Ophelia

       I believe Shakespeare tried to portray Ophelia as an important person that helped develop Hamlet's character. Ophelia was a loving character that was madly in love with Hamlet but was insecure about her feelings. Shakespeare seems to show that Ophelia is easily persuaded by her father and brother opinions of Hamlet's supposedly true nature. Without a mother's guidance, Ophelia seems to be lost and insecure of Hamlet's feelings for her and is swayed by her father and brother's opinions. She is Hamlet's lover who truly impacts him the most because he does love her. She is an innocent girl of that time period who had no insecurities like any other girl and was dutiful of Hamlet's love. Ophelia may have portrayed the average girl that has her doubts of their lovers love for them and have relatives who disapprove of their relationship.
      Although, after Hamlet murdered her father Ophelia became crazy and lost complete sense. When she died she might have let herself drown or she might have been to crazy to notice. I think that she did not know what was happening when she was drowning. She was to out of it that she did not even make sense of her falling in the water. There have been many cases where people just lose themselves and are never able to comprehend their surroundings. In Ophelia's last moments she did not know she was about to die. A father's death impact people differently and some may go mad or crazy. For example, women have postpartum depression after giving birth in which they lose themselves and most of the time end up killing their babies. Ophelia did not know she was  dying at that time and if she did she probably let herself die. The only thing that could have prevented her from dying is if some good person were then she could have saved her. Although it is not stated whether Gertrude were there or not, I believe that she would not have saved Ophelia because she held pity for her. She saw what Ophelia had become and wanted to end her pain, which meant letting her die there.
      I feel that Hamlet, Her brother, and father had all contributed to Ophelia's madness. It was like a cause and effect type situation where her father and brother made her break off her relationship with Hamlet, which in return made him turn "mad." Then he killed Polonius which drove Ophelia to madness be cause she believed Hamlet's killing her father was her fault. I feel sorry for Ophelia because she is a naive young woman that has no guidance whatsoever and just listens to whatever her father and brother say. Of course the Mother, if she had one, would lead her and tell her if the relationship would work or not. Her brother's opinion is biased because he thinks Hamlet is like him and he will throw her away once he is done with her. Although when the picture painted by John Everett Millais shows Ophelia at peace compared to the other paintings. It looks as if she has found peace and is sleeping beautifully instead of crazy like she was. Everett shows Ophelia as a beauty that has found rest and is a normal person who does not portray the characteristics of ever being crazy.
      As for the eulogy I would begin by saying she was a lovely young woman that was kind to others. Ophelia was considerate of both her father and brother, and always took their opinions to mind. She loved her father and always took to account his well beings to her. She might have gone mad at the end of the road but it was not her fault. She was lost after having father die by her lover's hand. She did not intend her life to be this way but it just occurred. Ophelia was a bright girl that truly loved life and was naive to the world. So I invite everybody to honor Ophelia's death and not have malicious thoughts of how she died. Her death was sudden and we did not expect it to occur but she did not think it would happen either. So lets all pray for Ophelia to find peace and to find the light at the end of which ever road she takes.