Indeed, my lord, you made me believe so

Insighful, thought-provoking post over at Hoyden About Town on Ophelia, violence, and what is and is not in the text: On Ophelia, Who Never Got to Be a Hoyden:

There is no indication in the text that Hamlet harms Ophelia physically in this scene, no stage direction and no line that specifically requires such an action for it to make sense. If anything the text suggests a Hamlet who is trying to remove himself from Ophelia’s company, not run her to ground. He says ‘farewell’ three times, as well as repeatedly saying ‘go’, ‘go to’ and ‘go thy ways’. Nevertheless, the scene is often staged with Hamlet tipping over from verbal abuse of Ophelia into physical.