Personality of Bottom and Puck

The comedic play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, written by William Shakespeare around 1594, is the story of events surrounding the marriage of the Duke of Athens, Theseus, and his wife, Hippolyta. There are the adventures of four Athenian lovers, Lysander, Demetrius, Helena, and Hermia. There are also group of six workmen who are also amateur actors trying to get picked to perform on Theseus’s wedding day. Most of the story takes place in an forest outside of Athens. Nick Bottom is a weaver who is chosen to play Pyramus in the production for the royal couple’s wedding. Puck, also known as Robin Goodfellow, is Oberon, the king of the fairies and the forest’s, fairy helper. Out of all the characters two of the more fascinating ones were Bottom and Puck.

Bottom shows that he talks a great deal, he has a unique personality, and he is headstrong in the play. I agree that Bottom, as G.K. Chesterton said, has “easy and natural self-expression”. I think that Bottom says everything that he is thinking and is friendly because when he met the fairy helpers he was being very courteous by calling them Mistress and Master and also speaking in a very polite way. An example from the play is when he said, “ I pray you commend me to Mistress Squash, your mother, and to Master Peascod, your father. Good Master Peasblossom, I shall desire you of more acquaintance, too.— your name, I beseech you, sir?” (3,1,171-175). Bottom’s personality also has a “strong flavor”, which means that he is different and outgoing. I agree with this because Bottom seems a little strange and unreserved. An example of this is when he says, “And I may hide my face, let me play Thisbe too. I’ll speak in a monstrous little voice,” (1,2,44-47) because he is trying to hog all ...

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... him smile". (2,1,44).
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.