Ophelia Ophelia Ophelia () is a character in William Shakespeare's drama "Hamlet". She is a young noblewoman of Denmark, the daughter of Polonius, sister of Laertes, and potential wife of Prince Hamlet. As with virtually all "Hamlet" characters, Ophelia's name is not Danish. It first appeared in Jacopo Sannazaro's 1504 poem "Arcadia" (as "Ofelia"), probably derived from Ancient Greek ὠφέλεια ("ōphéleia", "help"). In Ophelia's first speaking appearance in the play, she is seen with her brother, Laertes, who is leaving for France. Laertes warns her that Hamlet, the heir to the throne of Denmark, does not have the freedom to marry
Ophelia as one of the most poetic death announcements in literature. Later, a sexton at the graveyard insists Ophelia must have killed herself. Laertes is outraged by what the cleric says, and replies that Ophelia will be an angel in heaven when the cleric "lie[s] howling" in hell. At Ophelia's funeral, Queen Gertrude sprinkles flowers on Ophelia's grave ("Sweets to the sweet"), and says she wished Ophelia could have been Hamlet's wife (contradicting Laertes' warnings to Ophelia in the first act). Laertes then jumps into Ophelia's grave excavation, asking for the burial to wait until he has held her in his