A Midsummer Night’s Dream: by William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was born in April 1564. He had married at the age of eighteen to a twenty-six year old woman named Anne Hathaway in 1582. He had a daughter named Susanna and twins, Judith and Hamnet. Hamnet, his only son, died at age eleven. Shakespeare died in April 1616. Despite the fact that Shakespeare wrote some thirty-seven plays, owned part of his theatrical company, acted in plays, and retired a relatively wealthy man in the city of his birth, there is much we do not know about him (Jacobus, 167-169). One of the plays that Shakespeare wrote was A Midsummer Night’s Dream. A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1595-1596) is an early comedy and one of Shakespeare’s most beloved works. It is also one of his most imaginative plays, introducing us to the world of fairies and the realm of dreams. A Midsummer Night’s Dream has attracted many great directors in modern times, although in the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries the play was adapted essentially as a vehicle for presenting the world of the fairies. It even became an opera in 1692 (Jacobus 169-170). In the fairy world is where everything comes together.
In A Midsummer Night’s Dream Egeus who is Hermia’s father wants her to marry Demetrius. Hermia is in love with Lysander though and wants to marry him. Both Demetrius and Lysander are in love with Hermia and Helena is in love with Demetrius. Egeus wants Theseus the Duke of Athens to take Hermia far away and kill her because she refuses to marry Demetrius. Instead of killing Hermia, Theseus sent her far away and never to return.
Once in the woods Lysander, Hermia, Demetrius, and Helena run into Oberon the King of the fairies, Titania Queen of the fai...
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...gentle charm that could not be attached to an omnipotent figure, who must remain as unlovable as an unclimbable cliff. But most importantly, the fairy world represents an ideal because, as many have noted, it symbolizes, like the Homeric world, a union between man and nature (Hutton, 289-305).
Works Cited
Hutton, Virgil. "A Midsummer Night's Dream: Tragedy in Comic Disguise." (2001): 289-305.
Jacobus, Lee A. The Compact Bedford Introduction To Drama. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2009.
Kott, Jan. "Shakespeare Our Contemporary." Kehler, Dorothea. A Midsummer Night's Dream Critical Essays. New York & London: Garland Inc., 1998.
Montrose, Louis A. "A Kingdom of Shadows." Kehler, Dorothea. A Midsummer Night's Dream Critical Essays. New York/London: Garland Inc., 1998.
Ormerod, David. "A Midsummer Night's Dream: The Monster in the Labyrinth." (2002): 39-53.
Lysander tells Theseus that Demetrius "Made love to … Helena, And won her soul.” Helena says that before Demetrius looked upon Hermia, "He hail'd down oaths that he was only mine.” In an attempt to win back some of Demetrius's affection, Helena tells him of Hermia's plan to meet in the wood and elope with Lysander.
In the first part of the play Egeus has asked the Duke of Athens, Theseus, to rule in favor of his parental rights to have his daughter Hermia marry the suitor he has chosen, Demetrius, or for her to be punished. Lysander, who is desperately in love with Hermia, pleads with Egeus and Theseus for the maiden’s hand, but Theseus’, who obviously believes that women do not have a choice in the matter of their own marriage, sides with Egeus, and tells Hermia she must either consent to marrying Demetrius, be killed, or enter a nunnery. In order to escape from the tragic dilemma facing Hermia, Lysander devises a plan for him and his love to meet the next evening and run-off to Lysander’s aunt’s home and be wed, and Hermia agrees to the plan. It is at this point in the story that the plot becomes intriguing, as the reader becomes somewhat emotionally “attached’’ to the young lovers and sympathetic of their plight. However, when the couple enters the forest, en route to Lysander’s aunt’s, it is other mischievous characters that take the story into a whole new realm of humorous entertainment...
Then along come Helena and Demetrius to this spot. They are still arguing and Demetrius leaves her with the sleeping Lysander and Hermia. Helena notices them there and tries to wake Lysander. Lysander wakes and the first thing he sees is Helena. " And run through fire for thy sweat sake.
