Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Literary Analysis of a Midsummer Night Dream
A midsummer night's dream difference
A midsummer night's dream conflicts
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Literary Analysis of a Midsummer Night Dream
Oberon, King of the fairies, has the honor of delivering lines 32 through 52 (5.2) known as “The Song” (244n4) in Stephen Greenblatts publication in The Norton Shakespeare of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Although Oberon was not always given these lines, the speech that it forms is quite becoming of the character and fits his place, both in society and the story. This speech gives Oberon a chance to make amends for the mischief he has created, by blessing them and their marital beds. The song lulls the audience into a slight slumber like state where Puck will give the final speech stating that this was all a dream. The melodic tune of rhyming couplets does not flow as easily for Oberon as does prose, creating a general lack of figures of speech. The song is straight forward with its intentions, and does not have much figurative language. The most frequently used figurative language in this speech has been anastrophe, found in lines 33-35, 38, 43-44 (5.2). Some uses of anastrophe encompass a couplet such as “despised in nativity/ Shall upon their children be” (5.2.43-44) while others are short such as “ever true in loving be” (5.2.38). Other forms can be found in the repetition of the word issue (5.2.35) creating a polyptoton. Issue’s first instance was describing a child, an issue created in the marital bed. The second case of issue was referring to an actual problem. Repetition can also be found with the word “bless” in lines 47 and 49 of act 5 scene 2. Line 33 uses alliteration of the letter B with “best bride bed” (5.2). Most of the rhymes are masculine end rhymes, however the song contains 3 feminine rhymes with the words fortunate (5.2.36), nativity (5.2.43) and consecrate (5.2.45). The mischief caused in this play was not di... ... middle of paper ... ... or be a mischief maker and was so happy he wants to sing and bless everything around him. Oberon created mischief out of emotional distress from his wife Titania, but now that they are reconciled feels the urge to bless everything and make all peaceful and loving. Oberon’s influence on the humans was balance based, and now that things are back in order, actions must be taken to right the wrongs. The singing of a song would be unusual for a King, whether or not he was from the fairy world, however as a character this speech works nicely with that of Oberon, and gives the audience closure on the fairy plot world as well as the others in the palace. Works Cited Greenblatt, Stephen, et al., ed. The Norton Shakespeare. New York: Norton, 2009. Print. --“A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” Greenblatt 189-198 Shakespeare, William. A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Greenblatt 199-246
When love is in attendance it brings care, faith, affection and intimacy. This is proved true in the spectacular play A Midsummer Night's Dream written by William Shakespeare. This play displays the facts about lust, hatred, jealousy and their roles in something powerfully desirable. It is entitled love. Love is present everywhere, in every form, in every condition and even when one least expects it.
Hermia , Lysander , Helena and Demetrius represent young love in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream . They are potrayed as foolish and fickle , acting like children and requiring a parental figure to guide them . The parental figures are Hermia’s father , Egeus , and figuratively Theseus , the mortal ruler , and Oberon , the mystical ruler.
Oberon is one of the most important characters in the play A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare and is the answer to the question of why there are so many problems in the play. Not only is Oberon the King of the Fairies but he is the husband of Titania and the master of Puck. Oberon’s character is multifaceted although it is evident that he will do anything for a good laugh. At times, Oberon is extraordinarily nice, generous, and compassionate. He felt sorry for Helena and tried to get Demetrius to fall in love with her. However, On the other hand, Oberon is cruel, jealous, and tyrannical. Resembling his mischievous servant Puck, Oberon finds no problem with playing with other people’s love. He swindled his own wife and laughed at the misfortunes of the four Athenians Helena, Hermia, Lysander, and Demetrius. Despite one’s view of Oberon, it is clear that he is the root of all the problems in the play because he starts a sequence of problems by making the love juice, orders the love juice to be used on Demetrius which in turn causes disarray for all four of the young lovers, and causes disgrace for Titania and creates obstacles for Bottom and the Rude Mechanicals when he uses the love juice on Titania in order to fulfill his own selfish desires.
In A Midsummer Night's Dream, playwright William Shakespeare creates in Bottom, Oberon, and Puck unique characters that represent different aspects of him. Like Bottom, Shakespeare aspires to rise socially; Bottom has high aims and, however slightly, interacts with a queen. Through Bottom, Shakespeare mocks these pretensions within himself. Shakespeare also resembles King Oberon, controlling the magic we see on the stage. Unseen, he and Oberon pull the strings that control what the characters act and say. Finally, Shakespeare is like Puck, standing back from the other characters, acutely aware of their weaknesses and mocks them, relishing in mischief at their expense. With these three characters and some play-within-a-play enchantment, Shakespeare mocks himself and his plays as much as he does the young lovers and the mechanicals onstage. This genius playwright who is capable of writing serious dramas such as Hamlet and Julius Caesar is still able to laugh at himself just as he does at his characters. With the help of Bottom, Oberon, and Puck, Shakespeare shows us that theatre, and even life itself, are illusions that one should remember to laugh at.
In William Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer’s Night Dream” two worlds are contrasted throughout the play. The Athenian state is governed by order, law, and reason; the forest or Fairy world lies within the realm of the imagination where anything is possible. While both worlds run parallel in the play, their inhabitants are influenced by one another. Their rulers, Theseus and Oberon, play critical roles in the events of the story. Theseus acts compassionately with a sense of duty, order and respect; his initial rulings for Hermia provide the exposition for the comedy (May 75). Oberon acts compassionately as well, but acts on a whim and resorts to trickery if it suits his desires; his actions direct the complication in the plot (May 75). Their personalities are characterized by how they attempt to help the young lovers, how and why they make decisions and how they interact with their loved ones and subjects. The rulers’ similarities govern the reasons behind their actions; their differences contribute to the success of the story.
