Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky, in the first chapter of his 1880 novel The Brothers Karamazov, described a capricious young woman who committed suicide by throwing herself off a steep cliff into a river, simply to imitate Shakespeare's Ophelia. Dostoevsky concludes that "Even then, if the cliff, chosen and cherished from long ago, had not been so picturesque, if it had been merely a flat, prosaic bank, the suicide might not have taken place at all." Dostoevsky also depicts the heroine Grushenka as Ophelia, binding the two through the words "Woe is me!" in the chapter titled "The First Torment".[2]
Dating Hamlet (2002), by Lisa Fiedler, tells a version of Ophelia's story.[3]
French poet Arthur Rimbaud wrote a poem called Ophélie in 1870, inspired by Hamlet.[10]
In T. S. Eliot's poem The Waste Land, several allusions are made to Ophelia's death: for example, one section is titled "Death by Water".[11]
Non-fiction
Mary Pipher alluded to Ophelia in the title of her nonfiction book Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls. The book puts forth the thesis that modern American teenage girls are victimized, lost, and unsure of themselves, like Ophelia.[12][13]
Drama
In 2011 the Department of Theatre and Performance at the Victoria and Albert Museum invited director Katie Mitchell and Leo Warner of 59 Productions to conceive and produce a video installation exploring the nature of 'truth in performance'.[14] Taking as its inspiration 5 of the most influential European theatre directors of the last century, the project examines how each of the practitioners would direct the actress playing Ophelia in the famous 'mad' scenes in the play. This multiscreen video installation, launched at the Chantiers Europe festival at the Theatre de la Ville in Paris on 4 June, and opened at the museum on 12 July 2011.[15][16]
In the Simpsons episode "Tales from the Public Domain", the story of Hamlet is retold using Simpsons characters. The role of Ophelia is taken by Lisa Simpson who, upon seeing Hamlet (Bart Simpson) talking to a picture of his deceased father (Homer Simpson), claims "Nobody out-crazies Ophelia!" She then backs up her claim by jumping on a table, stepping in people's food and kicking over flowers, before finally cartwheeling out a nearby window and into the moat, presumably to her death.[19]
In the 2005 film The Libertine, Samantha Morton portrays aspirant actress Elizabeth Barry, who portrays Ophelia, and brings the house down.[22]
In the 1964 The Addams Family, Morticia's sister is named Ophelia: both sisters are played by Carolyn Jones. Ophelia is depicted with flowers in her hair, and often carrying flowers, alluding to the play.[23]
In the 1986 film Fire with Fire, Virginia Madsen plays a Catholic schoolgirl enthralled with John Everett Millais' depiction of Ophelia which she saw in school. She later recreated the scene for a photography project and took pictures of herself immersed in a pond.[25]
In the 2012 film Savages it is mentioned that the character "O" goes by "O" because she is named after Ophelia, "the bipolar chick who killed herself in Hamlet."[26]
In the 2006 film Pan's Labyrinth, Ofelia, the main character, alludes to the play.[27]
The 2013 anime Blast of Tempest has many Shakespearean elements, including references to Ophelia.[28]
In Queen and Country (2014) the protagonist nick-names his mentally unstable girl-friend Ophelia.[29]
In Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s fourth season (2017), during its final arc – Agents of Hydra – the android Aida assumes the name "Ophelia" when inside the Framework, a reference to her unrequited infatuation with Agent Leo Fitz.[30]
Music
Classical works
Hector Berlioz made Hamlet the subject of his composition: Tristia, and titled one movement "The Death of Ophelia".[31]
In The Grateful Dead song "Althea" lyricist Robert Hunter references Hamlet in a near-quote from the famous soliloquy: "To be or not to be...To sleep, perchance to dream," The line in the song reads, "Yours may be the fate of Ophelia, sleeping and perchance to dream."[35][36]
Emilie Autumn has a song and album titled Opheliac in which the singer compares herself to Ophelia, connecting to her own experiences with bipolar disorder.[38]
Jewel has a song titled "Innocence Maintained" from her album Spirit (1998) with the lyrics "Ophelia drowned in the water, crushed by her own weight".[39]
American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan includes Ophelia as one of the characters residing on Desolation Row in the song of the same title from the album Highway 61, recorded in 1965.[46]
The steampunk band Abney Park recorded a song called "Dear Ophelia" that is sung from the point of Hamlet, writing letters to Ophelia expressing that he does, in fact, love her.[47]
French singer-songwriter Nolwenn Leroy recorded a song titled "Ophélia" for her 2012 album Ô Filles de l'eau.[49]
American singer-songwriter Zella Day recorded a song titled "Sweet Ophelia" for her 2014 album Zella Day – EP.[50]
The single titled "Ophelia" was released by The Lumineers on February 4, 2016, ahead of the release of their second album Cleopatra which was released on April 8, 2016.[51]
Gudrun Gut vocalizes the role of Ophelia on Die Hamletmaschine (1990), an album by Einstürzende Neubauten, based on the 1977 play by East German author and theatre director Heiner Müller.
The Sims 2, one of the three neighborhoods, Strangetown, is inhabited by a character named Ophelia Nigmos. An interesting fact is that another neighborhood called Veronaville is entirely based on and dedicated to the plays of William Shakespeare.
Brütal Legend features a supporting character named Ophelia, voiced by Jennifer Hale.[55] Her name and story are references to the plot of Hamlet.
Elsinore retells Hamlet from the point of view of Ophelia, who is caught in a time loop that always results in her death and seeks to escape it while investigating mysteries in the castle.
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