Ophelia is a character in William Shakespeare's drama Hamlet (1599–1601). She is a young noblewoman of Denmark, the daughter of Polonius, sister of Laertes and potential wife of Prince Hamlet, who, due to Hamlet's actions, ends up in a state of madness that ultimately leads to her drowning.
John William Waterhouse's painting Ophelia (1894)
Hamlet, Act IV, Scene V (Ophelia Before the King and Queen), Benjamin West, 1792
Ophelia by John Everett Millais (1852) is part of the Tate Gallery collection. His painting influenced the image in Kenneth Branagh's film Hamlet.
Ophelia by Alexandre Cabanel (1883)
The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, often shortened to Hamlet, is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play depicts Prince Hamlet and his attempts to exact revenge against his uncle, Claudius, who has murdered Hamlet's father in order to seize his throne and marry Hamlet's mother. Hamlet is considered among the "most powerful and influential tragedies in the English language", with a story capable of "seemingly endless retelling and adaptation by others". It is widely considered one of the greatest plays of all time. Three different early versions of the play are extant: the First Quarto ; the Second Quarto ; and the First Folio. Each version includes lines and passages missing from the others.
Hamlet portrayed by Edwin Booth (c. 1870)
Hamlet mistakenly stabs Polonius (Artist: Coke Smyth, 19th century).
The gravedigger scene. (Artist: Eugène Delacroix, 1839)
A facsimile of Gesta Danorum by Saxo Grammaticus, which contains the legend of Amleth