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 does not care much about his sister but instead care about his father and himself because in Shakespeare's time, a father's son-in-law doesn't give much money to his father if his wife is not a virgin. So it seems that Laertes is just looking out for his father and himself.
             Ophelia's father, on the other hand, is different. He does care about his daughter but is very cautious about her actions with Hamlet. He even goes so far as to force her daughter not to be in any contact with Hamlet. He tells her "I would not...give words or talk with the Lord Hamlet." (I. iii. 132-134)
             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 ...

More Essays:

APA     MLA     Chicago
Ophelia : witch or victim?. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 21:29, March 28, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/34656.html