The Shakesperian Blonde

What does William Shakespeare have to say about women? Quite a bit, actually. But his writing of the character Gertrude in his play Hamlet can be clearly seen to tie in with one viewpoint of women: the weaker-sex. To be fair, it must be said that he presents both sides of the issue, but let Gertrude be the focus of this study. Gertrude is a shallow, flighty, sensual woman, whose character is summarized by Hamlet …

…against her physical nature. The place that one is the most sensitive is also the place where one gathers the most pleasure. Shakespeare presented Gertrude as a character that was “keen” in a physical way. Gertrude possesses a depth of spirit measured in angstroms, an attention span that rivals the half-life cesium, and a sex drive to move planets. Gertrude is the Shakespearian blonde: shallow, flighty, and sensual. Shakespeare has excelled in presenting the weaker-sex.