In Shakespeare’s tragedy, Hamlet, it is possible for the audience or reader to come to view Ophelia as an innocent victim trapped in the most tragic circumstances. She was anobedient and loving daughter to her father Polonius. Ophelia obeyed him, when heordered her to stop seeing Hamlet, her love, and even when she was asked to betray herlove, acting as a decoy to allow the King and Polonius to discover the source of Hamlet’sgrief. Her naive nature is evident in this love that she has for Hamlet, even though hepromised to marry her, took her virginity, mistreated her, and finally left her. Her youngage and motherless upbringing left Ophelia completely unprepared for a crisis like thedeath of her father and the insanity of Hamlet.However, it is possible to interpret Ophelia’s eventual insanity as a result of herguilt and involvement in her own sexual rebellion. In the 1996 movie version of Hamlet,directed by Kenneth Branagh, Ophelia, played by Kate Winslet, is not portrayed as theentirely innocent girl one expects. During the course of the movie, the viewer can watchOphelia evolve from the young innocent girl to a sexual woman, and then, finally, awoman stricken with grief and insanity. The most poignant example of this metamorphosis appears in Act IV, Scene V ofShakespeare’s Hamlet. It takes place long after Ophelia is set up by the King andPolonius to act as a pawn in their attempt to discover the reason for Hamlet’s insanity.Also prior to Act IV, Scene V, Hamlet gives the famous "Get thee to a nunnery" speech,leaving a frightened Ophelia. This scene is also the first time we see Ophelia after theaccidental murder of her father by Hamlet. This scene begins with Horatio and some gentlemen convincing Gertrude, theQueen, to speak with Ophelia, who has gone mad. Ophelia enters and speaks of love,betrayal, and her father’s death through song, verse and finally prose. She exits, justbefore her brother, ...
