Ophelia - Chrysanthemum, Hydrangea, and Snapdragon. Chrysanthemum stand for fidelity, Hydrangea signify heartfelt and snapdragon symbolize desire. Through the play Ophelia stays faithful to the men in her life- Hamlet and her father. Both men manipulate her, however, she still loves them both. Hydrangea are in the boutique because she is one of the few character that we actually get emotionally involved with. Snapdragon symbolizes her desire for acceptance throughout the play. In the end, she does not achieve that desire and kills herself.
Gertrude - Apocynum, Primrose, and Tuberoses. All three flowers consist of negative connotations. Apocynum signifies falsehood and deception. Gertrude puts on this fake act that she's mourning, while Hamlet is actually sad that his father died. Primroses reflect inconsistency. It is evident that she knows more than she pretends. She is inconsistent because she claims that she's in "mourning" for the King, however, she got married to his brother right after his death. Lastly, tuberoses represent dangerous pleasures. She knows that marrying Claudius looks really weird but she does it because of the pleasure that will come of it.
Claudius - Adder's-Tongue, Achillea, and Black Rose. Adder's-Tongue signifies jealously. Caludius is jealous of his brother's power, family and wife and that is why he kills him. Achillea represents war. Claudius is at war with everyone as well as himself. He slowly feels overcome with guilt for his brother's death. And black rose is a foreshadow of death. Claudius kills his brother, tries to kill Hamlet and he eventually gets killed by Hamlet.
Hamlet - Amaryllis, Sweet Peas and Tulips. Amaryllis represent Pride. Hamlet has the oppurtunity to kill Claudius because he has too much pride to kill a man while's praying. He also shows excessive pride when he challenges Laertes to battle him over dead Ophelia's love. Sweet Peas signify departure. Hamlet leaves to England to escape from Denmark for a bit. And tulips are declaration of love. In the end, he realizes and declares his love for Ophelia.
Work Citied:
D' Cruz, Pinkie. "Language of Flowers." Pinkie's Parlour. 1997. Web. 24 Mar. 2012. http://www.angelfire.com/journal2/flowers/pcd6.html
Flowers. "Meaning of Flowers | FEELINGS Florist | Send Flowers to Pune | Send Flowers to Mumbai | Flower Delivery Pune | Send Online Flowers | Send Fathers Day Flowers | Online Florist Pune | Flowers4feelings.com." FEELINGS Florist. 2008. Web. 24 Mar. 2012. http://www.flowers4feelings.com/meanings_of_flowers.php
Jeffra. "The Meaning Behind Your Flowers WeddingWire: The Blog." Wedding Blog. WeddingWire, Inc, 21 Jan. 2010. Web. 24 Mar. 2012. http://blog.weddingwire.com/index.php/weddings/the-meaning-behind-your-flowers/
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