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Replies | Post Reply | Shakespeare Queries & Replies From Everyone Else 3.15.97: Top | Help
I would have to strongly disagree with Nicole's interpretation
of Hamlet and Ophelia's relationship. They were most certainly
lovers. Halmlet did without question offer Ophelia "tenders"
of his affection, and we know this because she must return
them to Hamlet. In addition, we also have the letter read
from Polonius to Claudius and Gertrude in which Hamnlet writes
to Ophelia I did love thee once. So indeed, Hamlet did love
Ophelia, and evidence is also in the play that she did love
the prince. When Laertes tells Ophelia to beware of Hamlet's
love, she does not deny her love for Hamlet but responds that
yes she will be careful. As for the song, no part of
any of Shakespeare's plays is ever thrown in simply because
it was popular at the time. When Ophelia sings that sing
in her mentally disturbed state she is revealing the nature
of her relationship to Hamlet and his promises of love.The question now becomes, who is to blame for the
relationship's demise. Many blame Hamlet for being too hard
on Ophelia, but her treatment and the "Get thee to a nunnery"
speech is, in a certain sense, justified. Hamlet's entire
world is collapsing around him. His uncle has killed Hamlet's
father. His mother may have been a co-conspirator in King
Hamlet's death(though there is no definitive proof) and, at
the very least, she has married her husband's murderer. Hamlet
has been betrayed by his close friend's Rosencrantz and
Guildenstern. Everyone special to Hamlet has betrayed him.
Ophelia has broken off their relationship because her father
Polonius, forced her to, and we can guess that Hamlet knows
that may be the case because shortly before the "get thee to
a nunnery speech" he refuses to take his "tenders" back. He
still loves her. But when he asks "Where is your father" and
Ophelia replies "At home" he knows that now, she too, has
betrayed him. We do not feel bad when Hamlet exacts his
revenge or chastises the other that be tray him, so why do
we blame him when he chastises Ophelia as a result of her
betrayal. Some criticism exists that compares Ophelia's
betrayal to prostituion, and this may account for our
discomfort with regard to Hamlet's treatment of Ophelia, not
because we forgive her "prostitute-like" act but because
she becomes a pawn in Polonius's little game to earn the
king's favor. We cannot exonerate her betrayal because
being honest is possible for her, but we can mitigate it
because her father is the one who "pimped" her if we want to
continue using the prostitution motif.Ultimately, I do believe that Hamlet and Ophelia were true
lovers. Even the bumbling Polonius admits that Hamlet's love
may have been truer that even he believed. Finally, the
truness of this love is what makes Ophelia's betrayal of
Hamlet so poignant and Branagh did a marvelous job
capturing the painfulness of that betrayal.
Posted by Steven on March 26, 1997 at 14:04:14
In Reply to "Only in the Ken Brannagh Version" posted by Nicole on March 25, 1997 at 22:17:36
Replies | Post Reply | Shakespeare Queries & Replies From Everyone Else 3.15.97: Top | Help