'Comparison of Ophelia characters in Hamlet and Child of God Essay\r'

'The play, sm each town, by Shakespeargon and the novel, tike of idol, by Lolita filing cabinets tells of Ophelia l shell that displays similar base behaviors. In both(prenominal) juncture and Child of perfection, the two Ophelias atomic number 18 static iodin-dimensional characters who atomic number 18 both victims of their circumstances. However, the Ophelia in settlement meet a tragic leftover while the Ophelia in Child of God is capable to abide a positive ending. In short, wedges’ Ophelia became the tragic heroine that Shakespe ar’s did non.\r\nThe significant and most important simile between the characters of Ophelia in Hamlet and Child of God is that both are a static-one dimensional character. These characters do not change throughout the play or novel and continued to be predictable. They act analogous robots that do not exercise an aggressive govern over their get lives and effect any purposive independent personal change in their enviro nment. They are weak-willed, soft, fallible, tender bes whose m personal function and purpose in animateness is to be dominated and apply by otherwise to a greater extent aggressive, strong characters surrounding them.\r\nFile’s Ophelia is said to be, â€Å"naive about the humankind and the mountain in it” and Shakespeare’s Ophelia is described by Hamlet as â€Å"frailty, thy name is woman” (Files 65; Shakespeare & deoxyadenosine monophosphate; Hapgood 116). Ophelia in Child of God is used by his familiar for his self-serving, passionate desires while the Ophelia in Hamlet is used by her father and blood brother to be a spy against the man she loves, Hamlet. Files’ Ophelia vomit up a little exactly tenuous resistance to his brother’s advances (â€Å" only I’m your sister”) perhaps because her situation is more(prenominal) delicate while Shakespeare’s Ophelia readily obeyed without scruple (Files 68).\r\nI t is said that Files’ Ophelia â€Å"loved her brother…and would arrest agnize anything to disembowel him happy” (Files 68). Moreover, the two characters in both stories are both predictable creatures that one could easy predict to either fall when circumstances are gravely or ecstasy when circumstances are good or in their favor. Sure overflowing Shakespeare’s Ophelia became a madwoman when circumstances turn from bad to worse, as first, she is betrayed by her lover, Hamlet, who tells her â€Å"I love you not”, and then second her father is murdered by Hamlet himself (Shakespeare & ampere;Hapgood 182).\r\nFiles’ Ophelia, on the other hand, overly almost went crazy when her child dies in the fervency after Lay left her, and would surely have gone crazy if her mother did not make the initiative to turn her life around by sending her to college in another State. Such behaviors award both Ophelias’ incapability to direct their stimulate requirement in bitchiness of their circumstances. One reason is that they bet to be women who have no opinion of their own. In Hamlet, Ophelia did not defend Hamlet against her father but willingly submits to their plans even though it may diminished the man she loves.\r\nSome scholars who made an analysis of her character accused her, that because of her willingness to be used against him, she therefore does not really love Hamlet (Madariaga 41). However, it is obvious that this Ophelia cannot make up her mind, as suggested by her reply â€Å"I do not know, my lord, what I should think”(Shakespeare & Hapgood 127). Similarly, the viewmingly innocent Ophelia in Child of God who ironically loves to read holds that could have imparted her knowledge from which to fashion her own opinions is easily convinced by her own brother to have sexual relationship with him.\r\n both(prenominal) authors therefore, presents two Ophelia’s who emulate and illustrate the dangers of the noted frailty , naivety and tenderness of feminity for it, in fact, exposes women to subordination and hence, to becoming victims of circumstances. On the other hand, one of the study residuums that a reader can observe is that Ophelia in Child of God had an incestuous love bout with his brother Lay while the Ophelia in Hamlet, who besides has a close relationship with his brother, did not. It appears that the major difference lies in the brothers themselves.\r\nLay is generally a wicked, selfish man (as attested afterwards by destroying his own brother’s life to drugs). His childhood is greatly influenced by his aunt Sukie who is also a wicked, selfish woman. His love and concern for Ophelia, therefore, is driven more by his passionate lust and using persuasive dustup (â€Å"I thought you said you loved me”), convinces her to venture into an incestuous love social occasion with him. He later left her pregnant and drive her away from his l ife when Ophelia establishes contact with him (Files 68). On the other hand, the Ophelia in Hamlet has a brother, Laertes, who genuinely loves her.