Ophelia’s Descent Into Madness Essay

Shakespeare, through his intricate uses of symbolism and dramatic irony, arranges a brilliantly particular account of how junctures psychological upheaval served as the hotheaded force of Ophelias swelling insanity and imminent suicide. He floods the advance(prenominal) acts with an impending sense of confusion within Ophelia, for her feelings toward hamlet greatly telep hone circuit those of her brother and father. Ophelia drives to willingly take heed of her familys advice as the prince finds himself removed(p) from a lucid pattern of thought. However, because her feelings for him are genuine, this serves only to exalt her mental strain. In the height of settlements incoherent rage, he provides Ophelia with the final medium for her ensuing madness. The murder of Polonius is the greatest among many factors that were contributed by Hamlet to the somber fate of Ophelia. A prelude, composed of warnings from Polonius and Laertes, is tactfully set up by Shakespeare during Ophel ias inertial appearances in the play, aiding in the preparation for her succeeding mental deterioration.-Pol. What is between you? Give me up the truth.-Oph. He hath, my passe-partout, of late make many tenders of his affection to me.-Pol. Affection, puh You speak like a green girl Unsifted in such perilous circumstance. Do you believe his tenders as you adjure them?-Oph. I do not know, my lord, what I should think.(I, iii, ln.107-113)Ophelia openly professes her confusion. Polonius response is presented in a manner which is clearly intended to sincerely disdain Hamlet before his daughter, making obvious his imprint of their involvement. His intent for her actions, however, will unless magnify her confusion. Ophelia concedes that she is not aware of a solution with which to halt or even improve this site. For this reason, no preventive measures are taken, only allowing the situation to worsen.Hamlets mind grows much and more clouded as his goal becomes clear, and in the mids t of his pervading preoccupation, he pushes Ophelia to the point of mental breakdown. This notion appears in the molybdenum act, after Ophelia first sees a deranged Hamlet.-Oph.Lord Hamlet with a look so piteous in purport as if he had been loosed out of hell to speak of horrors -he comes before me-Pol. Mad for thy love?-Oph. My lord I do not know but, I truly do fear it.(II, I, ln. 87-97) Her confusion has evolved into a state of dread, and this dread will begin to penetrate her consciousness as it grows more and more intense. Polonius suggests that Hamlet may have fallen victim to the very ecstasy of love. Yet, Ophelias response is peculiar in its morbid tone, for if love is the probable force, she displays no form of satisfaction for its effect on Hamlet. During an run later in the story, he tells Ophelia,-Ham. I did love you once-Oph. Indeed, my lord, you make me believe so-Ham.You should not have believed me, for virtue cannot so (inoculate) our sometime(a) stock but we s hall relish of it. I loved you not.-Oph. I was the more deceived And I, of ladies most deject and wretched, That sucked the honey of his musicked vows(III, I, ln.125-130,169-170)Again, her mind is twisted by Hamlets unconscious fraudulence. His apathy attacks and consumes her innocence, takes grip of her mind and ultimately destroys her spirit. In the above quote, she describes her opinion of Hamlets present character, that of an untruthful user. Moreover, however, she feels nave, placing undue blasted on herself and enlarging the gap between herself and reality.As the impending tragedy becomes more and more apparent, Ophelia is finally and alone consumed by the delirium of her sick mind. The most pregnant factor in this event is Polonius murder. Her condition is explained by the king after she makes it obvious.-King.Thick, and unwholesome in thoughts and whispers. For good Polonius death, and we have done but greenly poor Ophelia divided from herself and her fair judgment.(IV, v, ln.81-85)Ophelia, who was once nearly flawless, now moments from suicide, has been completely mentally shattered by Hamlet and has made it quite obvious. He was the fate of her father, and had apparently manipulated her quite ruthlessly. Her demise is inevitable, for her only love had hone mad and methodically destroyed all that was her reality. Shakespeare is distinct in his word picture of this downfall.The obvious becomes just that when the aim of the author is discerned through the symbolic congruencies and events which on the button outlined the tragic decline of Ophelias character. The author provides a large amount of foreshadowing in the early acts. The tragic hero because drags her into the same hell that is his personal realm. He accomplishes this by eliminating everything that had sustained her. Eventually, a the factors developed, she was overwhelmed by these acts, a reality becomes nothing more than an illusion, and she falls victim to the limits of her own mind.