Ophelia's Tragedy

Harold Bloom, in "Hamlet: Poem Unlimited" is not shy when stating who he believes is responsible for Ophelia's insanity and ensuing death. The blame lies directly on Hamlet as Bloom states, "Yet in effect, he is murdering Ophelia, and starting her on the path to suicide" (Bloom 41). Ophelia loves Hamlet with a passion that can be recognized by the swooning and obsessive talking about the prince. Bloom speaks of Ophelia with the highest praise, describing …

…to "evoke a unique beauty" with the contrast of her muddy death while singing songs. In the end, Ophelia's insanity was caused by Hamlet's lack of love, and the murdering of her father. Bloom's statement, "Shakespeare's wisdom avoided the only fate for Ophelia that would have been more plangent that her death-in-water: marriage to Hamlet the Dane," (Bloom 44) sums up his overall belief that Hamlet's lack of love and compassion killed Ophelia, not Ophelia herself.