I
do not know, my lord, what I should think.
Ophelia
Hamlet Act I, scene iii Line 104
Here we have Ophelia. Another tragic figure in Will’s long,
long list of tragic figures. She’s talking to her father, Polonius. It’s early
on in the play, and she’s explaining to him that she’s not sure what to make of
Hamlet’s ‘tenders of affection’ that he has made to her. Of course Polonius
tells her what any good father would tell her, to stay the heck away from
Hamlet, he’s nuts. And from what we’ve seen of Hamlet so far I think it might
be good advice.
Irrespective of her father’s advice though, I think it’s
easy to see that Ophelia’s comment is indicative of the major theme of Hamlet,
and that is indecision. At least I think that’s what the major theme is. But I
can’t say that I’m absolutely sure about that.
Now that I think about it, I have to admit that without the
‘my lord’ part in the middle of today’s Totally Random line a person like me could
use this line constantly. ‘I do not know what I should think.’ In fact, this is
my response to about half of what I see, hear, and experience on a daily basis.
Or maybe it’s more than half, maybe it’s eighty percent. Or maybe it’s ten
percent. Maybe it’s ninety percent. I surely don’t know. In fact, I do not know
what I should think.
Confusion. Or is it indecision?
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