By considering the positions Hamlet explores with regards to the nature of intention, the nature and acquisition of knowledge, the effectiveness of reason, and their relation to psychological integrity, the author of this paper argues that Shakespeare evaluates the play’s participation in the project of defining subjectivity. Ophelia’s role in its inquiry provokes questions which challenge many of Hamlet’s, Claudius’ and Polonius’ assumptions about subjectivity, which are often aligned. The play sustains both object relations methods and post-modern constructions of the self because Hamlet’s arguments dominate but are also critiqued.

Researchers should cite this work as follows:

• Finkelstein, R., (2025), "Differentiating Hamlet: Ophelia and the Problems of Subjectivity", HSSCommons: (DOI: )

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1. Renaissance and Reformation

Original publication: Finkelstein, Richard. "Differentiating Hamlet: Ophelia and the Problems of Subjectivity." Renaissance and Reformation 33 (2): 2010. 5-22. DOI: 10.33137/rr.v33i2.11341. This material has been re-published in an unmodified form on the Canadian HSS Commons with the permission of Iter Canada / Renaissance and Reformation. Copyright © the author(s). Their work is distributed by Renaissance and Reformation under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. For details, see https://creativecommons.org/licenses/.