Ophelia in Hamlet is generally considered a very simple character who exemplifies the perfect young, innocent woman. However, her importance to the play shows that there is more to her than most people think Ophelia is a substantial character in the play whose flaw is her vulnerability to being manipulated by others. With this flaw, Ophelia becomes a tool that allows Shakespeare to connect the two parallel plots of the play, Hamlet's and Polonius', as …showed first 75 words of 1263 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1263 total…anything without her separating them until the exact moment that each plot individually achieves all that is necessary for them and are ready to come together at the end of the play. The plots cannot exist without Ophelia, and when she dies, the two plots come together as one. Without Ophelia though the plots can no longer coexist and the main plot ends with the death of the rest of the characters at the end