Preview

Women: The Role Of Women In Hamlet By William Shakespeare

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
350 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Women: The Role Of Women In Hamlet By William Shakespeare
For many years in history women played very smalls roles in society socially, economically and politically. And because of this history many authors and screen play writers reflect on the role of women during their time. The role of women in William Shakespeare play Hamlet, shows women to rely on the men, Shows that the women were dominated and inferior to the men.
Queen Gertrude, Hamlet's mother whose husband dies and a few months later she remarries her husband’s brother, and as expected hamlet is upset and says “frailty, thy name is women” (Act I Scene II) he is making a connection between female sexuality and moral corruption. Queen Gertrude lives completely reliant on on men. She has the inability to think on her own, Claudius makes all
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Hamlet's Criticism Of Women Analysis
    • 205 Words
    • 1 Page

    Hamlet's Criticism Of Women Analysis

    Another reason why Hamlet’s criticisms of women are justified is due to the profound resentment he has for his own mother, which is reflected whenever he talks to any woman. Since he had a very close relationship with his father and thought very highly of him, Hamlet feels personally betrayed by his mother when she gets married to Claudius. He feels that Gertrude should be mourning his father’s death as deeply as he himself does, and thinks her decision to marry again was brash. Since he is expected to behave politely at all times due to his station, Hamlet does not feel as though he can express the hurt he feels to anyone, and instead keeps it bottled up inside. He is only able to release this anger when he is approached by another woman,…

    • 205 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Analyzing The Mother's Decisions In Hamlet By William Shakespeare
    • 389 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Analyzing The Mother's Decisions In Hamlet By William Shakespeare

    Hamlet condemns his mother's decision by making a connection to all women. He says "frailty, thy name is woman!" Hamlet is making a condescending statement by saying that women are weak, and he uses his mother as an example of how women make weak and immature decisions. Hamlet's mother's actions…

    • 389 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Examples Of Misogyny In Hamlet
    • 503 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Examples Of Misogyny In Hamlet

    The motif of misogyny occurs throughout the play ‘Hamlet,’ it is however especially prominent in Act III Scene I, lines 135-149. Shakespeare has used negative imagery and language to portray ‘Hamlet’s’ dislike of women, for example ‘Hamlet’ in this extract curses ‘Ophelia’ that even if she is ‘as chaste as ice, as pure as snow,’ she will still be looked down upon, the imagery of ‘snow’ is often used by authors to represent virginity and is not necessary seen as being negative, Shakespeare however could have used this language to create the connotation that like ‘snow’ and ‘ice’ virginity is only temporary, and not something that will last forever, this is something that appears to frustrate and anger ‘Hamlet.’ This frustration ‘Hamlet’ has…

    • 503 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Gender Roles In Shakespeare's Plays
    • 300 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Gender Roles In Shakespeare's Plays

    There are many reasons why boys would play the female roles throughout the 1800s during Shakespeare's influence over the theatre. Young boys would often play the parts of women in Shakespeare plays and an entrance into an acting career. Often there would be only around 4 actors performing in one production at a time therefore multi rolling was common and each actor had to be versatile. Audience members gave positive impressions of the quality of the acting of boy players.…

    • 300 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Essay On The Role Of Women In Hamlet
    • 774 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Essay On The Role Of Women In Hamlet

    Just like Ophelia, Gertrude is also dependent but dependent on affection, and is portrayed as weak when she quickly marries Claudius after her husband dies. “Frailty, thy name is woman! A little month, or ere those shoes were old with which she followed my poor father’s body, like Niobe, all tears. Why she, even she O God, a beast that wants discourse of reason would have mourned longer! Within a month, Ere yet the salt of most unrighteous tears had left the flushing in her gallèd eyes” ( 1.2.146-155). Within a month of mourning the king’s death, Gertrude now seeks attention from another man. So desperate for the attention of a man, she marries the king’s brother. An act like this is considered weak minded and submissive. Gertrude fell into the trap of Claudius when given love, affection, and attention ultimately demonstrating how the women in the play are portrayed as extremely weak, passive, and submissive, illustrating the power dynamics between men and…

    • 774 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Portrayal Of Women In Hamlet
    • 227 Words
    • 1 Page

    The Portrayal Of Women In Hamlet

    Throughout history, a strong male lead has been the popular choice in literature. Oftentimes, the females in written works are seen as weaker characters than their male counterparts. This was especially true in the time of Shakespeare. In Hamlet, both Ophelia and Gertrude, the queen, are written in this way. Although they both could have had a large impact on the plot, Shakespeare chose to write them in as small, impotent characters. This may be because that's how women were often viewed in his time.…

    • 227 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    How Is Hamlet A Misogynist
    • 537 Words
    • 3 Pages

    How Is Hamlet A Misogynist

    Hamlets portrayal of women in this play start with his mother gertrude. In the opening of the play hamlet's father is killed and his mother gertrude almost instantly marries another man. The man that she married turned out to be his uncle and hamlet felt that he was betrayed. Hamlet is then starts to become a misogynist from that, He starts to treat his mother bad and say that she shouldn't have remarried so fast.…

    • 537 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Femininity In Hamlet Essay
    • 416 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Femininity In Hamlet Essay

    Since the Renaissance, when Shakespeare born and wrote his works, many of the plays and literature styles have gained wide popularity among the readers and influenced many of the readers and the critics. Furthermore, people often say, it is widely believed at this time that role of males stand completely opposite to that of females; however, through the play of Hamlet, Shakespeare portrays a complex representation of human beings including femininity in its protagonist and title character, prince Hamlet. The Women in Literature and Life Assembly states in one of their articles, “Defining masculine and feminine characteristics allowed writers like Shakespeare to draw males with certain ‘feminine’ characteristics and females with certain ‘masculine’…

    • 416 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Gertrude and Ophelia (Hamlet) are usually seen as weak women, firmly under the influence of the men in their lives. Do you think this characterization of them as passive and dependent is accurate?
    • 546 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Gertrude and Ophelia (Hamlet) are usually seen as weak women, firmly under the influence of the men in their lives. Do you think this characterization of them as passive and dependent is accurate?

