Ophelia's Loss Of Innocence In Hamlet

Shakespeare’s magnum opus, Hamlet, is a tale of betrayal, insanity, and murder. But it is also one of the fragility of the human mind and soul and the effects that loss can have on someone. This plight is exemplified by the character Ophelia. Her ignorance and innocence turns out to be her tragic flaw when her father is murdered. She does not know how to cope with loss and goes insane, which leads to her eventually drowning herself. She is not properly prepared for the real world and that is evident when she goes insane. It is understandable to grieve the loss of a loved one, but to go crazy and kill yourself is a whole different story. Ophelia was ignorant due to the fact that she has been sheltered since the day she was born, never knowing what goes on in the real world or even outside …show more content…
She saw the best in people and A scene which perfectly illustrates Ophelia’s innocence is the bed scene and the effect that it had on her. Her reaction to Hamlet exposing himself was, “Lord Hamlet, with his doublet all unbraced; No hat upon his head; his stockings fouled, Ungartered, and down-gyvèd to his ankle; Pale as his shirt; his knees knocking each other; And with a look so piteous in purport As if he had been loosed out of hell To speak of horrors—he comes before me.” (II.i) She wasn’t outraged by what Hamlet had done, she was just confused about why he did it! Another example of Ophelia’s innocence is after her father died, she was talking about flowers. “There’s fennel for you, and columbines.—There’s rue for you, and here’s some for me. We may call it “herb of grace” o' Sundays.—Oh, you must wear your rue with a difference.—There’s a daisy. I would give you some violets, but they withered all when my father died. They say he made a good end.” This sounds like pure rambling at first but upon closer inspection it can be deducted that Ophelia was alluding to the crimes that Hamlet and Claudius had