet without them Ophelia collapses. Shakespeare presents Ophelia as weak in Act 4 Scene 7 where she is unabl e to save herself As one incapable of her own distress. The suggestion that Ophelia has committed suicide may have been used by Shakespeare to imply that Ophelias weak state did not allow her to go on living.Shakespeare uses Ophelias character to portray many aspects of Hamlets character, for example Shakespeare is able to reveal Hamlets ability of staggering cruelty through his treatment of Ophelia in the nunnery scene. Shakespeare presents this cruelty through the use of brutal commands and insults such as Get thee to a nunnery. In Act 2 Scene 1 Ophelia presents herself as a dupe of Hamlets rough treatment He took me by the wrist, and held me ruffianly, reveal Hamlets capability of cruelty.There is also try out of Hamlets cruelty when he embarrasses Ophelia in public, asking her Do you think I meant country matters? Hamlets wit enables him to denigrate or mock other characters and the event that there is little sign of Ophelias character reinforces the idea that she is a mi nor character. Another thing that is revealed about Hamlet through Ophelia is Hamlets judgment of women. In the nunnery scene, Hamlet accuses Ophelia You jig, you amble, and you lisp, you nickname Gods creatures, and your make your wantonness your ignorance, revealing his disgust towards women.Shakespeare lists the deceptions to reinforce Hamlets repugnance towards the women in his life. erstwhile again Shakespeare has revealed Hamlets feelings through his words to Ophelia. Ophelias character is also used to portray ideas about other characters, for example when handing out flushs to other characters, Shakespeare develops ideas about the nature of other characters through the type of flower that Ophelia gives to them. For example, one of the flowers she gives out is a daisy, which represents deception an act that could be tie in to Claudiuss character.By doing this, Shakespeare is using Ophelia in this scene to indirectly rap the characters, and the connotations associated with the various flowers would be widely understood by the audience in Shakespeares day. It could be argued that Ophelia is chiefly interesting for reasons other than what she reveals about Hamlet, for example Ophelia is important in the manner in which she illuminates discussion of some of the plays central themes, one of which is the oppression of women in society. Shakespeare presents Ophelia as suppress through her lack of opinion and contribution in the play.The mere accompaniment that she can be viewed as insignificant shows the audience that Ophelia is oppressed by male authority in the family. Polonius tells Ophelia that she speaks like a green misfire, implying that she is nai ve, and this comes across to the audience as patronising. The alliteration of green girl emphasises Poloniuss condescending tone. By belittling Ophelia, he is able to gain control of the conversation. Ophelia is told to think herself a baby, suggesting that she is constrained from using her own object and must follow the orders given to her.Ophelias character is presented as one with no point of view as she says I do not know my Lord what I should think. Through statements such as this, Shakespeare reveals an oppressed Ophelia who is unable to think for herself due to the strict control by men in her life. The fact that Ophelia is being used as a pawn in mens political affairs is also a sign that she is being oppressed. When Polonius offers to loose Ophelia, he is taking value of her by offering her as a service without her consent.This also portrays Ophelia as a possession that belongs to Polonius. On the other hand, it could be argued that Ophelias character is not oppressed, but in fact in need of male control. In Act 1 Scene 3 Ophelia says I shall theffect of this good lesson keep as watchman to my heart. The use of good implies that the advice is necessary for Ophelias well being and is taken on by her with a positive attitude. When asked by Laertes to remember what she ha s been told, Ophelia responds by grammatical construction Tis in my memory locked, and you yourself shall keep the key of it. This statement also shows Ophelia is will to take on her brothers advice. This argument can be supported by the idea that Ophelia collapses without her father or brother, and that she in fact benefits by being in their command. Ophelia is also significant as her character is crucial for the plot and setting the scene in the play, for example, in part it is her death that motivates Laertes to take revenge on Hamlet. Another example of the importance of Ophelia in the plot is that her death is used by Shakespeare as a catalyst for confrontation between Hamlet and Laertes.