\r\nHe thinks Hamlet is exactly going to destroy her virginal innocence (â€Å"your incorrupt treasure open, to his unmaster’d importunity”) and therefore warns her (Shakespeare & Hapgood 124). File’s Ophelia recognizes that it is sin to have incestuous affair with his brother but she speaks with little credit (â€Å"what happen between us ain’t normal”, and when Lay asks her who said it she replied, â€Å"it just ain’t”) indicating that she was not as interested to the good implications of her actions (Files 69). What is important for her is that her brother loves her and he wants her.\r\nMany people present this kind of argument when confronted with their sinful or questionable actions. As long as their ineluctably are met they do not care so overmuch what the law or others say. Interestingly, the people who are capable of this kind of lifestyle are those who are less pricked by conscience. Nowhere in the book in the Child of God can one see that Ophelia struggles with guilt over her incestuous affair with Lay. When she was almost overcome with madness, it was not because of guilt but because her child (the one she sired with her brother) is burned to final stage.\r\nOn the other hand, one would wonder what would have happen to Shakespeare’s Ophelia if Laertes had made physical advances to her same what Lay did to his sister. It is quite a possible that she would be gone crazy or mad also. The reason is that she seemed to be endowed with a higher degree of conscience, arising from a nurtured family loyalty, than the Ophelia in Child of God is although looking at both their lives in entirety it seems that they do not â€Å"struggle much with moral choices or alternatives” (Shakespeare et. l. 78 ).\r\nIt is apparent in Hamlet that the madnes s of Shakespeare’s Ophelia’s is caused by the grief over her father’s death ,nevertheless, judging from the events surrounding her father’s death( like Hamlet’s insult over her treason and the possible likelihood that she thinks Hamlet killed her father in revenge) it could be that it is in fact the culmination of all the guilty feelings she harbors inside as she cries out, â€Å"O! hurt is me, to have seen what I have seen, what I see” (Shakespeare & Hapgood 185).\r\nThe authors therefore do show that the relationships that both developed with their brothers is largely influenced by the behavior of their brother themselves although one cannot discount the role of the degree of moral conscience in these two characters. Shakespeare’s Ophelia is more inclined to be pricked by conscience (therefore more likely to avoid it) than File’s Ophelia is. another(prenominal) significant difference is that File’s Ophelia became a tragic heroine that Shakespeare’s Ophelia did not.\r\nIt can be noted that these two fragile maidens encounters and are caught up in a tragic family drama. However, the life of File’s Ophelia’s can be said to be more tragic (and cursed with sin) than that of Shakespeare’s Ophelia for her fall is tainted with family murders, family hatred, gender biases (homosexuality) and incest and therefore more devoted to failure and bitter end. On the other hand, the Ophelia in Hamlet can be said to have only a tragic incident in the murder of her father by her lover Hamlet.\r\n weigh these two backgrounds, one therefore can conclude, that Shakespeare’s Ophelia had a more chance to experience a triumphant life. Unfortunately, the opposite is true. Shakespeare’s Ophelia became crazy and suspect to commit suicide while File’s Ophelia overcome her tragic past. Their different endings are in reality caused by the respective lack or teemingness o f support that they get from others. As mentioned earlier, both of these Ophelia do not take initiative for their destinies.\r\nTherefore, the key to their triumph relies heavily on the people surrounding them. The Ophelia of Hamlet both lost her father and Hamlet and with her feel for brother far in Paris, Ophelia is put in a most distressing state( â€Å" driven into dread(a) terms”, as Laertes put it) , struggling with her herb of grace and grief alone which eventually caused her madness( Shakespeare & Hapgood 244). File’s Ophelia on the other hand, in spite of the murder, hatred and incest surrounding her life, nevertheless, has a very appurtenant family.\r\nHer parents protect her from possible harm, she is sent to school by an equally supportive family friend and at to the lowest degree she has one brother, Polo, who cares so much about her and is with her in her new life as a student. thus later she met a man who loves her and accepted her for who she is. Without being very straightforward about it therefore, the two authors implicitly illustrate the value and importance of support towards fragile weak characters in attaining their triumph over the adversities of their lives.\r\nAs a conclusion, even though the Ophelia’s of Hamlet and Child of God displays and possesses the same weak, naive character and tender feminine qualities that is subject to domination and growth they are, however, destined to have different endings. The reasons are payable mainly to their ability or the lack of it to be influenced by conscience as well as to their respective differences in getting support from others.\r\n'