...Shakespeare’s use of comedy in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” Shakespeare creates comedy in his play “A Midsummer Night’s dream” through the different scenarios in the play that take place which all have at least an element of humour. He creates comedy in a number of ways and it makes the play humorous as a whole. However he uses dark comedy in several scenes of the play. Through the lovers; Hermia, Lysander, Helena and Demetrius, we see humour in the way they have love triangles. The fact that Hermia and Lysander are in love, but Demetrius chases after Hermia and Helena chases after Demetrius is humorous itself. Shakespeare’s use of comedy in the love triangles is a form of comical relief to a certain extent. This is because as tension builds up between the lovers, in act 3 scene 2 both Lysander and Demetrius fall in love with Helena because of the “Love in idleness”, which ends up in a big argument with Hermia. The fact that each character does not know why the males suddenly love Helena makes the scene, which is supposed to be serious, humorous. Shakespeare uses dark humour, however, because it is meant to be a sad and confusing experience for Hermia and Helena, though it is fiendishly comical. Furthermore, Shakespeare’s use of comedy between the lovers is not over done, like the mechanicals. The fact that both Lysander and Demetrius loved Hermia before the fairies interfered with the love triangles, shows more of the dark humour. Lysander used to think of Hermia as his “gentle...
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...A Midsummer Night’s Dream ‘All Shakespearean plays are relevant to modern audiences.’ Shakespeare’s plays have an exciting and capturing quality about them that continues to excite modern day audiences. One of his most famous plays, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, has many themes such as love, dreams and farcical events that make us laugh at the foolishness of the smitten characters. We watch as the play unravels before us, showing the obstacles people go through to achieve happiness when they are in love. Because of these characteristics, A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a riveting play that is still relevant to modern audiences. One of the key features in A Midsummer Night’s Dream that is used to engage viewers and readers is love vs. reason. This is cleverly demonstrated when Bottom says “…reason and love keep little company together nowadays.” as Titania, the fairy queen, professes her unjustified and undying love to him. Shakespeare used personification in the text because Bottom and Titania are portraying ‘reason’ and ‘love’ while they speak, seeing as fairies and mortal humans do not mix. Finding love illogical or having no reason is still relevant and a very common occurrence in our modern day lives, as (coming from a non-scientific point of view) we still don’t understand how or why love happens. Love and all its glorious mayhem shall always persevere throughout the ages, and even throughout varying cultures, as it is a part of being human. Being such a dominant theme in...
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...A Midsummer Night's Dream Genre Comedy A Midsummer Night's Dream is a classic example of Shakespearean comedy. What, you don't believe us? We'll prove it to you. We've got a checklist that details all the typical conventions and features of the genre so you can see for yourself: Light, humorous tone: Check. The play features fairy magic (like Oberon's love potion), silly pranks (like the transformation of a guy's head into that of a jackass), and the botched performance of a play-within-the-play by a bunch of wannabe actors. Need we say more? Clever dialogue and witty banter: Check. Shakespeare is a huge fan of punning and snappy wordplay, so naturally, his characters know how to get their witty repartee on. Shakespeare reserves some of the best dialogue for his warring lovers, especially Oberon and Titania, and even the "rude mechanicals" manage to wow us with their clever banter. Deception and disguise: Let's see…Hermia and Lysander try to sneak away from Athens to elope (behind Egeus's back). Also, Titania and the young lovers have no idea they've been drugged by Oberon and his magic love juice. So, check. Mistaken identity: Check. Sort of. In most of Shakespeare's other comedies, someone usually runs around in a disguise to mask his or her identity. (Sometimes, a lover is even tricked into sleeping with the wrong person by mistake.) This isn't necessarily the case in A Midsummer Night's Dream, unless we count the fact that the love juice causes Titania to fall head...
