Ophelia-handout.docx

“Ophelia” Arthur Rimbaud (translated by Daisy Aldan) I. On the calm black wave where the stars sleep Floats white Ophelia like a great lily, Floats very slowly, lying in her long veils… -From distant woods, the flourish of the kill. For more than a thousand years sad Ophelia White phantom, passes, on the long black river. For more than a thousand years her sweet obsession Whispers her love to the evening breeze. The wind embraces her breasts and unfolds her great veils In a corolla gently rocked by waters; Trembling willows weep on her shoulder, Reeds lean on her lofty pensive brow. Bruised water lilies sigh about her, Sometimes in a sleeping alder tree she awakens A nest; a tiny wing-flutter escapes; Mysterious sounds fall from the golden stars. II. O pale Ophelia! fair as snow! You died, child, yes, carried off by a river! Because the winds falling from the great cliffs of Norway Spoke low to you of fierce freedom; Because a wind, tearing your long hair, Bore strange shouts to your dreaming spirit; Because your heart listened the strains of Nature In the wails of the tree and the sighs of the nights Because the voice of mad seas, immense rattle, Because on an April morning, a handsome pale courtier A sorry fool, sat mutely at your feet! Heaven! Love! Freedom! What a dream, O Foolish girl! You melted toward him as snow near flame: Your words were strangled by your great visions -And the terrible Infinite frightened your blue eyes! III. And the Poet says you come at night To gather flowers in the rays of the stars; And he has seen on the water, lying in her long veils, White Ophelia floating, like a great lily,

Ophelia - Polonius’s daughter, a beautiful young woman with whom Hamlet has been in love. Ophelia is a sweet and innocent young girl, who obeys her father and her brother, Laertes. Dependent on men to tell her how to behave, she gives in to Polonius’s schemes to spy on Hamlet. Even in her lapse into madness and death, she remains maidenly, singing songs about flowers and finally drowning in the river amid the flower garlands she had gathered.

Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud (/ræmˈboʊ/[2] or /ˈræmboʊ/; French: [aʁtyʁ ʁɛ̃bo] ( 20 October 1854 – 10 November 1891) was a French poet who is known for his influence on modern literature and arts, which prefigured surrealism. Born in CharlevilleMézières, he started writing at a very young age and was a prodigious student, but abandoned his formal education in his teenage years to run away from home amidst the Franco-Prussian War. After running away, during his late adolescence and early adulthood, he began the bulk of his literary output, but completely stopped writing at the age of 21, after assembling one of his major works, Illuminations. Rimbaud was known to have been a libertine and for being a restless soul, having engaged in an at times violent romantic relationship with fellow poet Paul Verlaine, which lasted nearly two years. After the end of his literary career, he traveled extensively on three continents as a merchant before his death from cancer just after his thirty-seventh birthday. As a poet, Rimbaud is well-known for his contributions to Symbolism and, among other works, A Season in Hell, which was a significant precursor to modernist literature. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_Rimbaud http://www.mag4.net/Rimbaud/poesies/Ophelia.html

1. Explain Symbolisms in the poem

* calm black wave * white Ophelia like a great lily * Trembling willows weep on her shoulder * Because the winds spoke low to you of fierce freedom * Your words were strangled by your visions * The terrible infinite frightened your blue eyes 2. Female Archetypes in Shakespeare’s work 3. Surrealism in Literature Surrealism in literature can be defined as an artistic attempt to bridge together reality and the imagination. Surrealists seek to overcome the contradictions of the conscious and unconscious minds by creating unreal or bizarre stories full of juxtapositions. While the movement itself may have ended, surrealism still exists in much of today's literature. Using surrealist imagery, ideas, or poetic techniques, writers attempt to stretch the boundaries, free the mind, and make readers think. https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-surrealism-definition-artists.htm

The Bawdy Woman

Falsely Accused of Adultery

These characters are sexualized, cheeky and flirtatious. They are often working-class characters such as the Nurse in Romeo and Juliet, Margaret in Much Ado about Nothing or Audrey in As You Like It. Mainly speaking in prose, as befitting their low social status, these characters often use sexual innuendo when conversing. Lowclass characters like these can get away with more risqué behavior – perhaps because they have no fear of losing social status.

