Hamlet

Hamlet was a patriarchal madman. Him taking Ophelia’s virginity and not respecting her wishes to be her husband. Maybe from his late father, but his actions are a direct indication of the “male bravado”. In class we discussed how Hamlet is very much like a whining baby, feeling that he is entitled to certain things from certain people. Personally I feel like “entitled” is a judicial term, like those used in contracts and agreements. As far as life is concerned, there are no agreements or certainties, so I feel that the only thing we are entitled to is death. Hamlet took his belief of self pride and self worth to the point where he ended up going against his friends, family, and country. Until this class, I’ve never paid that much attention to the story of Hamlet and always been told he was the good guy. But after reading the story for myself and listening to some of the discussions in class I feel that Hamlet was the one who may have been wrong. Perhaps Claudius was doing the right thing for his family and his country, Gertrude found the man she’s really needed, and Ophelia definitely deserved better treatment from Hamlet.-J. Ramsey