Hamlet and Ophelia both react to murder. Hamlet's end is murder and Ophelia end is suicide. Why? I think Shakepeare creates a very interesting dimension. Understanding that his motive as we discussed in class had a lot to deal with the male/ female roles during his time, we can explore an additional explanation. Hamlet's father is murdered - he becomes confused and outraged, his father's ghost beseeches him to seek revenge and goes mad, he denies any emotional attachment and disregards his true love. He ends up murdering and being murdered.
Ophelia's father is killed by the man she once loved. She turns inward and kills the only person she knows can stop her suffering : herself.
Both characters are sane individuals whose downfall starts off with murder. They both have no one to turn to and their emotions lay boiling inside of them. I think Shakepeare displays these two similar yet opposite reactions to explore human reaction to sudden change.
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