Taking the Plunge Into Research...Getting My Feet Wet In Social Media

Doesn't she look like she is just releasing herself from life and from her social roles?

Honestly, at the end of this week, the picture above represented me pretty well.  Nothing seemed to go right for this class this week.  I was not able to do as many social connections as I wanted, simply because I did not have any time...which may have been because nothing went as planned for my research.  

Usually, I am pretty skilled at finding articles and making them fit my paper, but the articles that I had found an interest in and that applied well for my paper this time around could not be found anywhere on the internet for free.  As I explored more and more, I got pretty discouraged, but then I thought, "Why not try interlibrary loan?," which I have recently realized the value of as I have been doing research for my other research paper this semester, on Maori English for my linguistics class (I am pretty excited about it!).  Now, I am just waiting to hear back from them to get the articles, and I will continue exploring my options for research.

Before all the failure of article finding, I had watched the 1948 version of Hamlet, which was valuable, because a line caught my attention which never had before, "Frailty, thy name is woman."  Hamlet is referring to his mother's quick mourning time and marriage to his uncle.  But he is also referring to all woman and what he considers their normal fickle behavior.  That of course also made me more aware of all the violence, physical and emotional, that Ophelia goes through, especially from Hamlet and her father.  In a way, Ophelia killing herself through drowning is a symbol of cleansing herself from the social roles and abuse that she has taken for so long; she is freeing herself from the world.

I have not used Prezi much at all, so I thought that might be a good place to explore for what others are saying about Ophelia.  I found multiple presentations, and I posted a few of my favorite ones in a recent post along with what I learned from each one.  I gained some insight on how Ophelia lost part of her identity when she lost her father, because he had taken such strong control over her life.

My social connections were not as many as I would have wished, but I am really enjoying hearing what others have to say on my Goodread's discussion page.  I really enjoyed Katie's words on how many articles have a sexist undertone, because it is very true.  Tomorrow, I am hoping to write many of the scholars of whom I have read their articles on Ophelia.  It would be so exciting if I could hear back from at least one of them!

Also for this week, I need to get my "tweethis" statement finalized and posted on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+, to try to get some feedback on it.  I am planning on getting my first draft written and posted.  Then, I will give feedback on my peers' papers and hopefully get some feedback for my own paper.

Ophelia Bibliography

The research process has been difficult.  Many of the articles that I want to read about my topic have been difficult to come by in complete form.  I am hoping to have more success as I keep exploring.  I searched all the databases online for these articles, but access is not available online through BYU or anywhere online where I have looked without a paid subscription.  These sources I have found I am waiting on through interlibrary loan.  I know this takes more time, but I feel these articles are more applicable to my topic.  Hopefully, I will get access to them soon.

Tweethis: Ophelia is abused physically and emotionally by the men in her life; this continual abuse and emotional confusion lead to her insanity.

Dane, Gabrielle. "Reading Ophelia's Madness." Exemplaria 10 (1998): 405-23.
Dane argues from a feminist perspective that in Hamlet Ophelia's psychic identity is circumscribed by a male-dominated world, from which her madness- a feminist means of protest, an act of self-empowerment- offers an escape.

Finkelstein, Richard. "Differentiating Hamlet: Ophelia and the Problems of Subjectivity." Renaissance and Reformation 21, no. 2 (1997): 5-22.
By considering the positions Hamlet explores with regards to the nature of intention, the nature and acquisition of knowledge, the effectiveness of reason, and their relation to psychological integrity....argues that Shakespeare evaluates the play's participation in the project of defining subjectivity"--particularly through the challenge that Ophelia poses to Hamlet's, Claudius's, and Polonius's assumptions about the self. English summary, 5.
I found this article while exploring online.  It seems to fit what I am trying to prove in my paper.  Ophelia is used to challenge the assumptions about the self.  I have requested the article and am simply waiting for access to it.

Harris, Arthur John. "Ophelia's 'Nothing': 'It is the false steward that stole his master's daughter.'" Hamlet Studies 19 (1997): 20-46.
Finding that comments by other characters about Ophelia emphasize her sexuality and that her mad ravings suggest a liaison with Claudius, expands J. Max Patrick's "The Problem of Ophelia" (1953) to argue that Ophelia is a victim of sexual abuse and murder at the hand of the King.
I saw that Harris was a writer on Shakespeare's works.  As I explored, I found this article which seems perfect for my paper, because I am trying to prove that Ophelia's personality and insane behavior at the end of the play are a result of abuse from the male characters in her life.

Jenkins, Ronald Bradford. "The Case against the King: The Family of Ophelia vs. His Majesty King Claudius of Denmark." Journal of Evolutionary Psychology 17, nos. 3-4 (1996): 206-18.
Argues that Ophelia is a victim of Claudius's, rather than Hamlet's, machinations: Claudius seduced and impregnated Ophelia and then murdered her to prevent the birth of their bastard son.
While looking for information about Ophelia online, I found a site with articles about certain characters in Hamlet.  This one goes along with the article above and seems quite interesting.  I really want to see the textual proof for this paper.