| context | -writen in 1595-1596 |
| Theseus | -Duke of Athens-Conqueror of the Amazons-Must decide the fate of Hermia -A figure from Greek mythology famous for such deeds as the slaying of Minotaur: before we are presented by him we will already know him by reputation of a great hero-Respected middled aged gentleman-He cuts a distinctively unromantic figure who is sober in action, moderate in tone, and possessively scornful of lovers passion and ‘antiques fables’ -Well meaning and sensible -He gives eventual support to the lovers and rewards the craftsmen for their dramatic efforts -A figure of patriarchal authority-Hippolyta seems to be marrying him with little enthusiasm suggesting it may be a political marriage rather than a loving one: ‘i wooed thee (hippolyta) with my sword’ implies he defeated her in battle therefore deems it fair to be rewarded her love-He is eager to listen to Hermias side of the story but is also reluctant to contradict Egeus’ authority |
| Hippolyta | -Legendary Queen of the Amazons. -leader of a nation of female warriors-Marries Theseus through defeat as a peace treaty: In a version staged in San Fran in 1966 she made her first entry as a caged prisoner-hippolytas defeat and marriage to her conqueror may be intended as a reassurance that the play will not ultimately support female rebellion against society-she has been successfully presented as an unwilling captive, resentful of millibary defeat and diplomatic marriage- H: ‘ four days will quickly steep themselves in night’ implies she is not nearly as impatient as Theseus-‘The two noble kinsmen’ by Edmund Spenser gives a view on the Amazons-her open mindedness towards the story of the lovers adventures in the wood, and her fear that the craftsmen will be humiliated in their performance marks her out as a woman who is thoughtful and kind-titania characterizes her with the vigorous word ‘bouncing’- |
| Egeus | -Hermia’s Father-determined for hermia to marry demetrius-asks Theseus to have his daughter executed if she doesn’t obey him: ‘as she is mine i may dispose of her/either to this gentleman/or to her death’ – E clearly views H as a possession rather than a person who has feelings, and moreover these exaggerated views also suggest E is a fool who Hermia will undoubtedly defeat at the end-he is a stock character of comedy and a self righteous father determined to thwart Hermias choice of husband -he is merely a functional character who is not present for his interesting personality but instead to advance the story – he only appears twice in the play, once in the opening scene with theseus and then in act 5 scene 1 to accept theseus’s ruling hermia can marry lysander-theseus gave E ‘some private schooling’ 1.1.116-T tells E ‘I will overbear your will’ 4.1.176-Philostrate appears in the first quarto of the play, however in the first folio he is replaced by Egeus and Lysander, which gives E another chance to express his feelings |
| Hermia | -In love with Lysander-Egeus daughter-threatened with death or imprisonment in a convent, but she says she would rather suffer the punishment than marry Demetrius: whose unwished yoke/ my should consents not to give my sovereignty’ – this reflects Egeus treating her like an animal, as she feels ‘yoked’ to a plough without choice-disobeys her father and marries the suitor of her choice, Lysander-she is mercurial in temperament-her self assertiveness may be due to the fact that she is the darker and shorter of the two women, or maybe she just takes after he father Egeus-she defies not only her father but the Duke Theseus-Helenas descrides hermia: ‘though she be but little,she is fierce’ – ‘ i know not by what power i am made bold’ 1.1.59-in the forest she firmly insists L sleeps separately from herBEFORE LOVE JUICE-dark skin and hair were considered unfashionable in this period however L and D perceive Hermia to be more attractive-AFTER-she becomes aggressive when she thinks D has killed L: ‘out, dog! out, cur!’ 3.2.65-she threatens Helena with violence at the thought that she has stolen L’s love from her: ‘why nails can reach unto thine eyes’ -magic distorts the mens reactions-Lysander constrasts her complexion and hair color with Helenas: ‘who will not change a raven for a dove?’-Lysander calls hermia an ‘Ethiopia’ ‘tawny tartar’ ‘dwarf’ ‘bead’ and ‘acorn’-her confusion at the end of the night is expressed through ‘methinks i see these things with parted eye/when everything seems double’ |
| Lysander | In love with Hermia but with out her father’s consent-Lysander’s name means Liberator – it is likely Shakespeare gave him this name as he is the man who saves Hermia from being imprisoned |
| Demetrius | In love with Hermia with her father’s consent |
| Helena | -has been rejected by D but still loves him-continues to pursue D to the extent of letting herself be humiliated-she has so much self esteem that when the love juice causes the men to fall in love with her she accuses them of playing with her-Helena’s name means Light, fittingly she has a fair complexion and is tall -at first she seems confident: ‘through Athens I am thought as fair as she’ -following her rejection from D she is comparatively timid and has less self esteem than Hermia-1) her betrayal of the elopement plans to D2) her undignified pursuit of D in the woods3) her inability to credit that D and L have fallen involve with her4) her lengthy appeal to Hermia to respect their childhood friendship5) culminating in a call for ‘pity’ 3.2.2356) an absurd forecast of her own ‘death’ 4.1.189Follows Demetrius into the forest. |
| Quince | Director of the play “Pyramus and Thisbe” |
| Flute | Plays Thisbe |
| Bottom | Has a donkey’s head |
| Titania | Queen of the Fairies |
| Oberon | King of the Fairies |
| Puck | Mischievous fairy who delights in playing pranks on mortals |
| Bottom | Is set down for playing “Pyramus.” |
| Flute | He has a beard coming. |
| … | … |
| Hermia | Is called a “minimus, knot-grass maid” as well as a puppet, a bead, and an acorn because of her height. |
| Helena | Is called a “painted maypole.” |
| Lysander | Is awakened by Hermia in the forest and says to her that he “will go through fire I will for thy sweet sake.” |
| Quince | Is mandated by Bottom to write prologue for him. |
| Snug the Joiner | Wants the script for the “lion’s part” early as he is “slow of speech.” |
| Love | -lovers use the standard language of Elizabethan poetry which features exaggerated comparisons of the beloved to objects in nature, mythology, and religion ( an exception is at the quarrel in the forest where they drop into a lower register of abusiveness): this is shakespeare’s way of gaining guaranteed laughter from the audience through the sudden shift of compliments to insults |
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
August 27, 2019