"There is a willow grows ascaunt the brook,
That shows his hoar leaves in the glassy stream.
Therewith fantastic garlands did she make
Of crow-flowers, nettles, daisies, and long purples,
That liberal shepherds give a grosser name,
But our cold maids do dead men's fingers call them.
There on the pendant boughs her crownet weeds
Clamb'ring to hang, an envious sliver broke,
When down her weedy trophies and herself
Fell in the weeping brook. Her clothes spread wide,
And mermaid-like a while they bore her up;
Which time she chanted snatches of old lauds,
As one incapable of her own distress,
Or like a creature native and imbued
Unto that element. But long it could not be
Till that her garments, heavy with their drink,
Pulled the poor wretch from her melodious lay
To muddy death. "
--Hamlet
I'm wondering what kind of commercial captions might've been used on "Ophelia" if Millais had designed his work for advertising:
"Prozac: The drug of choice for 3 out of 4 suicidal orphans"
"Clorox with Bleach: It brings out the finest whites. DISCALIMER: Do not wash while wearing."
"We've secretly replaced this woman's flotation device with lead balloons, let's watch."
A sad little bit of trivia about this painting:
"The model was Elizabeth Siddal, who posed for hours in a tub of water (it was supposed to be heated by lamps, but they probably went out at some point) and contracted pneumonia shortly thereafter. The meticulous detail in the nature scene surrounding her is often cited as a prime example of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood's original ideals--which actually had little to do with the lushly romantic portrayals of women that soon became associated with the movement. This painting is just one reason Lizzie is often closely associated with the Ophelia image; she would later identify herself with the unfortunate maiden in her poem "A Year and a Day".
What I always wondered about is, why is there such a big description of her drowning - I mean, it's like someone saw the whole thing happen but didn't pull her out of the water! And yes, this painting would be great in an ad for an anti-depressant. I guess they think depressed people have no sense of humor!