Theseus and Oberon are both compassionate and understanding towards the young lovers, Hermia and Lysander, and Helena and Demetrius. They are involved in a love triangle that encompasses matters of the law and love. Demetrius intends to marry Hermia, although, she shares a mutual love with Lysander; Helena loves Demetrius, although, he no longer loves her. Theseus, as the Duke of Athens, maintains the laws and standards of Athenian society. He acknowledges “the Ancient privilege of Athens” (I.1.41) that allows Egeus to “dispose of” (I.1.42) Hermia. This law permits Egeus to give his daughter to Demetrius or “to death, according to [the] law” (I.1.44). However, Theseus takes pity on Hermia and gives he...
Hermia, Demetrius,and Egeus are all important people in the majestic life of the one and only Lysander. This magical sequence of events takes part in one of William Shakespeare's best plays, A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Lysander's role in this story is to love Hermia. Lysander shows that love is worth fighting for when brings the case to the Duke and has a duel with the other lover of Hermia, Demetrius.
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.
Schanzer, Ernest. "_A Midsummer-Night's Dream." 26-31 in Kenneth Muir, ed. Shakespeare: The Comedies: A Collection of Critical Essays. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, 1965.
Shakespeare, William. A Midsummer Night’s Dream. ed. David L. Stevenson. New York: Signet ……….Classic, 1998. Print.
Significantly, two features of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream that are worth examining are his cleverness with language and his appeal to multiple
The hilarious play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, by William Shakespeare, tells the twisted love story of four Athenians who are caught between love and lust. The main characters: Hermia, Helena, Lysander, and Demetrius are in a ‘love square’. Hermia and Lysander are true love enthusiasts, and love each other greatly. Demetrius is in love with Hermia, and Helena, Hermia’s best friend, is deeply and madly in love with Demetrius. Hermia and Lysander try to elope in the woods because Egeus, Hermia’s father, disapproves of Lysander.
Throughout history literature has changed into many different forms and styles, it has also stayed the same in many different ways, literary techniques and elements are key to a good piece of writing, a perfect example that shows us just this is in, A Midsummer Nights Dream, where we will further explore the different literary elements that were used most notably the plot. The plot of a story lays out the foundation and the background for the entire play to come, we'll compare and contrast this element and look at the different sub elements which are produced. We will define similarities and difference in these elements form both the play o the film. Taking a look at things such as climax, play incidents, and the conflict will all give us a better understanding of how it affects the similarities and difference of the film versus the play.
Shakespeare, William, and Russ McDonald. A Midsummer Night's Dream. New York, NY: Penguin, 2000. Print.
The relationship between Demetrius and Hermia is problematic, in that Demetrius is seeking the affections of Hermia, while she is in love with Lysander. However, Hermia’s father approves of Demetrius and tries to force her to marry him, but Hermia refuses because of her love for Lysander (A Midsummer Night’s Dream 1.1.22-82). Lysander points out the flaw in the situation through this comment, “You have her father 's love, Demetrius –/Let me have Hermia 's. Do you marry him,” (A Midsummer Night’s Dream 1.1.93-94). The second flawed relationship is between Lysander and Helena, as a result of an enchantment put on Lysander that made him fall in love with Helena. Helena does not want the affections of Lysander, but rather the love of Demetrius, and believes that Lysander is taunting her. In addition, this relationship creates tensions because Hermia is in love with Lysander (A Midsummer Night’s Dream 2.2.109-140). Both relationships are not desirable due to a lack of mutual admiration and the creation of non-peaceful and unsatisfying
Schlegel, August Wilhelm. Criticism on Shakespeare s Tragedies . A Course of Lectures on Dramatic Art and Literature. London: AMS Press, Inc., 1995.
Shakespeare, William. A Midsummer Night's Dream. Comp. Folger Shakespeare Library. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Paperbacks, 2009. Print.