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Literary Analysis of a Midsummer Night Dream
Elizabethan era a midsummer night's dream
Elizabethan era a midsummer night's dream
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Is someone trying to unethically influence you? Are you doing something you were made to do? Sometimes, the force of others can influence us to do several of things, sometimes things that could ruin lives, friendships, and possibly true love. In the play “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” written by William Shakespeare, we find that many of the characters were once influenced by people or things, many which had no choice but to follow the orders. During these few paragraphs, you will be informed about the several influences that took place in this book/play. Ranging from the marriage of Hermia and Demetrius, to Puck's mischievous deeds and, of course, the love potion. Money, power, and royalty. We all sometimes get lost in that. Sometimes money …show more content…
can come in-between life, love and the financial or social status of one seems to matter more than the heart. A similar incident occurred in the play. Egeus (Hermias' father) wanted Hermia to marry Demetrius, even knowing that she loved Lysander and would marry him and him only, knowing their love for one another, Egeus, still, only wanted Hermia with Demetrius. Was he doing this for the wealth and power he would receive in return from their marriage? Egeus never showed us that side of him in the play, though Egeus was certain to unite Hermia and Demetrius at any cost. “Consent to marry with Demetrius, I beg the ancient privilege of Athens.” (1.1.40-41). Egeus had looked at Lysander’s social status and declined to accept Hermia and Lysander’s love. This is where royalty came in, Egeus wanted Demetrius and Hermia to get married because Lysander was not as rich as Demetrius, therefore, he did not want to hand over his daughter to a person who may not be able to fulfill his as well as her needs. Lysander was not as respected in Egeus’s eyes as Demetrius was. Sometimes the rules of the society are so harsh on a person it ruins their lives. You are free to roam around though, are still imprisoned in an invisible box. Which brings my attention to my next set of people. Oberon and Puck. Puck was influenced to do many things for Oberon. Puck was a mischievous man throughout this whole story/play. However, behind every mischievous deed was Oberon. He made Puck do several things for him, as he did not want to do them himself. Puck’s free will seemed to get lost when it came to Oberon; he obeyed his majesty sincerely. He had two reasons for showing this obedience towards Oberon, one because he respected his fair king and second because he was terrified to face the mad side of Oberon. He feared him to the extent that he followed his every order with no complaints. Puck is similar to a chess piece that was being moved by Oberon. Every move, every trick, and every play were due to Oberon’s mischievous plans, just like Puck getting Oberon the special love flower, “Maidens call it ‘Love-in-idleness’. Fetch me that flower.” (2.1.168-169), and he had gotten it for him. Little did he know that one mistake from that flower could turn everything upside down. Lastly, love was influenced the most in Shakespeare’s play.
This occurred due to the love potion Puck had brought to Oberon. ‘Love is like a clay it can be molded in many different forms.’ In Shakespeare’s play, love was manipulated in many ways. Starting with Lysander, who was the first one to be put under the spell. He loved Hermia, with the influence of the love potion, he fell in deep love with Helena. Page 28 Lysander says (2.2.109-110) “And run through fire I will run for thy sweet sake! Transparent Helena…The tedious minutes I with her have spent. Not Hermia, but Helena I love” (2.2.118-119). Not only is Lysander under this spell, but also Demetrius too. He has fallen blindly in love with Helena, he could not stop praising her. “O Helen, goddess, nymph, perfect, divine! To what, my love shall I compare thine eyne?” (3.2.137-138). Together with Lysander and Demetrius, Titania, the Queen of Fairies was also under the influence of the love potion. She was attracted to Bottom, who temporarily had an ass's head. “Come sit thee down upon this flowery bed while I thy amiable cheeks do coy, and still musk-roses in thy sleek smooth head, and kiss thy fair large ears, my gentle joy.” (4.1.1-4). As you can see, they all had been trapped inside this bubble of pseudo love, the characters under the spell were unconscious of their behaviors and acts towards others. In other words, this spell had created a big confusion among the
characters. Someone influences everyone. What matters most is if the influence is bad or good. In this play, there were numerous bad influences made on the characters. People were made to do many things for others, forced in many ways. From the rule of marriage to the rule of majesty, to where true love was no longer true. The characters in the play faced bad, harmful influence from other outside forces, and it all ended well in the end. Would that happen in real life, everything goes back to normal? Is someone influencing you? What are you being influenced by? Do you know?
