Essay about William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream

William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream Shakespeare, in his A Midsummer Night’s Dream, uses his characters to cast a sense of derision over the use of the imagination. â€Å"The lunatic, the lover and the poet† are thrown together all on one line, and it is implied that the latter two are as crazy as the first. (Midsummer Night’s Dream, V.1.7) Despite this seeming scorn for plays and their ilk, Shakespeare is implementing a strong irony. Characters who scorn the imagination are no more than imaginings themselves – and, by this, Shakespeare is actually reinforcing a positive image of plays of the imagination. Theseus’s denial of imagination’s worth reads more as apophasis than as any true refutation. Even as he scorns the†¦show more content†¦Theseus, as an added level of irony, spends a fair amount of time voicing his disdain for the imagination, and for plays – and then, just after that, he chooses a play for the night’s entertainment. He disregards â€Å"some satire, keen and critical† in favor of Pyramus and Thisbe, in fact. (V.1.58) One would think that, as the representative of cool reason, Theseus would opt to listen to something less fanciful, but he belies his own position against the imagination and chooses an â€Å"airy nothing† instead. (V.1.17) It is in this direct contradiction that Shakespeare cinches the irony of Theseus. Even so, once he has chosen Pyramus and Thisbe, Theseus maintains his stand: â€Å"the best in this kind [plays] are but shadows.† (V.1.224) If this were true, and he believed it, why would he then choose a ‘shadow’ for entertainment? Why not choose something more ‘real,’ something that has more of an effect on the world? The simple answer is that plays themselves do affect the world. For even this ‘shadow,’ Pyramus and Thisbe, does in the end draw some emotion from its watchers – Theseus says â€Å"this passion, and the death of a dear friend, would go near to make a man look sad.† (V.1.303) Hippolyta furthers his sentiment, adding â€Å"Beshrew my heart but I pity the man.† (V.1.305) If the worst of plays can draw such emotion, then plays hold power indeed. In yet a further interpretation, Theseus may act as a sort of metaphor for theShow MoreRelatedWilliam Shakespeares A Midsummer Night’s Dream1973 Words   |  8 PagesWilliam Shakespeares A Midsummer Night’s Dream The focus of this discussion will be upon the language and performance possibilities of this extract from the Dream[1], following brief consideration of the manner in which the extract relates to the rest of the play in terms of plot development and the reflection of certain of the play’s themes. Performance aspects are considered alongside the distinctive features of the language, as it is suggested that the natureRead More William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream Essay935 Words   |  4 PagesWilliam Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream A Midsummer Night’s Dream could have easily been a light-hearted, whimsical comedy. Complete with a magic forest and a kingdom of fairies, it is an iconic setting for amorous escapades and scenes of lovers. But Shakespeare’s writing is never so shallow; through this romantic comedy, Shakespeare postulates an extremely cynical view of love. A Midsummer Night’s Dream becomes a commentary on the mystery of love, and lovers in general emerge shamedRead More William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream Essay1591 Words   |  7 PagesWilliam Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream In William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, there are endless images of water and the moon. Both images lend themselves to a feeling of femininity and calm. In classical mythology, the image of water is often linked with Aphrodite, goddess of passion and love. Born of the foam of the sea, Aphrodite was revered as an unfaithful wife to her husband Hephaestus (Grant 36). This may have a direct coloration to the unfaithful nature of theRead MoreEssay William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream974 Words   |  4 PagesWilliam Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream can be considered an archetypal comedy due in large part to the ill-defined characters. Part of what makes this play work so well is that rather than becoming too invested in any one character’s hopes and fears or desires and struggles, the audience is simply rooting for things to work out well in general. If the audience became too attached to any one character, they might lose sight of the bigger pictureRead MoreThe Supernatural in William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream1550 Words   |  7 PagesSupernatural in William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream Consider the presentation of the supernatural in A Midsummer Nights dream. In what way does it reveal Shakespeares moral and philosophical concerns? How does Shakespeares stagecraft (setting, Characterisation, language, verse form etc) facilitate the consideration of his concerns? and how do we as a modern audience respond to the play as a piece of theatre? The main themes of A Midsummers Night Dream areRead MoreWilliam Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream Essays3973 Words   |  16 PagesWilliam Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream In the following essay I am aiming to show how Lysanders claim that the course of true love never did run smooth is supported by other events in the play. A Midsummer Nights Dream was written by William Shakespeare. No one knows the exact date it was written but we know it was between 1589 and 1595. He combines romance with comedy to produce this popular story. When he was writing the play superstition aboutRead More Night in William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream Essay1379 Words   |  6 PagesNight in William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream One of the recurring themes throughout Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream is the time of day during which the play’s major action takes place: night. This being the case, there are certain words that are directly linked to this theme that appear numerous times throughout the script. Four such words are â€Å"moon,† â€Å"moonlight,† â€Å"moonshine,† and â€Å"lunatic.† Each comes from a feminine root that serves to identify the women in the play asRead MoreEssay on Women in William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream780 Words   |  4 PagesWomen in William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream A Midsummer Night’s Dream, by William Shakespeare, is a play that illustrates a good picture of woman’s lack of freedom. It is a story of several couples, among which there is a fairy king, Oberon, who proves his sovereignty over the queen of the fairies, Titania. The two have an ongoing conflict about who should keep the Indian boy, whose mother had recently died. Titania doesn’t want to give him up because she and the boy’s mother knewRead MoreEssay about William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream 1648 Words   |  7 PagesWilliam Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream  Ã‚  Ã‚   There are so many references to the eyes in A Midsummer Nights Dream that one would expect there to be a solid and consistent reason for their appearance. However, this does not seem to be the case. Indeed, the images associated with the eyes are so varied, and shift so frequently, that it is practically impossible to define what it is they represent. This difficulty reflects the problem of distinguishing between what is real and whatRead MoreTrue Love in William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream1928 Words   |  8 PagesTrue Love in William Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream I have been studying A Midsummer Night’s Dream and exploring how the characters within this play deal with love and the consequences resulting from falling in love. I will be answering the question asked by providing quotes and examples of Shakespeare’s technique in showing that ‘The course of true love never did run smooth’ as well as providing answers as to why Shakespeare made this the case in the play