Essay on Perception of Women in William Shakespeares Hamlet

Perception of Women in William Shakespeares Hamlet In Hamlet, Shakespeare carefully represents Getrude and Ophelia. Individually, Gertrude is essentially seen as weak and immoral whilst Ophelia is seen as meek and a victim of society. Collectively, they are seen to fulfil a conventional 16th century role, and it is as our beliefs and views of women change that we are able to perceive the characters in a different angle. At the beginning of the play, we get a very biased insight into the character of Gertrude and how those around her perceive her. This is because Hamlet and the ghost of Hamlet are both very biased as they feel a sense of injustice at Gertrudes marriage to Claudius, her†¦show more content†¦By the end of this scene, however, we see that she is penitent and appears willing to help her son. This exhibits how easily Gertrude is persuaded by Hamlets incessant persistence, and emphasises her tendency to be dominated by, and mistreated by men, even to the extent of her own son. Gertrudes mistreatment is also obvious within her relationship to Claudius. For example, When Gertrude tells Claudius of Polonius slaughter by Hamlet, rather than fret about the danger posed to his wife; he remarks that has he been there, it would have been dangerous to him. This highlights her vulnerability and subtly suggests that Claudius is more concerned about himself than his wife. Likewise, Shakespeare uses the character of Ophelia to illustrate that women of all classes of age can be considered feeble and dominated by men. The first time the audience see Ophelia is during her conversation with Laertes and her father where both the male characters disregard Ophelias judgement. Polonius tells Ophelia that she speaks like a green girl whilst Laertes tells her to fear Hamlets affection. Ophelia appears to be dominated from the outset and this suggests that Ophelia is not trusted to make her own decisions and that she requires guidance on how to live her life. Her reply, as you did command, illustrates aShow MoreRelatedWomen s Tragedy : Hamlet And King Lear1185 Words   |  5 PagesDr. Pitchford ENGL 4037 24 November 2015 Women in Shakespeare’s Tragedies: Hamlet and King Lear While William Shakespeare’s Tragedies are well known for their violence, tragic heroes, and fatal flaws, the method in which Shakespeare portrays his female characters in a negative light is seldom expressed. 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