From “Introduction,” Hamlet

The “nunnery” scene, as it is called, and indeed Ophelia's whole part in the play, has generally been misunderstood: it is not too much to say that the failure to get Ophelia right has frustrated the interpretation of the tragedy. Bradley doubted “whether from the mere text of the play a sure interpretation” could “be drawn,” ¹ and I suspect that it is still the usual view that “we are left with an unsolved puzzle.” ² Those who think that Shakespeare “deliberately” kept Ophelia's story “vague” and that the “uncertainty” contributes to the “attractiveness” of the play even try to make a virtue of defeat. ³ Yet if we grasp the implications of what Hamlet says to Ophelia and to her father about her, the reason for Hamlet's treatment of her is, I believe, clearly and powerfully given. ⁴