Hamlet Passage Study-- "Frailty, thy name is woman" (p.29; I,2, l.150)

In this passage, Hamlet is alone after all of the King’s court has exited and the audience has seen for the first time the unnatural situation Hamlet is faced against. His soliloquy examines, among other things, how much his mother, Gertrude, is in fault for marrying Claudius. In the end, Hamlet explains his mother’s actions are caused by the “frailty” that is common to all women. Although a modern audience would see this as a misogynistic attack, Hamlet assures that he is being rational by saying “Let me think on’t.” Indeed, we believe his rationality and objective observations of the facts presented because he is a student at Wittenberg. The statement “frailty, thy name is woman” is made to sound like a universal truth. Hamlet goes on to say how this “frailty” acts as a tragic flaw to women, and especially to Gertrude. He notes how “she [Gertrude] would hang on him [Claudius] as if increase of appetite had grown by what it fed on,” expressing how Gertrude’s frailty provokes a vicious circle that she cannot escape. One could easily see how frailty is somewhat of a tragic flaw for Gertrude. She fell for and married Claudius due to this flaw, which is common to all women. However, it is questionable whether Gerturde is truly “frail” or not has as she has been able to mask her true intentions “like Niobe all tears;” in other words, Gertrude might not really be “frail” and just be putting on a disguise. Hamlet’s constant debate over who is at fault and how to react to the unnatural marriage and his indecisiveness eventually becomes his biggest flaw.