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...A Midsummer Night’s Dream Throughout your life you might occasionally find yourself having difficulty distinguishing between what is real and what is just your imagination. William Shakespeare, born in April 1564, was one of the greatest play writers of all time. In each of his plays Shakespeare focused on conveying a message or theme to the audience. One of his most beloved works is A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Throughout this play William Shakespeare is trying to make the distinction between appearances versus reality. Using the concepts of love, a play-within-a-play, and dreams Shakespeare is able to make the distinction between the two. This essay will examine each concept and explain its importance in distinguishing between how things look versus what they actually are. Love is a major theme throughout the story. There are many different types of love between the different characters. First, there is noble love between Theseus and Hippolyta. Next is true love, which is shared between Lysander and Hermia. Also, Oberon and Titania share a magical love because both are fairies. Shakespeare confuses reality by including fairies in this story. The fairies can interact with the humans and can even fall in love with them. Another tactic used by Shakespeare is that the fairies have a magic liquid that when poured onto a persons eyelids will cause that person to fall in love with the first thing that person sees once they open their eyes. This potion is poured into many characters...
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...Vision and Dreams of Love The drama A Midsummer Night’s Dream, written by William Shakespeare, contains four love plots. The play is filled with references to eyes and vision. The plots of the play are hinged by the visualization used by Shakespeare to transform what the characters see and what they think they see. Throughout the play, Shakespeare uses physical and appearance visions to make the characters wonder if they are feeling true love or if it is just an illusion or a dream of love. The play began with Hermia wishing her father would see Lysander as the man that she does. Shakespeare wrote of Hermia “I would my father looked with but my eyes” (1.1.56). Although this reference to eyes is mainly set to Egeus, Hermia’s father, it seems to be a materialistic view. He sees with his physical eyes what is on the outside of Lysander instead of looking to what is on the inside of emotions. He does not see the gifts that Lysander gives to Hermia as love; he sees them as bribes for her to love him. Shakespeare wrote of Egeus “And stol’n the impression of her fantasy/ With bracelets of thy hair, rings, gauds, conceits,/ Knacks, trifles, nosegays, sweetmeats-messengers” (1.1.32-34). Egeus prefers Demetrius to be the one for his daughter as he tries to force Hermia into his concepts of love and standards of marriage. The first scene starts the complications of the characters views to be a conflict between what they think they see on the outside and what they see on the inside for...
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...The Course of True Love Never Did Run Smooth Love is the main point in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, which begins as Theseus and Hippolyta prepare for their upcoming wedding, but love isn’t necessarily romantic. Instead, the play shows the chance of desire, along with its depth, the sighs and tears that often make lovers confused. Throughout the play, we see how the troubled relationships between Demetrius, Helena, Hermia, and Lysander are similar to Theseus and Hippolyta and Oberon and Titania. In the beginning of the play, Theseus, the Duke of Athens, is engaged to Hippolyta. He met her in battle which he explains in-depth, "...I wooed thee with my sword, / And won thee doing thee injuries; but I will wed thee in another key (1.1.16). Hippolyta doesn't mind being a literal wife, she seems happy to be engaged to Theseus and even looks forward to their wedding night, when "the moon shall behold the night / of their solemnities" (1.1.9-11). Hermia's father, Egeus, wants Demetrius as a suitor, and acquires the aid of Theseus to enforce his wishes upon his daughter. According to Athenian law, Hermia is given four days to marry Demetrius, or she’ll be put to death. But she loves Lysander, so she decides to escape with Lysander into the surrounding forest. Complications arise in the forest. Oberon and Titania, King and Queen of Fairies, are locked in an argument over an Indian boy whom Titania has adopted. “I do but beg a little changeling buy, to be my henchman” (2.1. 120-121)...
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...Demetrius Lysander – in love with Hermia Demetrius – in love with Hermia at first but later loves Helena The Fairies Oberon – Titania's husband and King of the Fairies Titania – Oberon's wife and Queen of the Fairies Robin Goodfellow/Puck – servant to Oberon Peaseblossom – fairy servant to Titania Cobweb – fairy servant to Titania Moth – fairy servant to Titania Mustardseed – fairy servant to Titania First Fairy, Second Fairy The Mechanicals (An acting troupe) Peter Quince – carpenter, leads the troupe and plays Prologue Nick Bottom – weaver, plays Pyramus Francis Flute – bellows-mender, plays Thisbe Robin Starveling – tailor, plays Moonshine Tom Snout – tinker, plays Wall Snug – joiner, plays Lion Play Summary A Midsummer Night's Dream opens with Theseus and Hippolyta planning their wedding, which takes place in four days. Theseus is upset because time is moving so slowly, but Hippolyta assures him the four days will quickly pass. Their relationship has not always been so loving. Theseus won Hippolyta during a battle. While they discuss their relationship, Egeus enters with his daughter, Hermia, and her two suitors, Lysander and Demetrius. Hermia is in love with Lysander, but her father wants her to marry Demetrius. Lysander argues that he is as good of a match as Demetrius, but Egeus won't listen. Instead, he declares that if Hermia won't marry Demetrius, she will die: This is the law of Athens and his right as her father. Theseus agrees that Hermia should obey...