Sometimes, when a person becomes controlling, he can lead others down a path to destruction and failure. Control is a huge theme in A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare. Inside the play, certain characters try to make other characters do what he or she wants, and it often ends poorly. One example of this is Nick Bottom, a weaver who is a part of the players performing the play “Pyramus and Thisbe”. He often tries to be controlling by stepping into play other’s parts, and, the results don’t turn out the way he and the others quite expected.
Many people believe that control is possible until it comes into play and it doesn’t work out. Control is a big deal in A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare. Oberon tries to control Demetrius and Lysander tries to control Helena. Control is not possible because it’s unpredictable and you can’t control love.
In Shakespeare’s Midsummer’s Night Dream he entices the reader using character development, imagery, and symbolism. These tools help make it a wonderful play for teens, teaching them what a well-written comedy looks like. As well as taking them into a story they won’t soon forget.
He sends his jester, Puck, to use a flower that, if its juice is dropped onto someone who’s sleeping’s eyes, will make the person fall madly in love with the first person they lie their eyes on. “Take thou some of it, and seek through this grove; A sweet Athenian lady is in love with a disdainful youth; anoint his eyes; but do it when the next thing he espies may be the lady. Thou shalt know the man by the Athenian garments he hath on. ”(64) Puck, following Oberon’s orders, finds Lysander and Hermia instead of Demetrius and Helena.
The Loss of Magic Throughout A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare, there are multiple analyses that one can follow in order to reach a conclusion about the overall meaning of the play. These conclusions are reached through analyzing the play’s setting, characterization, and tone. However, when one watches the production A Midsummer Night’s Dream directed by Michael Hoffman, a completely different approach is taken on these aspects, leading to a vastly different analysis of the work. Though there are many similarities between the original written play A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare and the on-screen production of the aforementioned play which was directed by Michael Hoffman, there are differences in setting and
In society, it is often believed that the ones who hold the most authority are those who cause the most problems. The most powerful people are known to create problems, whether it is selfishness, proudness or just misusing abilities their abilities to make a positive change. Throughout the play, the high level of authority takes advantage of its powers and abilities. Not only does the “king” of fairies create new conflicts, but the ones in effect, are formed into bigger ones. In William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Oberon is the root behind all the problems in the play, he misuses the love potion, shows selfishness, and is responsible for the mistakes of anointing the eyes of the Athenian men.
After reading A Midsummer Night’s Dream and learning about Puck and Bottom, I realized that people should be more aware about how how they are perceived by others and about their surroundings. I learned this from the play because Bottom, as Goddard 79 stated, “symbolized the earthy, the ponderous, the slow.” This is how he is seen, but he doesn’t know that and thinks he is typical. I think that everyone should know how they are acting and how others see them. Bottom also does not know that he has a donkey head on for the whole time, which taught me to be aware about what is happening. This play has also taught me that love is confusing and difficult. One of the major themes is love being the opposite of reason. The four lovers had a chaotic experience with mismatched love. There were also couples that fell in love when it did not seem likely.
Magic is a big factor in the book A midsummer night's dream and those who abuse it .There are many situation in the book to backup my claim for example The four lovers ,The workman and Oberon .my View on this book can help other readers find out about the topic of the book easier and help them to understand the
The use and misuse of magic has an important role in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. As a reoccurring theme, Puck’s use of magic creates humor, conflict and balance in the play.
In the play A Midsummer Night’s Dream, several events occur that cause chaos and confusion among the people. The writer of the play, Shakespeare draws the reader to focus on the small but important details in the story, to understand what is happening, and why. I believe Shakespeare focuses on these characters mainly and their stories; the young Athenian lovers, Titania & Oberon, and Nick Bottom. These are the characters that are greatly affected by the magic of Cupid’s arrow and Oberon’s mischievous works. The theme magic is what really begins each characters story and what carries it, but what also causes all of the problems. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Shakespeare emphasizes the theme magic to allow the reader to view how the power of magic affects each character differently.
