Monologue About Love

In all of media—and particularly, that which strives to touch its readers emotionally—it is, perhaps, the idea of love that holds power above all else in a narrative. There is a reason, after all, as to why this phenomena reoccurs again and again as a plot device, in turn becoming one of the most well known for audiences throughout history. No matter the context from which it may be derived, many can relate to the basic tale of love most of all, whether it be portrayed as comedic or tragic beyond the base aspects of its foundation. Nevertheless, while some hold steadfast on to the classic belief that love shall triumph against all odds, others have come to criticize it entirely, deconstructing it in ways that offer a much different point of

Nevertheless, when pushing beyond this interpretation, one can see her words are not merely for herself, but instead for “love” as an abstract concept that she personifies in order to describe for the members of the audience, as they are the only ones able to listen to her speak. At first, she chooses to connect it to a “winged Cupid painted blind” (1.1.235), creating a metaphor that makes “love” appear as something akin to the usual childlike depiction of the aforementioned cherub. With the foundation now in place for her personification of love, Helena then goes into more detail with her illustration, developing the image as being afflicted by its own blindness, unable to see things as they truly are. Thus, it should be noted that the tie between love and sight is a common theme throughout the entirety of the play, wherein sight could be read as a symbol for reason, and love as a “blindness” that overwhelms logical thought. Helena even mentions this idea herself as she continues to describe what love actually is, stating that it has “wings, and no eyes, figure unheedy haste” (1.1.237). In turn, the audience now considers love as something that pushes one to act without thinking, its lacks of “sight” rendering it useless when it comes to proper reasoning. Additionally, to further push the connection between

However, this theme ultimately extends beyond just Helena’s words, continuing throughout A Midsummer Night’s Dream in a rather fascinating way. While Helena makes note of what love has done to her own clarity of mind—especially in regard to her adoration for Demetrius, whose passions for another leads to his mistreatment of her—there are several points in which other characters, believing they are actually in love, choose to ignore reality in order to pursue their romantic fantasies. This is best seen through the situation with Titania, who, while under a spell as well, desires Bottom as her lover despite him having the detestable head of an ass. In this sense, love as an emotion is shown to be no better than a curse in it of itself, with Shakespeare portraying the two as practically interchangeable, both creating an indistinguishable sense of being transfixed by the obsession of attaining the ideal fantasy of love. Even more so than this, Shakespeare also chooses to push the boundaries of his work as well, not only using the characters of his play to expose the fallacy behind the concept of love, but the audience as well. Just as they are the only ones to hear Helena’s monologue, they too are the