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...In the book, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, it centers its story about a complicated love web. In the end of the story, there will be a wedding for one of the couples, where there will be a play. Throughout the story, a couple of trade’s people practice for this play. In the fairy side of the story, there is some trouble in the royal couple relationship. This story focuses on the weird occurrences that will occur in the days before the wedding. Shakespeare uses several different relationships in A Midsummer Night’s Dream to the real nature of romantic love. Two relationships in, particular, Helena and Demetrius and Titania and Bottom illustrate that love is toxic and misleading. To begin, Helena and Demetrius were a clear example of how...
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...Reflections on A Midsummer Night’s Dream For most people the word 'Love' brings upon strong emotions to our minds. For Shakespeare's story “ A Midsummer Night's Dream” love is a strong ongoing theme. In which 2 young men and 2 young women will go to any extent for love. Often getting in sticky, confusing situations. Mainly being the fact that; Hermia loves Lysander and Lysander loves Hermia. While Helena loves Demetrius, however, Demetrius loves Hermia. To quote Lysander: “The course of true love never did run smooth,” (I.i.134) In many ways the strong emotion of love drives this hectic story. In the story Hermia is the princess of the kingdom. She loves lysander, yet she is forbidden to marry him by her father, Egeus. “Full of vexation come I, with complaint Against my child, my daughter Hermia.Stand forth, Demetrius. My noble lord,This man hath my consent to marry her. Stand forth, Lysander: and my gracious duke, This man hath bewitch'd the bosom of my child;Thou, thou, Lysander, thou hast given her rhymes,And interchanged love-tokens with my child:Thou hast by moonlight at her window sung,With feigning voice verses of feigning love,And stolen the impression of her fantasy With bracelets of thy hair, rings, gawds, conceits,Knacks, trifles, nosegays, sweetmeats, messengers. Of strong prevailment in unharden'd youth:With cunning hast thou filch'd my daughter's heart, Turn'd her obedience, which is due to me,To stubborn harshness: and, my gracious duke,Be it so she; will...
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...Olivia Smith Pd 4 MSND A In A Midsummer Night’s Dream, mistaken identities cause an uproar of emotional mix-ups. The background of the play is a simple love "square" involving four people.: Hermia loves Lysander and Lysander loves Hermia, but Demetrious also loves her, and Helena loves Demetrious. Hermia and Demetrious are engaged to marry against Hermia's will. They all end up running off into the wood on a magic spring evening when fairies turn everything upside down. While they are asleep, Puck squeezes the juice from a magic flower that makes whomever's eye it enters to fall in love with the first person they see. He puts it onto Lysander's eye, thinking he was Demetrius. This begins the game of mistaken identities, because Helena is the first person Lysander sees, which causes him to fall in love with her instead of Hermia. So now, Lysander loves Helena, Helena loves Demetrius, Demetrius loves Hermia and Hermia loves Lysander. The confusion increases. Every encounter the couples have gets more confusing and exasperating. Then Puck realizes his mistake and puts the flower juice on Demetrius' eyes, making him fall in love with Helena as well. Helena, whose love towards Demetrius has been in vain, thinks that Lysander and Demetrius are mocking her, because they are both, suddenly, mysteriously in love with her. Her exasperation is ironic, because now she has too much love instead of too little. Her anger and verbal abuse of the lovers and of Hermia, whom she suspects...
