2 Analysis of Hamlet from a Feminist Perspective.4
3 Contrastive Analysis of Ophelia and Haydee from a Feminist Perspective. 6
Conclusion .10
Acknowledgements 11
Bibliography12
1. Introduction
1.1About the Authors and the Novels
William Shakespeare is the most remarkable playwright and poet of England in the period of the renaissance. He was recognized as the pinnacle of English renaissance. His master piece, Hamlet, is considered the summit of his art. Hamlet, or The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare between 1599 and 1602. Setting in the Kingdom of Denmark, the play dramatizes the revenge prince Hamlet exacts on his uncle Claudius for murdering the old king Hamlet (Claudius's brother and prince Hamlet's father), and then succeeding to the throne and taking as his wife Gertrude, the old king's widow and prince Hamlet's mother. The charm of the play lays in Hamlet’s mental activity during his revenge and his love tragedy with Ophelia who became insane and died because of the prince’s madness.
Another world famous literary work which has the same theme is The Count of Monte Cristo. Alexandre Dumas is a French writer who was famous around the world for his novel The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers. The Count of Monte Cristo is an adventure novel written in 1844. It is an adventure story primarily concerned with themes of hope, justice, vengeance, mercy and forgiveness. It focuses on a man who is wrongfully imprisoned, escapes from jail, acquires a fortune and sets about getting revenge on those responsible for his imprisonment. However, his plans have devastating consequences for the innocent as well as the guilty. In addition, it is a story that involves romance, loyalty, betrayal and selfishness, shown throughout the story as characters slowly reveal their true inner nature. Haydee is one of the most important female characters in this novel. She is the daughter of Ali Pasha. She was adopted by the count to testify against Fernand in the court. The count took her as a tool to revenge. However, she loved the count. As last, she spoke up her love and went off with the count together.
1.2 Literature Review
The words “feminism” and “feminist”, first appeared in the late 19th century, aimed at defining, establishing and defending equal political, economic, cultural and social rights for women. The feminist movement produced both feminist fiction and non-fiction, and created new interest in women’s writing. It also prompted a general reevaluation of women’s historical and academic contributions in response to the belief that women’s lives and contributions have been underrepresented as areas of scholarly interest. In literature, feminists criticize paternity and male authority and encourage females to think independently.
With the rising of feminism, scholars began to re-analyze characters of classical master pieces, especially female images of William Shakespeare’s tragedies and Haydee in The Count of Monte Cristo. Those females, such as Gertrude and Ophelia, may cause the protagonist’s tragedy or maybe a chessman in the revenge plan, or unintentionally put the protagonist into the dilemma between love and revenge. But one point in common is that they are always victims of this revenge. 复仇视角下女性形象研究以《哈姆雷特》和《基督山伯爵》为例(2):http://www.youerw.com/yingyu/lunwen_14606.html