Essay On Feminist Criticism In Hamlet

In a world ruled by men, women have little to no say. This is no different in Shakespeare’s tragedy, Hamlet. In the play it can be understood that Ophelia, one of only two female characters in Hamlet, is oppressed by all the male characters with whom she comes in contact with. Left with no free will or choice of what to do with her own life, missing a mother figure, she becomes a pawn in the hands of her father, Polonius, and to a lesser extent Hamlet. Ophelia is manipulated until her mind is completely broken and is pushed to the point of no return. Feminist criticism will show us that this play is based on a masculine hegemony that leaves absolutely no room for motherless women like Ophelia. In the conversations between Ophelia and her father in Act I, scene iii and Act II, scene i, where Polonius instructs Ophelia what she can and cannot do with her own heart in relations to Hamlet, we see this masculine hegemony taking over, eliminating any sense of free will. Along with these scenes there are others which through feminist criticism will show that both Polonius and Hamlet slowly break down a young girl, by controlling her pursuit of love and constricting …show more content…
What do I believe this criticism can teach us about Hamlet? To answer that I must first explain what feminist criticism does. It, “critiques patriarchal language and literature by exposing how these reflect masculine ideology. It examines gender politics in works and traces the subtle construction of masculinity and femininity, and their relative status, positionings, and marginalizations within works” (Micheal Delahoyde). In the play, it is clear that Ophelia is not at her own will, but that of her fathers. By using critics such as, Catharine Stimpson, Sharon Marcus, and Eve Sedgwick, I will show how Ophelia becomes a pawn to her father. Her father, who wishes to use her for his own