Fairies, mortals, magic, love, and hate all intertwine to make A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare a very enchanting tale, that takes the reader on a truly dream-like adventure. The action takes place in Athens, Greece in ancient times, but has the atmosphere of a land of fantasy and illusion which could be anywhere. The mischievousness and the emotions exhibited by characters in the play, along with their attempts to double-cross destiny, not only make the tale entertaining, but also help solidify one of the play’s major themes; that true love and it’s cleverly disguised counterparts can drive beings to do seemingly irrational things.
Love plays a very significant role in this Shakespearian comedy, as it is the driving force of the play: Hermia and Lysander’s forbidden love and their choice to flee Athens is what sets the plot into motion. Love is also what drives many of the characters, and through readers’ perspectives, their actions may seem strange, even comical to us: from Helena pursuing Demetrius and risking her reputation, to fairy queen Titania falling in love with Bottom. However, all these things are done out of love. In conclusion, A Midsummer Night’s Dream displays the blindness of love and how it greatly contradicts with reason.
In William Shakespeare’s book, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, magic is a powerful and useful tool for the characters that have the capability to use it. Some of the characters abuse the power of magic, while others are more responsible in how they use it. Oberon is one the characters that abuses the power of magic. Oberon’s magic has an immense impact on the plot of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. More specifically, Oberon’s magic affects his own life, the lives of other characters, and all the characters in the story experience his magic differently. We will see that even the person who has power to use the magic can become surprised by it. Magic, the ultimate supernatural power, is often unpredictable and inexplicable.
He sends Puck out to find a plant called love-in-idleness, the juice of which makes any person love next creature he or she sees. Oberon takes his revenge on Titania by making her fall in love with bottom who has an ass's head. Puck explains what he has done to Oberon, who is pleased with the way his plan has turned out Everything seems perfect, until Demetrius and Hermia walk past, Hermia believing Demetrius has harmed Lysander,
William Shakespeare, born in 1594, is one of the greatest writers in literature. He dies in 1616 after completing many sonnets and plays. One of which is "A Midsummer Night’s Dream." They say that this play is the most purely romantic of Shakespeare’s comedies. The themes of the play are dreams and reality, love and magic. This extraordinary play is a play-with-in-a-play, which master writers only write successfully. Shakespeare proves here to be a master writer. Critics find it a task to explain the intricateness of the play, audiences find it very pleasing to read and watch. "A Midsummer Night’s Dream" is a comedy combining elements of love, fairies, magic, and dreams. This play is a comedy about five couples who suffer through love’s strange games and the evil behind the devious tricks. This play begins as Theseus, the Duke, is preparing to marry Hippolyta. He woos her with his sword. Hermia is in love with Lysander. Egeus, Hermia’s father, forbids the relationship with Lysander and orders her to marry Demetrius. Demetrius loves Hermia, but she does not love him. On the other hand, Helena is in love with Demetrius. To settle the confusion, Theseus decides that Hermia must marry Demetrius or become a nun. In retaliation to her father’s command, Hermia and Lysander run away together. Amidst all the problems in the human world, Titania and Oberon, the fairy queen and king, continually argue about their various relationships that they have taken part in. (Scott 336) Titania leaves Oberon as a result of the arguments. Oberon is hurt and wants revenge on Titania. So he tells Puck, Oberon’s servant, to put a magic flower juice on her eyelids while she is sleeping. This potion causes the victim to desperately in love with the first creature that they see. Oberon’s plan is carried out, but the potion is also placed on Lysander’s eyes. Lysander awakes to see Helena, who is aimlessly walking through the woods, and instantly falls in love with her. She thinks that he is making fun of her being in love with Demetrius, so she leaves and Lysander follows. This leaves Hermia to wake up alone. Puck now has journeyed to the area where several actors are rehearsing. He uses his magic to turn one of them into a donkey, in hopes that Titania will awake to see it.