Part 15: Ophelia's Suffering: Chastened, Chosen, Beloved of God?

Critics, readers, and viewers today may think of Ophelia’s suffering very differently than did devout Christians in Shakespeare’s time.

Modern critics sometimes assume that, when characters suffer, when prayers to heaven seem unanswered, this must prove there is no God, or that Shakespeare didn’t believe in one. But many churchgoers viewed undeserved suffering differently. Three times every year (10 April, 9 August, and 6 December), Hebrews 12: 6-11 was read at Evening Prayer:

6 For whom the Lord loveth, he chasteneth: and he scourgeth every son that he receiveth.
7 If ye endure chastening, God offered himself unto you as unto sons: for what son is it whom the father chasteneth not?
8 If therefore ye be without correction, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.
9 Moreover we have had the fathers of our bodies which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: should we not much rather be in subjection unto the father of spirits, that we might live?
10 For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure, but he chastened us for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.
11 Now no chastising for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: but afterward, it bringeth the quiet fruit of righteousness, unto them which are thereby exercised.

Laertes claims that if he doesn’t seek revenge, he would be acting like a bastard [1] and not a true son (4.5.130-134); but the above Bible passage claims that those who do not embrace their suffering with forbearance are not acting like sons and daughters of God.

People in certain religious groups were persecuted when they did not hold political power; others died from illnesses, plague, small pox. For children, spanking or “birching” as forms of discipline were common: “Spare the rod and spoil the child” (“He that spareth his rod, hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betime,” Proverbs 13:24).

As John R. Yamamoto-Wilson notes [2], in such a context, people wanted to believe that God used suffering to purify them and ready them for heaven, so suffering was, at least to some, a sign of God’s love. [3]

Upon seeing his sister acting strangely, singing, and praying for all that God be with them, Laertes looks up and speaks as if he doubts that God is paying attention:

Do you see this, O God? (4.5.225)

Some Christian ministers in Shakespeare’s time would have viewed Laertes’ question as a faithless one. 

I do not personally believe that suffering indicates God’s favor. But to some in Shakespeare’s original audiences, Ophelia’s suffering and forbearance may have been a sign that she was among God’s chosen, chastised and purified for heaven. 

~~~~~~~
NOTES:
[1]  On the competing historical background that calls men bastards who don’t seek revenge, see Nizar Zouidi, "The Drop of Blood that's Calm Proclaims me Bastard: On Revenge and Legitimacy in the Libations Bearers by Aeschylus, King Oedipus by Sophocles and Hamlet by William Shakespeare"
in Quest and Encounter: Interdisciplinary Studies on Shakespeare, conference proceedings from The International Shakespeare Conference at Cheongju Korea 2017. https://www.academia.edu/35447085/The_Drop_of_Blood_thats_Calm_Proclaims_me_Bastard_On_Revenge_and_Legitimacy_in_the_Libations_Bearers_by_Aeschylus_King_Oedipus_by_Sophocles_and_Hamlet_by_William_Shakespeare?email_work_card=abstract-read-more
 

[2] John Yamamoto-Wilson, Pain, Pleasure and Perversity: Discourses of Suffering in Seventeenth-Century England https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/rWPBkTrcSQEC?gbpv=1
Full quote from which the cover photo quote is taken:
"Penitential mortification was not generally sanctioned by Protestant theology, but Foxe's Actes and Monuments casts its shadow across the century, and the surest sign that one was among the elect was that one was privileged to suffer for Christ's sake. 'As affliction is a sign of God's love, so the absence of affliction is a sign of his wrath,' and the devout Protestant was 'bound to be glad that he is afflicted', because suffering 'is such a signe of God's love, that every one that is not chastened, is mark't out for a bastard, and no sonne [that is, not among the elect]'.” (1-2)

[3] It is also evident in the Bible that some people believed misfortune and suffering were signs that the person suffering had sinned and was being punished. See Luke 13:1-5 (1599 Geneva trans): Jesus responds "Nay" but qualifies that all sinners should repent or fear similar punishment:

1 There were certain men present at the same season, that showed him of the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
2 And Jesus answered, and said unto them, Suppose ye, that these Galileans were greater sinners than all the other Galileans, because they have suffered such things?
3 I tell you, nay: but except ye amend your lives, ye shall all likewise perish.
4 Or think you that those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, were sinners above all men that dwell in Jerusalem?
5 I tell you, nay: but except ye amend your lives, ye shall all likewise perish.


IMAGES:
Left: [Ophelia] negative 1875; print 1900, Julia Margaret Cameron. (British, born India, 1815 - 1879). Isle of Wight, England. Open Content. The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles. Via https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/ophelia-julia-margaret-cameron/hAFYBUBDeRP7Fg

Right: Quote (see FN 1, above)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
INDEX OF OPHELIA POSTS:
My 2023 series on Ophelia, and earlier Ophelia posts:

https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2023/10/index-of-ophelia-posts-2023-series-and.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
YOU CAN SUPPORT ME on a one-time "tip" basis on Ko-Fi:
https://ko-fi.com/pauladrianfried

IF YOU WOULD PREFER to support me on a REGULAR basis,
you may do so on Ko-Fi, or here on Patreon:
https://patreon.com/PaulAdrianFried
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Disclaimer: If and when I quote or paraphrase bible passages or mention religion in many of my blog posts, I do not intend to promote any religion over another, nor am I attempting to promote religious belief in general; only to explore how the Bible and religion influenced Shakespeare, his plays, and his age.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thanks for reading!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My current project is a book tentatively titled Hamlet’s Bible, about biblical allusions and plot echoes in Hamlet.

Below is a link to a list of some of my top posts (“greatest hits”), including a description of my book project (last item on the list):

https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/2019/12/top-20-hamlet-bible-posts.html

I post every week, so please visit as often as you like and consider subscribing.
To find the subscribe button, go to the home page: https://pauladrianfried.blogspot.com/
see the = drop-down menu with three lines in the upper left.
From there you can subscribe to posts and comments by filling out the contact form.