Women in Shakespeare’s plays are sometimes wrongly accused of adultery and suffer greatly as a result. For example, Desdemona is killed by Othello who supposes her infidelity and Hero falls terribly ill when she is falsely accused by Claudio. It seems that Shakespeare’s women are judged by their sexuality even when they remain faithful to their husbands and husbands-to-be. Some feminists believe that this demonstrates a male insecurity about female sexuality.

The Tragic Innocent Woman https://www.thoughtco.com/female-characters-in-shakespeare-2984939

These women are often pure and chaste at the beginning of the play, and tragically die once their innocence is lost. In stark contrast to his presentation of bawdy women, Shakespeare’s treatment of young innocent women is fairly brutal. Once their innocence or chastity is taken away, they are literally killed to signify this loss. These characters are generally courtly, high-born characters such as Juliet from Romeo and Juliet, Lavinia from Titus Andronicus or Ophelia from Hamlet. Their high social standing makes their demise seem all the more tragic. The Scheming Femme Fatal Lady Macbeth is the archetypal femme fatal. Her manipulation of Macbeth inevitably leads them to their deaths: she commits suicide and he is slain. In her ambition to become Queen, she encourages her husband to murder. King Lear’s daughters, Goneril and Regan, plot to inherit their father’s fortune. Once again, their ambition leads them to their deaths: Goneril stabs herself after poisoning Regan. Although Shakespeare seems to appreciate the intelligence at work in his femme fatal characters, allowing them to manipulate the men around them, his retribution is brutal and unforgiving. The Witty, but Unmarriable Woman Katherine from The Taming of The Shrew is a prime example of the witty but unmarriable woman. Feminists have commented that their enjoyment of this play is marred by the fact that a man literally “breaks” Katherine’s spirit when Petruchio says “Come on and kiss me, Kate.” – should we really celebrate this as a happy ending? Similarly, in the plot to Much Ado About Nothing, Benedick ultimately conquers the feisty Beatrice by saying, “Peace, I will stop your mouth.” These women are presented as clever, bold and independent but are put in their place by the end of the play. The Married Off Woman Many of Shakespeare’s comedies end with an eligible woman being married off – and therefore being made safe. These women are often very young and passed from their father’s care to their new husband’s. More often than not, these are high-born characters such as Miranda in The Tempest who is married to Ferdinand, Helena and Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Hero in Much Ado About Nothing. Women Who Dress as Men Rosalind in As You Like it and Viola in Twelfth Night both dress as men. Consequently, they are able to play a more active role in the play’s narrative. As “men”, these characters have more freedom, highlighting the lack of social liberty for women in Shakespeare’s time.

Surrealism in literature can be defined as an artistic attempt to bridge together reality and the imagination. Surrealists seek to overcome the contradictions of the conscious and unconscious minds by creating unreal or bizarre stories full of juxtapositions. Founded by André Breton (1896-1966), surrealism began as an artistic movement in Paris in the 1920s and lasted until the 1940s. Writer and philosopher Breton propelled this movement with his publication of The Manifesto of Surrealism, as a way of fighting against the way art was understood at the time. With the horrors of World War I still in Europe's wake, art had become controlled by politics. It came to be used as a way of maintaining order and keeping the revolution at bay. However, surrealists wanted to break free from the constraints being posed on art and to do so in an extreme, yet positive way. Though they fought against political control, the movement's goal was not political in nature. Surrealism sought to free people spiritually and psychologically. These artists and writers wanted to repair the damage done by WWI. Unfortunately, World War II was on the brink, and such a movement made the surrealists a target. During the rise of Nazism and Fascism, many surrealists were forced to seek haven in America. Fortunately, for American culture, their ideas began affecting changes in the States as well. While the movement itself may have ended, surrealism still exists in much of today's literature. Using surrealist imagery, ideas, or poetic techniques, writers attempt to stretch the boundaries, free the mind, and make readers think. https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-surrealism-definition-artists.html