Hamlet

Does Hamlet truly love Ophelia? Support this with quotation(s) from the play.

In Act 2, sc. 1, Ophelia tells her father, Polonius, that she fears Hamlet is "mad" for her love.  She describes a distressed Hamlet came into her room, grabbed her by the wrist, backed away and just looked into her face, studying it.  Then he slowly backed out of the room without looking at the door.  In Act 2, sc. 2, Polonius tells Claudius and Gertrude that Hamlet is love-sick for Ophelia and cites a letter Hamlet wrote in which he calls Ophelia, "...the heavenly idol of my soul..." and further says, in a poem, that he loves her.  In Act 3, sc. 1, Ophelia returns to Hamlet some letters he wrote to her in which he professed his love for Ophelia.  Finally, in Act 5, sc. 1, Hamlet jumps into Ophelia's open grave and professes to Laertes and the others that he loved Ophelia more than 40,000 brothers.  So, yes, I do believe Hamlet loved Ophelia.

In my estimation, Hamlet could not possibly have truly loved Opehlia a treat her as he does.   His vitrolic speech is certainly more than necessary when he demands, "Get thee to a nunnery!" and then accuses her, and all women, of the crimes his mother is guilty of.

After this vicious attack, he has the nerve to lay upon her lap and while pretending love, continue to insult and berate her.

I am in the process of teaching this play for eNotes.  You can find free, detailed lessons, as well as questions and answers, at the link below. 

http://blogs.enot es.com/literature-101/category/hamlet/

Maybe he does...even though he treats her horridly, he may be reacting to his hatred of the weakness of all women in the face of what he sees his mother doing.  Frailty! Thy name is woman! he says...she is so weak that she must immediately attach herself to the first available man after his father's death. 

Remember, too, that the boys who throw mud on you and who put your hair in the ink pot are the ones who have a crush on you and just don't know any better way to show you attention...

In reply to #1: I believe that Hamlet loved Ophelia; however, after his mother's unfaithfulness, he finds himself questioning a woman's morality and virtue.

I believe Hamlet did initially love Ophelia, as he tells her - "I did love thee once." As he is ranting (down to his 'madness'), like answer #3 says he uses harsh words against Ophelia- "Get thee to a nunnery", "breeder of sinners" however I feel he is testing Ophelia's commitment to him in this scene - for when she answers Hamlet with along the lines of "you let me believe (you loved me)", it was as though she doubted Hamlet's love - and thus, he tells her in frustration - "I never loved thee." 

In reply to #1: i believed that he once loved her..but now there is just to much in his life for him to think about love..he has revenge on his mind not love.