    Although Gertrude and Ophelia are not well developed through out the play, their actions, language and influence on the play portray them as the obedient passive type of women. Gertrude is Hamlet 's mother, a queen who betrayed her husband and got seduced by the prince 's uncle Claudius. She remarried with him and thereafter obeyed every order from Claudius. Gertrude is objectified by Claudius, as he said: "my crown, mine own ambition and my Queen." To him the queen is one of his possessions and not even listed as the first. This suggested Gertrude is used by Claudius to get to the throne. The hasty marriage only a few weeks after her husband 's death shows her great dependence on men. Hamlet 's proclamation that he will "speak daggers to her, but use none" illustrate that he perceives her to be inferior, weak enough to fall foul to his words. Overall, Gertrude is the type of women that cannot survive without a man in her life, with such a weak soul she betrays her own husband and son.…

    • 546 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Foil Of Hamlet's Mother In Hamlet By William Shakespeare
    • 215 Words
    • 1 Page

    The Foil Of Hamlet's Mother In Hamlet By William Shakespeare

    In William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Gertrude, Queen of Denmark, is Hamlet’s mother. Her first appearance is in Act 1, Scene 2 and last seen in Act 5, Scene 2, when she was poisoned. Gertrude is a loving and strong-willed character and although Hamlet views her as weak and lust driven, her intentions are pure in that she only aspires for everyone to get along. As a mother she is only concerned for her son. However despite her good qualities, her lack of intelligence and misjudgement of people is a cause of the tragic events that occur. Gertrude is a foil to her son Hamlet because of their contrasting qualities. She does not reflect about herself in the play alone, thus meaning she is motivated emotionally. Gertrude’s actions is a major factor of…

    • 215 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Hamlet And Ophelia Analysis
    • 839 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Hamlet And Ophelia Analysis

    In many of William Shakespeare’s works, it is evident that Shakespeare is alluding the lack of intelligence and weakness of women. “Frailty, thy name is woman” (1.2.146), quoted by Shakespeare in Hamlet is an example of this. In Hamlet, Shakespeare depicts characters like Ophelia and Gertrude as demonstrating weakness and being tools of manipulation by the males in their lives. Their actions and fates are greatly influenced by the men's decisions and are led by the men in their lives, which gives them a weak image. Women in the Elizabethan era were reliant on men to make their decisions as they were oppressed and disregarded in society. As Alex Gilbertson states, “this was not a glorious time…

    • 839 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Gender Roles In Hamlet
    • 1271 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Gender Roles In Hamlet

    William Shakespeare’s Hamlet is an intricate literary masterpiece, made up of a conglomeration of different techniques that add dimension, color, and texture to the story. There are countless uses of characterization, dark humor, and many other literary components in Hamlet, all of which are used to give the reader a more emotional and thought provoking reading or listening experience, and insight into the twisted storyline. One of the most interesting of Shakespeare’s techniques is the characterization of each gender as a separate entity. He seems to give the main characters traits that will lead them to follow certain trends for their gender. In Hamlet, Shakespeare characterizes the main male characters as men with power who tend to exercise…

    • 1271 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Misogyny In Hamlet
    • 626 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Misogyny In Hamlet

    Walking down the street and encountering a crazy person, one would wonder how that person is capable of navigating home. How can a mentally unstable person function in society? When a tragedy occurs, people handle it differently. A stereotype about women is that they are emotional to the point of insanity. Society views men as decision makers and action takers. This sexism instilled in society could lead a person to craziness in itself. The constricting idea that each gender has a role in tragedy is troubling. When a father dies, the man takes the responsibility over. Society assumed the daughter is emotionally unstable and in need of assistance. In Hamlet, Ophelia is parallel to Hamlet in the events that occur, showing that death is an equalizer of even the deepest misogyny.…

    • 626 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Women In Hamlet
    • 548 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Women In Hamlet

    “Women may fall, when there’s no strength in men” –William Shakespeare. William Shakespeare conveys this message about women being inferior to men through all his plays. He says that men are women’s strength and are the reason for women’s survival. Shakespeare shows women to be obedient and weak, whereas, men to be strong and independent. Once again, Shakespeare continued this trend of showing women to be dominated and influenced figures in his play Hamlet. Hamlet was written in 160 set in Denmark during the Elizabethan era. A very significant part of the play Hamlet is gender roles where the men are powerful, dominant, and revengeful but, the women are fragile, manipulated, and simply weak. There are many examples throughout Hamlet in…

    • 548 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Examples Of Objectification Of Women In Hamlet
    • 650 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Examples Of Objectification Of Women In Hamlet

    Objectification is defined as, “a notion central to feminist theory…the seeing and/or treating a person, usually a woman, as an object.”¹ There are several ways to look at the idea of the objectification of women in literature. Shakespeare’s, Hamlet can be a prime example of the objectification of women when viewed through a feminist lens, due to the use of violability, instrumentality, and silencing by the misogynistic patriarchy, towards the women of the noble family.…

    • 650 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics