Ophelia's Madness

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Good girl gone mad! In the play, The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, the fair Ophelia was introduced as mad in act four, scene five. The reasoning for her madness was caused after her father, Polonius, was murdered by the love of her life, Price Hamlet. During her madness Ophelia gives out flowers to people she knows. Ophelia uses flowers to define and represent character in the play. Ophelia finds a way to express her true feelings towards everyone. To Ophelia “the language of flowers is very ancient,” (Blackmore) each flower having its own symbolic meaning. She uses flowers as a “ metaphor for human condition,”( Loughran) as a image of her heartache and depression. The sorrowing Ophelia is referring to her brother, Laertes, when she shares the Rosemary, “for remembrance,”(4.5 51-53) she tells Laertes. Ophelia wants her brother to recall who put her father, Polonius, to death. Another flower she gives her brother are pansies and sates, “that's for thought,” (4.5 51-53) which symbolize care and hope. Ophelia gives flowers to Queen Gertrude also. Ophelia presents Queen Gertrude with two flowers. While passing them out she states, “there's funnel for you,” (4.5 56) a flower that notes flatter. Even though this flower notes flatter, it dies really quickly. The funnel can also be noted as sorrow. …show more content…
Daisy and Violets are flowers she does not give to anyone. Holding them with a melancholy look she stated, “there's a daisy,” (4.5 57-59) she said sadly.It symbolizes innocence. Ophelia thinks nobody deserves the flower because all of them are guilty in some way or another. Ophelia says emotionally, “I would give you some violets, but they withered all when my father died”(4.5 59-62). There is nobody else that will be faithful to her. All the violets dried up because they symbolize faith and there is no more since her father died. All of Ophelia’s Flowers had a meaning to them that related to the people she gave them

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