Does Hamlet Hate Women
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Does Hamlet Hate Women?
In Shakespeare's "Hamlet," the prince is a confused young man, devastated by the murder of his father. As the action unfolds, he grows ever hostile towards his mother and
his love, Ophelia; the depths of his cruelty towards them make him appear a misogynist. Despite his actions and words, however, Hamlet does not hate women. In his anger and hurt, he lashes out at everyone, including those two he loves the most, especially when he feels that they have let him down.
If one is looking for proof that Hamlet is a misogynist, his soliloquy in Act I, scene ii might very well provide the damning evidence: "Frailty thy name is woman!" (line 146). Taken out of context, Hamlet's utterances are general; all women are weak. But in this soliloquy, Hamlet has been going on about how hurt he is that his mother married Claudius so soon after his father's death. Hamlet makes this generalization out of his anger at Gertrude's actions rather than anger at all women...