A Midsummernight's Dream By William Shakespeare

A Midsummernight’s Dream

By William Shakespeare

Author:

William Shakespeare was born in 1564 and died in 1616. He is the most famous British author in the world. He also was shareholder of the Globe theatre in London. His most famous works are: Romeo & Juliet, Macbeth, King Lear, Hamlet and also the Midsummernight’s Dream.

Characters:

Theseus - Duke of Athens

Egeus - Father of Hermia

Lysander - brothers, both in love with Hermia

Demetrius -

Philostrate - master of the revels to Theseus

• Quince - a carpenter want to act ”Pyramus & Thisbe”

• Snug - a joiner

• Bottom - a weaver

• Flute - a bellowsmender

• Starveling - a tailor

• Snout - a tinker

Hippolyta - queen of the Amazons, going to marry Theseus

Hermia - in love with Lysander, daughter to Egeus

Helena - in love with Demetrius

Oberon - King of the fairies

Titania - queen of the fairies

Puck/Robin Goodfellow

Peaseblossom, Cobweb, Moth, Mustardseed: fairies

Plot

The whole story takes place within the framework of the wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta who had been defeated by him in battle. Theseus, Hippolyta and Philostrate are in the palace of Theseus when Egeus wants to clear up a problem. Demetrius is going to marry Hermia who is in love with Lysander and would prefer to die instead of marrying somebody else. So Hermia and Lysander want to flee and marry somewhere else. There is a group of men who want to act a play called ”Pyramus and Thisbe” on the wedding day of the duke and the duchess. Oberon, king of the fairies, wants to annoy Titania. So he tells Puck to give her a herb while she is sleeping, because she should fall in love with the first living being she sees after waking up. Helena tells Demetrius that Hermia and Lysander meet in the wood at night and so they go there and search for them. Puck does some mischief with the love juice, and so Lysander falls in love with Helena as well as Demetrius. Bottom, one of the ”actors” has now the head on an ass and Titania falls in love with him. Hermia thinks Demetrius killed Lysander while he was sleeping, but when she sees him again, Lysander tells her that he hates her and never wants to see her again. But when all four are asleep, Puck puts another special juice on their eyes and all are happy again, because Demetrius now loves Helena. For Titania, everything seems like a dream what has happened. At the end of the play, the men act ”Pyramus & Thisbe” for Theseus and Hippolyta, but they turned the tragedy into a comedy because they even changed the contents so that it became absolutely ridiculous.