Folger Shakespeare Library: All About Ophelia Research

Ophelia’s Madness             What can drive a pretty, sweet and intelligent young girl to madness? Ophelia seems to have everything a girl could ever need – a good place in court, a family who dotes on her, and a man who is seriously devoted to her. But like any girl in her time, she is a weak character. She is obedient to a fault (Folger Library, 2010). She is unable to make decisions about what is right and what is wrong, in fact, she may even have trouble realizing that she actually has a choice.             Ophelia’s apparent madness started with the discovery of her father’s death. There are several reasons why Ophelia may have gone mad: (1) she is heart-broken over Hamlet, (2) she is heart-broken over Polonius’ death, (3) She is pregnant, (4) She is torn between Hamlet and Polonius, (5) She is surrounded and manipulated by men (Chen, 2011; Folger Library, 2010; Hamlet Dramaturgy Staff, 2013).             But looking at the overall character of Ophelia, it is possible that her madness is brought about by the realization that her actions has brought to the demise of her father, and the loss of the love of the man she wants to marry. An innocent girl at the onset of the play, it is possible that Ophelia follow...