William Shakespeare's Hamlet features one of the most complex, interesting and tragic cast of characters ever depicted on the stage and in Western literature. However, of particular interest are the women of the play - depicted solely by Hamlet's mother Gertrude and love interest Ophelia. Far from the stereotypical damsels in distress, these characters are strong, complex and multifaceted. In this paper, we will examine these two characters in detail to show just how interesting these characters are, and their pivotal roles in the play itself.
Gertrude, Hamlet's mother, is a model of repressed guilt and shallow ignorance. As opposed to the main character, Hamlet, who is very thoughtful and very concerned about the nature of "this mortal coil," Gertrude's shallow desire for her own vices is what drives her. Even after her husband's death, she marries his brother Claudius "within a month." Gertrude's sexuality is a large part of what defines her; it is implied that Gertrude simply needed her sexual needs satisfied quickly, and this is what motivated her to marry Claudius. As the Ghost tells Hamlet, "Ay, that incestuous, that adulterate beast, with witchcraft of his wit, with traitorous gifts,-- O wicked wit, and gifts that have the power So to seduce!--won to his shameful lust The will of my most seeming-virtuous queen" (I.V 42-5). By 'adulterate beast,' he does not mean unfaithful necessarily, but merely contaminated or changed irrevocably.
Gertrude is not a willing accomplice in the conspiracy to kill Hamlet's father; instead, she is a childish and ignorant pawn in Claudius' overall plan to rule over Denmark. All Gertrude really cares about is continuing her lavish lifestyle and being sexually satisfied. Often, she manages to lie to herself about the truth of her circumstances, and forces her head in the sand when Hamlet confronts her about Claudius' possible involvement in his father's murder. Gertrude does not just lie to herself; she lies to others as well. The difference between her and characters like Claudius is that she lies to protect others, as well as herself. She does not falsify things to be wicked, she just tells little white lies to smooth over uncomfortable situations. When she has to tell Claudius that Polonius died by Hamlet, Gertrude says that he "weeps for what is done," despite the fact he is unremorseful.
Despite her shallowness and her deceit, many characters in the play adore her. She loves Hamlet dearly, and she is very hurt when he confronts her about the truth of her husband's death. She cannot comprehend what is upsetting Hamlet so much when he goes to her, and she understands the wrongness of her actions when he informs her of the truth. "O Hamlet, speak no more: Thou turn'st my very eyes into my soul, And there I see such black and grained spots
As will not leave their tinct...O speak to me no more; these words like daggars enter my ears;
No more, sweet Hamlet!" (III.iv.88-6). This is an honest depiction of a mournful woman - she is in no way deceiving or duplicitous, nor is she complicit in the plan to kill the King. She is also forgiving, protecting Hamlet even after he lashes out at her in anger. At the same time, she maintains her love for Claudius, because of the bond of marriage that demands her loyalty.
Gertrude, as a character, is far from being Lady Macbeth. While at the center of the dark conspiracy, she is ignorant of it, and is only interested in maintaining her love for the people around her and her own shallow needs. She is an implicitly and explicitly trusting figure, and also values beauty, which is what leads her to drink from the poisoned goblet, dying as a result. These qualities make her a bit of an enigma, and not a character that can be accused of disloyalty or hated for her complicity.
Ophelia is also portrayed as weak, but her own downfall is infinitely interesting to behold. Lovely and shy, Ophelia at the beginning of the play is a paragon of virtue. She obeys her family even at the cost of her true love Hamlet, as her father Polonius sends her away. She is always closely tied with the symbol of violets, the essence of fragility and sensibility. Ophelia's major downfall comes when she is told to separate herself from Hamlet by both Polonius and Laertes; she loves him with all of her heart, and has tied so much of her identity to him.
When she starts to rip herself from her one true love, her character starts to pull apart at the seams. She breaks into tears when Hamlet talks to her in an abrasive and hostile way, devastated at this betrayal of the man she loves: "And I, of ladies most deject and wretched,
That sucked the honey of his music vows now see that noble and most sovereign reason...
out of tune and harsh" (III.i.13). Later, when Polonius dies, she finally descends into madness. In the scene in which she falls into madness and shows it to Gertrude and the other characters, she is still behaving in a childlike, innocent fashion, singing songs about flowers and acting like a fair maiden.
Eventually, Ophelia commits suicide by drowning herself in the river; she simply cannot absorb the darkness that surrounds her any longer. This descent into madness and death for arguably the purest character in the story is evidence of how the characters' actions affect other people. Her goodness was uncompromised, while everyone else's virtue is tarnished by greed or thoughts of revenge. By having her end her life after losing her mind, the effects of this family feud is fully displayed.
Despite the frailty and fragility that is displayed by Ophelia, she is still an undeniably erotic figure, enhanced by her submissiveness. By passively drowning herself instead of actively seeking suicide, she dies as she lives - following along with what life presents her. Much ado is made of Ophelia's sexuality in life as well; she is perpetually accused of sin, with Hamlet ordering her "to a nunnery" (III.i. 9). She begins to project Hamlet's harsh words about her onto herself, taking his claims of future infidelity to heart. Laertes also tells her to fear intimacy, while at the same time eroticizing her; he likens her to a delicate flower whose "buttons" have not opened yet (I.iii. 3). In this way, Ophelia is a good little girl, and that is seen as a sexual commodity by many of the men - perhaps this passivity is an intentional move by Ophelia to gain sympathy and favor with the man she loves, and the men around her. Regardless of the intention, Ophelia is a kind and gentle spirit, one which is mercilessly crushed by the weight of the tragic events that surround her.
In conclusion, the female characters of Hamlet are far from the subservient, unimportant characters they may seem to be; they depict themes and moods of the play that are important to recognize. With Gertrude, the face of uncompromising ignorance and vanity, the audience recognizes just how comfortable this family has ostensibly become with such a transparent betrayal. At the same time, she fully understands her part in it eventually, and protects her son as much as she can given her precarious position. Ophelia, on the other hand, is a complete innocent in a play full of guilty people. As she is being torn apart by the different sides that are at work, Ophelia's own hopes and dreams of a simple life with Hamlet are dashed. This being all that she wanted, she descends into insanity and suicide, demonstrating the effects of this conflict on peaceful innocents. These events make the story far more tragic, and it is because of these complex and intriguing female characters that we see this in the play.
Works Cited
Shakespeare, William. (1603). Hamlet.
