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Literary Analysis of a Midsummer Night Dream
Elizabethan era a midsummer night's dream
Elizabethan era a midsummer night's dream
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Is someone trying to unethically influence you? Are you doing something you were made to do? Sometimes, the force of others can influence us to do several of things, sometimes things that could ruin lives, friendships, and possibly true love. In the play “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” written by William Shakespeare, we find that many of the characters were once influenced by people or things, many which had no choice but to follow the orders. During these few paragraphs, you will be informed about the several influences that took place in this book/play. Ranging from the marriage of Hermia and Demetrius, to Puck's mischievous deeds and, of course, the love potion. Money, power, and royalty. We all sometimes get lost in that. Sometimes money …show more content…
This occurred due to the love potion Puck had brought to Oberon. ‘Love is like a clay it can be molded in many different forms.’ In Shakespeare’s play, love was manipulated in many ways. Starting with Lysander, who was the first one to be put under the spell. He loved Hermia, with the influence of the love potion, he fell in deep love with Helena. Page 28 Lysander says (2.2.109-110) “And run through fire I will run for thy sweet sake! Transparent Helena…The tedious minutes I with her have spent. Not Hermia, but Helena I love” (2.2.118-119). Not only is Lysander under this spell, but also Demetrius too. He has fallen blindly in love with Helena, he could not stop praising her. “O Helen, goddess, nymph, perfect, divine! To what, my love shall I compare thine eyne?” (3.2.137-138). Together with Lysander and Demetrius, Titania, the Queen of Fairies was also under the influence of the love potion. She was attracted to Bottom, who temporarily had an ass's head. “Come sit thee down upon this flowery bed while I thy amiable cheeks do coy, and still musk-roses in thy sleek smooth head, and kiss thy fair large ears, my gentle joy.” (4.1.1-4). As you can see, they all had been trapped inside this bubble of pseudo love, the characters under the spell were unconscious of their behaviors and acts towards others. In other words, this spell had created a big confusion among the
When Oberon ordered Puck to anoint Demetrius, he anointed Lysander, therefore causing chaos among the lovers! Puck was the one making his own choices based on his knowledge. Secondly, when Titania ordered the fairies to serve Bottom, she was under the love potion. Since she madly pursued Bottom, she didn’t truly know what she was doing, which caused chaos!. Though it may seem like Bottom and Oberon were controlling, they are both at the
In Shakespeare’s Midsummer’s Night Dream he entices the reader using character development, imagery, and symbolism. These tools help make it a wonderful play for teens, teaching them what a well-written comedy looks like. As well as taking them into a story they won’t soon forget.
Love, lust and infatuation all beguile the senses of the characters in this dreamy and whimsical work of Shakespeare, and leads them to act in outlandish ways, which throughly amuses the reader. True love does prevail in the end for Hermia and Lysander, and the initial charm of infatuation ends up proving to have happy consequence for Helena and Demetrius as well. Even when at first the reader thinks that, in theory, the effects the potion will wear off and Lysander will once again reject Helena, Oberon places a blessings on all the couples that they should live happily ever after.
In A Midsummer Night’s Dream control is unpredictable. In act two scene two Oberon tells Puck to put the flower nectar in Demetrius’s eyes and he messes up and puts it in Lysander's eyes. In the stage directions it says “ He anoints Lysander’s eyes with nectar.” (2.2.85). This shows that Puck messes up Oberon’s directions and this leads to a love triangle between Lysander, Helena , and Demetrius.
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.
