Tragedy, in literature, is when someone falls from a
position of greatness, usually as the result of some flaw in their character or in their
fortune. In "Hamlet", King Hamlet died, in part, because his brother coveted Queen
Gertrude. We know Claudius desired Gertrude because, in Act 3, sc. 3, when he is in the
chapel, he says that he killed his brother for the crown, his ambition, and the queen
(line 55). In that sense, Gertrude helps to bring about her husband's fall. Hamlet,
himself, sees women as weak-willed but also as possessing the ability to make fools of
me. He says in Act 1, sc. 2, l. 146, that women are weak and fickle. He indicates that
his mother seemed to hang on every word his father spoke, wanted to be around him
constantly, and worshipped the ground he walked on, but as soon as he was dead, she
switched her attention and love to another man. Then in Act 3, sc. 2, Hamlet tells
Ophelia that women put on acts to get what they want from men (ll. 145-153). Hamlet's
words to Ophelia in this scene and in the next scene of Act 3, before the performers put
on their play, indicate Hamlet's anger toward her and toward all women. The anger
toward women continues in scene 4 of Act 3, when Hamlet goes to his mother's room and he
berates her for marrying Claudius after she'd had such an excellent husband in King
Hamlet. Hamlet believes that women are fickle creatures as far as their feelings go,
and that they don't care who they hurt in the process of loving or ceasing to
love.
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
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