Introduction

MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM

Learning Objectives• Identify the key facts in the play

• Identify the main parts of the play

ParaphraseThou hast by moonlight at her window sung

With feigning voice verses of feigning love,

feigning = pretending

You’ve pretended to be in love with her, singing fake love songs softly at her window by moonlight

Key Facts

FULL TITLE · A Midsummer Night’s Dream

AUTHOR · William Shakespeare

TYPE OF WORK · Play

GENRES · Comedy; fantasy; romance;

LANGUAGE · English

CLIMAX · There is no real climax. The conflicts of the play are all resolved quickly by magic.

PROTAGONIST · the four lovers.

ANTAGONIST · the antagonist is not a person, but accidents and mistakes stand in the lovers’ way.

SETTINGS · Combines elements of Ancient Greece Athens and the forest outside its walls

THEMES · The difficulties of love; magic; fantasy and reality

The play starts off with Egeus complaining about his daughter Hermia.

Hermia

Egeus

Lysander Dimitrius

TheseusHippolyta

Egeus wants his daughter to marry Dimitrius, but Hermia wants to marry Lysander.

Egeus complains to Theseus, the Duke of Athens, who is going to marry Hippolyta.

Theseus tells Hermia she must listen to her father or else be punished.

Lysander and Hermia decide to run away and get married.

Hermia tells her best friend Helena that she and Lysander are going to run away.

HermiaLysander

Helena

Helena loves Demetrius, but Demetrius want to marry Hermia.

Helena tells Demetrius that Hermia and Lysander are going to run away to get married.

Helena hopes Demetrius will love her again.

Oberon wishes to make him a knight, but Titania refuses to give him to Oberon.

In the woods, Oberon, the king of the fairies, and Titania, the queen of the fairies, are fighting over a young prince.

OberonTitania

the prince

Oberon decides to teach Titania a lesson.

Oberon sends his servant, Robin Goodfellow, to find a magical flower.

The juice of this flower, when spread over a sleeping person’s eyelids ,makes that person fall in love with the first thing he or she sees upon waking. .

Robin GoodfellowOberon

In the meantime, Helena has told Demetrius about Lysander and Hermia and so Demetrius follows them into the woods.

Helena follows Demetrius and he acts cruelly towards her

Oberon sees the couple and has an idea

Robin Goodfellow brings Oberon the magical flower,

Robin GoodfellowOberon

Oberon tells Robin Goodfellow to spread the juice of the flower on the eyelids of the young Athenian .

He wants to make Demetrius love Helena.

Robin Goodfellow goes into the woods and finds a young Athenian asleep in the woods.

He spreads the juice on Lysander’s eyelids.

Robin thinks that this is the young man.

Lysander

Lysander opens his eyes and sees Helena who is looking for Demetrius.

Lysander immediately falls in love with Helena.

Lysander

Helena

Hermia wakes up and cannot find Lysander.

Hermia thinks Demetrius has killed Lysander, and she runs away from him.

Oberon tries to fix Robin Goodfellow’s mistake and he spreads the juice of the flower on Demetrius’s eyelids.

Demetrius opens his eyes and falls in love with Helena

Both Demetrius and Lysander hate Hermia and poor Helena thinks they are all three playing a trick on her.

Goodfellow needs to fix his mistake so he causes them all to get lost in the woods and while they are asleep he spreads the juice of the flower on Lysander’s eyes.

Lysander wakes up, sees Hermia and falls in love with her again.

Lysander marries Hermia and Demetrius marries Helena.

Meanwhile there are some actors rehearsing in the woods and the naughty Puck, Goodfellow, has put a donkey’s head on Bottom, one of the actors.

Bottom

the actors

Goodfellow

Oberon spreads the juice of the flower on Titania’s eyelids

Titania’s wakes up, sees Bottom, and falls in love with him.

Bottom

Titania

Oberon takes the prince.

Titania’s wakes and sees how silly she has been.

Titania’s wakes and Oberon make up.

List of CharactersThe Athenians

Theseus – Duke of Athens

Hippolyta – Queen of the Amazons, betrothed to Theseus

Egeus – father of Hermia, wants her to marry Demetrius

Hermia – in love with Lysander

Helena – in love with 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

Mustardseed – fairy servant to Titania

The Mechanicals (An acting troupe)

Nick Bottom – wears the head of a donkey and is loved by Titania

HomeWorkRead lines 20-45 and answer the question

Your answer must be an essay with the necessary evidence and explanation:

Why has Egeus brought his daughter and the two men before the duke?