Ophelia and Victorian Visual Culture: Representing Body Politics in the Nineteenth Century

Kimberly Rhodes's interdisciplinary book is the first to explore fully the complicated representational history of Shakespeare's Ophelia during the Victorian period. Considering a broad range of materials, with special attention to images women produced, Rhodes illuminates Ophelia as a figure whose importance crossed class and national boundaries. Her analysis yields fascinating insights into 'high' and mass culture, enables transnational comparisons, and reveals the compelling associations among Ophelia, gender roles, body image and national identity