The Importance of Setting in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream
The two locations of Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' are essential to the development of the plot, although their presentation relies wholly on the characters we meet there, their adventures and their descriptions of these places. Athens is not an accidental choice of location: although much of the detail of the play is quintessentially English, the classical setting enables Shakespeare to introduce the notable lawgiver, who has had his own problems in love; it makes plausible the reference to the severe law, and it allows Oberon to refer seriously to Cupid and Diana without the play's seeming blasphemous.
Theseus is an enlightened ruler, notable for his wise judgement but there is a limit to his abilities: the problem Egeus gives him seems incapable of solution, so he tries to buy time and work on Egeus and Demetrius. But there seems little hope that the "harsh Athenian law" will produce a solution acceptable to all parties.
The wood is mentioned first by Lysander, who has been there with Hermia and Helena on May Day, and in the following scene by Bottom. Neither seems to have any inkling of what they may meet there. The wood may be unremarkable in the daytime but at night it is a place of danger and confusion. The young lovers experience the confusion but do not know its cause. The mechanicals go to the Palace Wood because they wish to rehearse unseen, little knowing that the wood is full of spirits (not to mention the four young lovers).
Lysander's literal losing of his way anticipates his metaphorical losing of his way, in pursuing the wrong woman. Demetrius speaks to Helena in a manner no gentleman would care to use ...
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...men's own strange standards the device is flawed, since Thisbe is left to find the dead Pyramus by (imagined) "starlight". The performance of Starveling also gives Theseus and Hippolyta the chance to crack some very topical jokes about changing and waning.
The play opens in Athens. We see how the young lovers and the mechanicals leave (for different reasons) this known and familiar place and enter the wood. This is the proper domain of the fairies, and no place for men, who enter at their peril. In the symmetry of the play, we see this process reversed in Act 5. Here the fairies come into Athens into the home of Theseus. But they are in no danger, not even of discovery. While they can promote the general fertility of the natural world in the wood, the importance of Theseus and Hippolyta requires a more direct overseeing of the conception of their heir.
In college there are hated rivals that can’t stand each other. This causes college fans to have lots of pride in their teams. College stadiums also have student sections, which take the atmosphere on game day to the next level. College players know how the fans feel. This inspires them to play their hardest, and leave everything on the field to represent their school. In the NFL, instead of playing for a team because you want to represent them, players will play for teams who offer them the longest and largest contracts. Players hold out from participating in training camp because they want a bigger contract, and some even sit out games. The NFL seems to be more like a business, and geared towards making money. NFL players holding out, and being focused on money angers fans. Not all players are like this, but fans feel that the ones like this are being
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.
Throughout the years, women have been mistreated brutally by gangs in their neighborhood. In a memoir by Luis Rodriguez, Always Running, the main character experiences many random acts such as shootings, rape, and many arrests. Even though, Luis may seem like a very tough young man, he gives the women the respect and love they wish to receive from a gang member. In today’s society, many young girls are attracted to what society calls a “bad boy” because their lifestyle seems exciting. When one decides to join a gang, one must prove their loyalty to their new family by getting “jumped” by the whole gang or committing a serious crime. When a young girl begins to date a gang member, she begins to see how quickly a situation can escalate to a violent scene and abuse. As soon as a young girl is expose to that lifestyle, they tend to get mistreated mentally and physically by other gang
Louis XIV controlled France’s economy. He began to heavily tax to support the military reforms. Louis agreed not to tax the nobility, therefore taking away the right for the upper class to have a say in where the taxation money was spent. This gave more and more power to the king. He could spend the money that he was getting from the poor and middle class in any way he pleased without upsetting the nobility. Unfortunately for Louis, the poor could not provide the money he needed. Soon, with the help of Jean-Baptiste Colbert, Louis introduced mercantilism in Europe. He regulated the flow of trade, making sure that France was exporting more than it was importing. To accomplish this, he raised the taxes on imports and lowered those on goods made in France. He encouraged skilled workers and craftsmen to immigrate to France, offering them goods and privileges.
Lysander calls Demetrius a?spotted and inconsistent man?, indicating Demetrius? fickleness towards women, that he is flirtatious and flawed. Demetrius is willing to go to any extent to have Hermia marry him, even allowing Hermia to be subject to a life of a nun or death, if she does not marry him. Demetrius. infatuation with Hermia brings out the tyrannical and possessive part of his character, as can be seen when he says?and, Lysander, yield thy crazed title to my certain right?