The Theme of Love in A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare In the play ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ many aspects of love are explored. In this essay I will be exploring how Shakespeare conveys the theme of love including illusion, confusion, escape, harmony and lust. Historically, it has been suggested that ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ was written for a wedding, signifying the importance of love in this play, however there is no real evidence to prove this myth. Rather, the Lord Chamberlain’s men performed ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ on the London stage.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, by William Shakespeare, is a play that illustrates a good picture of woman’s lack of freedom. It is a story of several couples, among which there is a fairy king, Oberon, who proves his sovereignty over the queen of the fairies, Titania. The two have an ongoing conflict about who should keep the Indian boy, whose mother had recently died. Titania doesn’t want to give him up because she and the boy’s mother knew each other very good; whereas Oberon has no relations to the boy, but really wants him as a servant. Ultimately, Oberon wins the boy by using a trick of his on Titania, revealing her weakness. Shakespeare uses Oberon to show this power of man over woman and to expose woman’s unheard, meaningless, and feeble opinions through Titania. In several scenes throughout the play, the female character, Titania, struggles to do as she desires; however, Oberon takes things under his control and helps to portray the female as weaker than the male.
A main portion of Shakespeare’s play takes place in a magical Forrest. Although is seems a bit far fetched, true magic arises from it's deepest parts. The Fairy King, Oberon, alters love, the strongest kind of magic. With his mischievous doings, Lys...
Love and nature also play a huge part in the bizarre events that surround dreams and the concept of dreaming. While each of the four lovers dream of being with a particular significant other, bizarre circumstances, brought upon by Puck, allow for chaos and obvious confusion. But, probably one of the most bizarre situations within this production is the lines uttered by Puck at the completion of the production. These lines really relate to the concept of dreams because they make the audience question the outlandish events that had previously occurred or indeed, whether they had even occurred at all. Works Cited Shakespeare, William.
Shakespeare wrote his acclaimed comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream more than a thousand years after Apuleius’ Roman novel, The Golden Ass. Although separated by thousands of years and different in terms of plot and setting, these works share the common theme of a confused and vulnerable man finding direction by relying on a supernatural female. One of A Midsummer Night’s Dream’s many subplots is the story of Bottom, a comical figure determined to be taken seriously in his production of a Pyramus and Thisbe. As Bottom becomes caught up in a quarrel between the king and queen of the fairies, the commanders of the enchanted forest where Bottom and his players practice, the “shrewd and knavish sprite” Puck transforms his head into an ass’ s and leads him to be enthralled in a one night stand with the queen, Titania. (2.1.33) Apuleius’s protagonist Lucius endures a similar transformation, after his mistress’s slave girl accidentally bewitches him into a donkey, leaving him even without the ability to speak. Although Lucius’ transformation lasts longer and is more severe, he and Bottom both undergo similar experiences resulting from their animal forms. Lucius’ suffering ultimately leads him to salvation through devotion the cult of Isis, and Bottom’s affair with Titania grants him clarity and a glimpse into similar divine beauty. Ultimately, both asinine characters are saved through their surrender to the goddesses.
... featured one last time in the epilogue to this scene, where he tells the audience that if they do not enjoy the play, they should think of it as nothing more than a dream. If the audience does enjoy the play, they should give Puck "their hands," or applaud. Thus Puck is cleaning up for more than the fairies problems in the last soliloquy, as he cleans up for the entire play as well. Both of the fools were necessary in this play. Puck's tricks and loyalty makes Oberon's goals and the happiness of the lovers possible. Bottom's foolishness provides for comedy for both the characters in the play and the audience, and it’s his transformation which enables Oberon to obtain the boy from Titania. Puck, Oberon's fool, and Bottom, the fool of the play, both provide comedy and some-what intelligent observations, which make them an important part of A Midsummer Night's Dream.
Love is defined as a strong affection, attachment, or devotion to a person or persons. Many people tend to think that if you are young , you cannot possibly be in love at thee same time. It is believed that especially when you are in your teenage year that you are too young to know whether or not you are really in love, but who can really say that they know the true meaning of love whether they are young or old. Despite all of this, there are still those people out there that believe in love at first sight and love being blind. In William Shakespear¹s play ³A Midsummer Night¹s Dream² he tells the story of four young Athenian teens who fall in love with each other, the queen of the fairies who falls in love with a man who has the head of a donkey, and the queen of the Amazons who falls in love with the duke of Athens who captures her from the rest of the Amazons. Sight plays a significant role to the to all of these circumstances that occur within the story.
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.
The concept of contrast plays an important role throughout Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Shakespeare provides many examples of contrast signifying it as a motif. He groups the ideas of contrast together into those of some of the most important roles in the play. Helena is portrayed as tall and Hermia is short. Titania is a beautiful fairy who falls in love with Bottom, who is portrayed as graceless. Moreover, the main sets of characters even have differences. Fairies are graceful and magical creatures, yet tradesmen are clumsy and mortal. Additionally, the tradesmen are always overjoyed while the lovers are always serious with their emotions. Contrast layers throughout the whole play, as examples are shown in nearly every scene. Contrast becomes a constant, important motif to Shakespeare’s playwrite.
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.