Laertes and Polonius both strongly object to Ophelia's relationship with Hamlet because of two reasons. Laertes feels that Hamlet's "love" for Ophelia could potentially be superficial and not at all reality. He goes along lecturing her about staying away from Hamlet and that she should not be fooled by his words or charms. Polonius' objection stems from his fear that Ophelia will be walked all over by Hamlet and that she will, inevitably, get hurt. Laertes' argument seems more fair than that of Polonius because he is not as assertive and over-protective as Polonius. Laertes' 'argument' seems more like brotherly, concerned advice. Polonius, on the other hand, is much too headstrong and does not really 'advise' Ophelia, he, rather, demands her to stop talking to Hamlet and does not seem to care about her personal feelings over his demand. In addition, their treatment of Ophelia reveals their lack of respect for women, and their almost automatic superiority over her. Class functions in both Polonius and Laertes' arguments because they both make the claim that Hamlet's supposed "love" for Ophelia could be questionable because of his royalty and loyalty to the throne and his country.
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