Ophelias diagnosis with PTSD humanizes a character that audiences have pitied for centuries, but with whom they could not empathize. Unlike many psychological ailments, this disorder does not connote “insanity,” to which many viewers cannot relate.

What led to the mental decline of Ophelia?

Why does Ophelia go mad? Ophelia goes mad because her father, Polonius, whom she deeply loved, has been killed by Hamlet. The fact that this grief drives Ophelia to madness reveals her overwhelming feelings of hopelessness and powerlessness, and the power that the men in Ophelias life wield over her.

What mental illness does Hamlet have?

The interpretation which best fits the evidence best is that Hamlet was suffering from an acute depressive illness, with some obsessional features. He could not make a firm resolve to act. In Shakespeares time there was no concept of acute depressive illness, although melancholy was well known.

What does Ophelias madness symbolize?

Also, her madness represents her assimilation with Hamlet, who is similarly mad. Her assimilation allows her to revive Hamlets lost love for her. Like Hamlet, Ophelia also adopts madness to be a means to confront death and betrayal. In other words, madness provides them a space for escape from the cruel reality.

What happened to Ophelia and why?

Ophelia is a character in Hamlet, by William Shakespeare. She is driven mad when her father, Polonius, is murdered by her lover, Hamlet. She dies while still very young, suffering from grief and madness. Gertrude describes how Ophelia fell into the river while picking flowers and slowly drowned, singing all the while.

How does Ophelia have PTSD?

Ophelias lack of people to comfort her during the trauma further primes her for the disorder. As research has revealed, “social support,” or the lack thereof, during severe shocks “affects the level of symptoms” of PTSD (Brewin 37). Her access to social support is so limited that she turns to a stranger for help.

Is Hamlet mad or pretending?

Despite the evidence that Hamlet actually is mad, we also see substantial evidence that he is just pretending. Hamlet tells Horatio and Marcellus that he plans to “put an antic disposition on” (I.v). His “mad” remarks to Polonius—“you are a fishmonger” (II.

What happens to Ophelia at the end of Act 4?

In Act 4 Scene 7, Queen Gertrude reports that Ophelia had climbed into a willow tree (There is a willow grows aslant the brook), and that the branch had broken and dropped Ophelia into the brook, where she drowned. Gertrude says that Ophelia appeared incapable of her own distress.

Does Hamlet really go mad?

The YES, HE WAS MAD side: Hamlet appears to act mad when he hears of his fathers murder. At the time he speaks “wild and whirling words” that appear senseless to Horatio and Marcellus [Act I, Scene v, lines 127-134].

What is Ophelia to Hamlet?

Ophelia (/əˈfiːliə/) is a character in William Shakespeares drama Hamlet. She is a young noblewoman of Denmark, the daughter of Polonius, sister of Laertes and potential wife of Prince Hamlet, who, due to Hamlets actions, ends up in a state of madness that ultimately leads to her drowning.

What has happened to Ophelia?

In Act 4 Scene 7, Queen Gertrude reports that Ophelia had climbed into a willow tree (There is a willow grows aslant the brook), and that the branch had broken and dropped Ophelia into the brook, where she drowned.