To start, Oberon tells Puck to anoint the eyes of Demetrius, because of his Athenian outfit. After all Oberon does not specifically describe Demetrius, except for his garments, causing Puck to mistake for Lysander who is also wearing Athenian garments. In the text after Oberon tells puck to anoint the eyes of Demetrius, Oberon says, “Thou shalt know the man By the Athenian/ garments he hath on” (2.2.263-264). As a result, Puck mistakes Demetrius for Lysander, who is now in love with Helena. Oberon is miscue with Puck leads to a new problem as now Lysander is in love with Helena and not Demetrius. Furthermore, after Puck admits his mistake, Oberon tries to correct the issue by anointing the eyes of Demetrius so he falls in love with Helena, which then results in Lysander and Demetrius in love with the same person. After Puck comes back to Oberon, they both see Demetrius and Helena, Puck states “This is the woman, but not this the man” (3.2.42). To continue, Oberon tells Puck his mistake; he then tries to fix it himself. Oberon anoints Demetrius; he is now in love with Helena. However, Oberon now creates a new problem, because both men are in love with Helena. Due to Oberon, Lysander and Demetrius try to battle for Helena. That being the case, it is clear that Oberon is responsible for the mistakes of anointing the wrong Athenian men and proves that he is the problem behind all of the
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.
Out, cur! Thou dravest me past the bounds Of maiden’s patience. Hast thou slain him, then? Henceforth be never numbered among men. O, once tell true! Tell true, even for my sake! Durst thou have looked upon him, being awake? And hast thou kill'd him sleeping? O brave touch! Could not a worm, an adder, do so much? An adder did it, for with doubler tongue Than thine, thou serpent, never adder stung.Puck enchants the four lovers with the love potion while they are sleeping when they wake up Helena and Hermia are confused from Lysanders and Demetrious behavior .If puck wouldn't have abused his power in magic this wouldn't have happened .Puck puts potion on Lysander’s eyes (Act II.scene ii. 78-80) and in this one action turns these relationships upside down.THis is evidence that Puck and Oberon obuse magic and thereby Impact the four lovers.In conclusion Magic has impacted many people in the play but comparte to everybody else the four lovers are the most affected by this .
He sends his jester, Puck, to use a flower that, if its juice is dropped onto someone who’s sleeping’s eyes, will make the person fall madly in love with the first person they lie their eyes on. “Take thou some of it, and seek through this grove; A sweet Athenian lady is in love with a disdainful youth; anoint his eyes; but do it when the next thing he espies may be the lady. Thou shalt know the man by the Athenian garments he hath on. ”(64) Puck, following Oberon’s orders, finds Lysander and Hermia instead of Demetrius and Helena.
The Loss of Magic Throughout A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare, there are multiple analyses that one can follow in order to reach a conclusion about the overall meaning of the play. These conclusions are reached through analyzing the play’s setting, characterization, and tone. However, when one watches the production A Midsummer Night’s Dream directed by Michael Hoffman, a completely different approach is taken on these aspects, leading to a vastly different analysis of the work. Though there are many similarities between the original written play A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare and the on-screen production of the aforementioned play which was directed by Michael Hoffman, there are differences in setting and
In the beginning Lysander and Hermia run off to the forest to try to escape the king’s commandments, so they can be together. They believe if they can escape their problems and go somewhere where there is no rules they can finally be happy together. In an essay Bouloussa states how the Athenian lovers (Hermia & Lysander) attempt to escape their problems because they believe this is where there happiness lies. But Helena tells Demetrius and he goes after them, which leads Helena to follow. One day while out Puck and Oberon see Helena and Demetrius fighting and Oberon decides to use the love potion on Demetrius to attempt to fix the love mess. Initially, Puck is only supposed to use the love potion on Demetrius not Lysander. But of course Puck messes up, and ends up using the love potion on both of them, which causes them both to chase after Helena for her love and affection. Furthermore, when she sees them acting this way she believes they are mocking her, so she rejects their
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.
When Puck mistakenly applies the love potion to Lysander’s eyelids. At this point, both male characters of the main plot have fallen in love with Helena, leaving Hermia out of balance. The struggle of the four lovers is one of the more complicated conflicts in the play. The conflict could have been avoided if Puck had not misused his magic. However, because Puck mistakenly used his magic on Lysander, conflict erupted.
He sends Puck out to find a plant called love-in-idleness, the juice of which makes any person love next creature he or she sees. Oberon takes his revenge on Titania by making her fall in love with bottom who has an ass's head. Puck explains what he has done to Oberon, who is pleased with the way his plan has turned out Everything seems perfect, until Demetrius and Hermia walk past, Hermia believing Demetrius has harmed Lysander,
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.