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Shakespeare Attitude of Women in Hamlet
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William Shakespeare’ Hamlet tells the story of Hamlet, son of the king, who has to
decent to the throne because of his father’s demise, however, the throne is stripped away from
him because of incestuous marriage between his uncle and mother. Throughout the play, Hamlet
is portrayed as an irate person. His anger is due to thrown, seeing his farther ghost and mad
actions stemming from the relationship between Claudius and Gertrude. Hamlets ‘smother
choice to marry his uncle was so fast even before “tears from his father burial were dry”. This
essay will explore Shakespeare attitude towards women in the play Hamlet.
When Hamlet learn that his uncle killed his father, he planned to revenge but his mother
decides to die for him because Claudia decided to marry his mother. This points to the
Shakespearian representation of women during the Victorian time. The play intersperses the
social status of women and societal patriarchal perspective of women of the time. There is no
evidence that hamlet deliberately belittle women, it is only the status quo of women of the time
that made women to be inferior to men. Women in the play are more of a subsidiary of male
characters. They are weak, have low status, “within, a month, ere, a salt of most unrighteous
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tears had left, had left her galled eyes” (1.2.155). Hamlet generally does not trust women,
including Ophelia his lover because of his mother’s act. He cannot understand the kind of
deception a woman can get involved in and thus he ends up cursing all the women. He further
suggests that Ophelia should go to a nunnery, in this sense, Shakespeare is projecting that
women should give their soul to God. Because there is no influence to men when a woman goes
to a nunnery because there is no sexual encounters to be a breeder, no children to bear, no
temptation to be a sinner. (3.1.124). It as an indication that Hamlet does not want to experience
the corruption of sexual encounter, something he has whiteness from his own mother. Hamlet’s
role in this scenes is intentional because the anger in him is supposed to be vividly shown so that
it can reveal Shakespearian attitude towards women. Ophelia in the play is like a pawn to Hamlet
in almost all scenes. This attitude is the same for her brother, her father and eventually leads to
her suicide. Hamlet toyed with Ophelia’s heart by acting mad and the fact that he was scared
especially from the actions of his mother. There is a strong distrust and dislike for women in
Hamlets due to personal devastations mother’s quick decision to marry his uncle immediately
after his father death. Not only is this act incestuous to him but he feels he is betrayed by his
mother. He has a bad taste for women to the point of going mad. Also, when Hamlet discovers
his mother’s role in the murder of his farther, he completely loses his trust on women because he
feel betrayed. Gertrude in Shakespeare views is a woman who values affections and status than
moral righteousness. However, she can only get these desires from a man. This is the reasons
why immediately after the king died, she quickly get married to another man without considering
her respected and integrity.
The character of Ophelia is often represented in works of literatures as a morose, dead
and frail. Being that these attributes are often interpreted by the audience in that manner, it
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reflects Shakespearian presentation of women and his classical interpretation of women. The
play features a vein of ambiguity which are typical to Shakespearian writings and which runs
across the plot. One of the ambiguity is how much knowledge and influence does the women
have. However, according to the play, it can be assumed that Ophelia is weak. In the scene when
Ophelia enters, she speaks and she not mentioned by to her characters. She is entirely ignored.
For an Elizabethan audience, this would not be strange, because the political and sociologically,
women were entirely inferior to men. Besides, Hamlet treat her with a lot of disrespects. He
write and tell her that “Get thee to a nunnery”. When Ophelia confesses his love to Hamlet
despite her father with, Hamlet still views her as fragile and dependent on the man for life. He
says, “ gragily, thy name is women” (271). This can reveals Shakespearian attitude towards all
women in the manner in which he refers to their moral weakness and distrustful beings. He
seems to advocate that women are misogynist. During Hamlets time, women were generally
disadvantaged. Despite women like Ophelia and Gertrude having high statues as compared to
other women, still in the eyes of men they were still viewed as lesser beings. Women consciously
obeyed men during this time. Ophelia’s father and brother strongly disagree with her because
they think that Hamlet is play her. In this sense, Shakespearian work portray that women should
not show their beauty, to him, this is a sin. Despite Ophelia being the one married to Hamlet, she
cannot express her emotions or make decision concerning her marriage.
Despite Shakespearian representation of weak with all negative attributes, there are many
scenes that point that Gertrude loved Hamlet. She is represented as a caring and loving mother.
There is no description whether the hatred of hamlet towards Gertrude was forced due to her
incest or because of social environment of the time. Gertrude often dissuade Hamlet not to do
silly things, Hamlet accused her of being unfaithful but she does not rebuke her son, she also
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congratulate him when he won the battle against the Laertes. This an indication that Gertrude is
virtuous and a kind women. In general terms it can be argued that the actions of women are due
to environment they lived in. They were become products of situations where they have to live
under the man. They are forced to make lethal decisions in attempt to survive and stay afloat in
world that is politically unfavorable for them built by men.
The two women in Hamlets, Ophelia and Gertrude, represented Shakespearians attitude
of women. They are shown as weak, unfaithful and always depend on man for survival. There is
unfair hatred, difficult struggle, and painful experience that women undergo because of social
environment of the time. Shakespearian Hamlet exposes the prejudices and blocked off the
choice that were available for women of the time. Irrespective of statues, women like Gertrude
still were viewed as lesser being and often depend on the man., Hamlet in his life is shown as
being obsessive of women but he is still portrayed as expressing his ridicule and contempt
towards women for their actions. The actions are Shakespearian ultimate argument in a
misogynistic, hostile and cruel environment. For Shakespearian women are lustful, seductress,
and pretenders beings.