Throughout A Midsummer Night’s Dream the theme of conflict with authority is apparent and is the cause of the problems that befall the characters. It also is used to set the mood of the play. The passage below spoken by Theseus in the opening of the play clearly states this theme.
The quality of uniqueness and the singularity of each human being is a fundamental characteristic of humanity. In describing uniqueness, Heschel explains how man occupies a unique position of being both a natural and a human being. Though as a natural being, man is “determined by natural laws”, he, as a human, has the freedom of choice and the ability to make decisions (37). Ultimately influenced by decision-making, the course of a man’s life is subject to change and cannot be predicted. Human existence is comprised of an unlimited number of events that cannot be replicated, making it inherently unique (37). While people may come from similar circumstances, each man is an original. Every man has a distinct face and name, beliefs and experienced events that are completely singular. Uniqueness is the most constitutive trait of human existence as it reflects the fundamental nature of humanity -- that no two people are the same and that no two people will be shaped by experiences in the same way. All other attributes of humanity flow
...espeare's control of the play proper. This is shown both on the small and the large scale. The linguistic variety of the play (see below) and the control of the four narrative strands are such that the play has enjoyed great success in performance. In the wood, Shakespeare will leave a group of characters alone for as long as he needs to, but we never lose touch with their story. It is typical of Shakespeare that the mortals we see first in the wood are Demetrius and Helena; at once the playwright shows us the cause of Demetrius' rejection of Helena and lets us know that the other pair are also in the wood. We do not need to see Lysander and Hermia before they have lost their way, but we are ready for Puck's mistake as he seeks one in "Athenian garments".
Shakespeare creates a situation in which two pairs of young lovers, Lysander and Hermia, are forced to elope from the oppressive authority of their Elders, here we see Lysander asking Hermia to flee to the woods, “there gentle Hermia may I marry thee; and to that place the sharp Athenian law cannot pursue us” Freedom is not permitted in Athens, therefore the two lovers plan to escape into the woods. Hermia has two options given from her oppressive father, ‘either to die the death, or to abjure for ever in society of men’. She disobeys his commands. Shakespeare uses images to reflect Athens, and to magnify and to solidify Lysander and Hermia’s love for each other, which is strong and cannot be broken, without the use of magic. ‘Withering on a virgin thorn, grows, lives, and dies in single blessedness’.
Marijuana has been a frequently abused drug for quite some time, but is just now receiving national attention on the controversial issue of the question if it should become legalized, and what effects this will have on Americans and their communities. Recently there have been many arguments made about how marijuana should be legalized for medical reasons since, for example, it is a great option for people attempting to manage their chronic pain. By legalizing the drug, many people will begin to accept the fact that it is okay and will result in an extreme increase in drug use throughout the United States. Marijuana is known to be a gateway drug in the sense that it leads to a person using narcotics that have even worse physical and mental effects
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.
This class was far more intense than what I expected but I was able to make it through the semester. I learned a lot from this class that I will carry into the future and use in other classes. All of the revision and feedback I have received during the time in the class helped me in the end. I feel like I am gradually becoming a better writer. I will take everything that I have learned in this class and use it for future reference when writing papers. I overall have enjoyed this class this semester.
William Shakespeare’s writings are famous for containing timeless, universal themes. A particular theme that is explored frequently in his writings is the relationship between men and women. A Midsummer Night’s Dream contains a multitude of couplings, which are often attributed to the fairies in the play. Each of these pairings has positive and negative aspects, however, some relationships are more ideal than others. From A Midsummer Night’s Dream the optimal pairings are Lysander and Hermia, Demetrius and Helena, and Oberon and Titania; while the less desirable pairings are Theseus and Hippolyta, Hermia and Demetrius, Lysander and Helena, and Titania and Bottom. Throughout A Midsummer
Several wars resulted in massive enslavement, including the export of prisoners across the Atlantic, the ransoming of others, and the use of enslavement within Africa itself. The Kongo civil wars were responsible for the capture and enslavement of many. Africans were also kidnapped and sold to European merchants to sell in the new world. The families of many of the captured Africans were willing to pay for the return of their loved ones. Because slaves were in high demand around the world, merchants declined the money or would take them, but never return the
Initially this notion made sense because men needed to be stronger to enable them go out and hunt animals for dinner, infants needed to breastfeed so therefore women were meant to breastfeed them by doing this they stay at home. But all these have changed the feminist movement have disagreed that women are as intelligent, strong as the men, they are demanding for equal opportunities and equal