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...The theme of love in ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ The theme of love is crucial in ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ as the plot revolves around love. Without love there would not be any lovers for the play to be based on. I feel that love in the play is personified and has two personalities, comforting and cruel- comforting within civilisation, but cruel within the woods where characters are insecure. The woods have a very negative effect on the lovers and love plays with this insecurity. The magic juice represents mischief but its ultimate affect is love. When the men’s love interests’ change, the women don’t accept it, instead it throws them into a frenzy of questions and confusion and so something that should be unexpected but amazing for Helena, instead is a nightmare as she thinks she is being mocked. “O spite! O Hell! I see you all are bent to set against me for your merriment” (3, 2,145-146). This shows Helena’s frustration and how even though all she longs for is love, the woods can still change her perception of it. Love seems to consume the lovers, and makes them lose their rational mind. As Freud said “you are always mad when you are in love” and this is strongly shown in the play as love seems to rule the lovers heads and leads to mad decisions. For instance Helena has a perfect opportunity as Hermia is planning to elope with Lysander, leaving Demetrius for her. However her insane love for Demetrius means that she acts entirely irrationally by telling Demetrius “of fair...
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...METATHEATRE IN A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM (SHAKESPEARE). The term metatheatre is used to refer to any instance in which a play draws attention to itself as a play, rather than pretending to be a representation of “reality.” Various uses of metatheatrical devices can be found in the works of William Shakespeare. One of Shakespeare’s favorite such devices is the “play-within-a-play.” With this device, the theatre audience finds itself watching an audience (on stage) watching a play. The play-within-a-play is thus a self-reflexive device that addresses the question of where audience reality ends and theatrical illusion begins. Shakespeare often incorporated the device as an integral part of his plots. A famous example can be found in Hamlet, in which a play is used as part of the effort to uncover the guilt of Hamlet’s Uncle Claudius. Another famous play-within-a-play is found in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. In this work, the play performed by Nick Bottom and his friends takes up almost the entire final act. It appears after the major issues of A Midsummer Night’s Dream have been resolved, and thus it is clearly not integral to the development of the plot. Nonetheless, as this paper will argue, the play-within-a-play in A Midsummer Night’s Dream serves an important function by making commentaries on the events that occurred in the first four acts. Various metatheatrical elements can be found throughout A Midsummer Night’s Dream. For example, Bottom appears...
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...The passage I chose was from A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare. In this passage, Puck and the fairy are having a conversation about what Puck does to people to fool them. After their conversation is over, Titania and Oberon walk in, and they start fighting with each other. They are furious and accuse each other of cheating on one another. After annotating and analyzing this passage in Act 2 Scene 1 I have formed two claims, one being that Puck is a trickster. Another one being that the change in writing style is due to the fact that Oberon and Titania are of a different social and emotional status than the fairy and Puck. The dialogue between the fairy and Puck was written in heroic couplets, meaning the last word of every pair...
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...A Midsummer Night's Dream is one of Shakespeare's more ambitious and fantastical plays. With over-arching plotlines, many interesting characters, magic, and odd creatures, Shakespeare really put a lot of imagination and hard work into ensuring A Midsummer Night's Dream could work as a play. The play has a few different themes going on at once, including but not necessarily limited to the idiocy of humanity and fiction versus reality. Scene III.1 embodies the two themes of the play, while also allowing Shakespeare the avenue to represent the arduous task of play-writing, while mocking those who feel they can make easy money doing something he excels at. The scene is quite important as it begins the introduction of the laborers/actors, who are effectively the idiots of the play, but also the idiots of humanity, who try to essentially fail at presenting a well thought out and...
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...True love does not exist without a harsh path traveled. Love shows how vulnerable people are. In the romantic comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a play in the Elizabethan era, William Shakespeare uses comedic conventions to explain love’s harsh and chaotic nature can make a fool out of anyone. Love not only makes a person a fool, but also guides people to make poor decisions. Shakespeare shows this through Hermia inquiring to Theseus the punishment for refusing to marry Demetrius because she loves Lysander, “But I beseech your Grace that I may know the worst that may befall me in this case if refuse to wed Demetrius”(I, i, 64-66). The fact that she would even ask the question that disobeys her father’s wishes makes an excellent example of a poor decision. Hermia not only asks this but also has thoughts of running away with Lysander and tries to carry out these plans, “Take comfort: he no more shall see my face. Lysander and myself will fly this place” (I, i, 207-208). Hermia also makes the poor decision of telling this to Helena who wishes to impress Demetrius out of love and Helena tells Demetrius of Hermia and Lysander’s plans to escape....
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