Ophelia : witch or victim?

A detailed Summary of Ophelia : witch or victim?


In my opinion I would say that Ophelia is just an innocent victim instead of being a heartless witch. I believe this to be true because I believe she is just an innocent victim because she is being forced to act in a matter in which she does not want to act. First her father forces to ignore Hamlet at all cause and to reject his letters. "...but as you did command, I did repel his letters and denied his access to me" (II. iii. 108-110) this proves that she did as her father told her to do even though she didn't want to do it. Another reason for my belief is that her loved ones and others are manipulating her. These people who are doing this is her brother, Laertes, and her father Polonius. The way her brother is manipulating her is by giving her somewhat false information about Hamlet, which give Ophelia to give second thoughts about Hamlet.

An example of this is in Act I, Scene 3 where Laertes says, "Fear it, Ophelia, fear it, my dear sister, and keep you in the rear of your affection out of the shot and danger of desire." (I. iii. 33-35) Laertes seems to care about his sister and doesn't want her to get hurt but in reality back then in their time, Laertes


Later on in Act 3, you can find another example of how Ophelia is just being used by the people around her just so they can get what they want and not even considering how this will effect Ophelia. In scene 1 of Act 3, Polonius and the King place Ophelia in a room where Hamlet can find her so that they can observe if Hamlet is mad only about what's happening with Ophelia and himself. But what ends up happening is Hamlet, with all of his anger, breaks off their relationship very furiously, leaving Ophelia hurt and scared with Hamlets action. This is an example of Ophelia being an innocent victim because was just used like an object for other people's pleasure.

This means not to talk to Hamlet and not to write him any letters. Because of this, Ophelia is forced to have no contacts with Hamlet witch, for sure, will break a loving couple's love. This must be devastating for Ophelia because she is basically forbidden to see the one who she loves dearly. This is, to me, a good example because it shows how Ophelia is being manipulated by her father into believing that Hamlet is bad for her even though her father shouldn't really be the one who controls her act

Some common words found in the essay are:
Ophelia Hamlet, Fear Ophelia, , Lord Hamlet, Hamlet Ophelia, Polonius Ophelia, innocent victim, example ophelia, Act Scene, laertes care sister, ophelia innocent victim, ophelia hamlet, laertes care, contact hamlet, father polonius, hamlet ophelia, care sister, ophelia innocent, ophelia's father,

Approximate Word count = 784
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

join now Save Paper

Related Essays

  • maddness ... Either his love for Ophelia was never as strong as he said ... to be out of jealousy, as a victim to the ... Macbethamp39s ambition is present before the witchamp39s prophesies ... 1578 words


Saved Paper

Save your papers so you can locate them quickly!

Newest Essays

Testimonials

  • "Thank You So Much!!! You have saved me once again!!!"
    Jack M.
  • "With so many papers to chose from, I was able to get ideas to help me with all of my classes. Thank You!"
    Brian P.
  • "I've used this site for the last 3 years to help me come up with ideas for my papers."
    Sara J.
  • "I use this site every week to help me write my own papers!"
    Rachel W.
  • "I love this site!!!"
    Marie N.
Home Join Now Support
Acceptable Use Policy About us FAQ
All papers are for research and reference purposes only!
© 2002-2009 DirectEssays.com. All Rights Reserved.