Midsummer Night’s Dream

The Fairies Supernatural characters that represent the almost magical power of love, and their meddling helps drive the action of the play.
The Rude Mechanicals The laborers/acting troupe in the play. These characters represent comic relief (slapstick comedy)
The Athenians Contains Athenian Nobles. These characters represent order and structure.
The Lovers Sometimes grouped with the Athenians. These characters represent love’s difficulty.
Theseus Duke of Athens. Engaged to Hippolyta.
Hippolyta Queen of the Amazons. Engaged to Theseus.
Egeus Hermia’s Father. Has given Demetrius permission to marry Hermia.
Philostrate Master of revels (parties), planning entertainment for Theseus and Hippolyta’s wedding.
Demetrius Initially loves Hermia, but falls in love with Helena.
Hermia Daughter of Egeus. Hermia loves Lysander. She is short and dark-haired.
Lysander Loves Hermia. Plans to run away with her.
Helena Loves Demetrius. Best friends with Hermia. She is tall and fair-haired.
Quince Carpenter. Directs and plays the Prologue in Pyramus and Thisbe.
Bottom Self confident weaver. Plays Pyramus in Pyramus and Thisbe. Gets turned into a donkey in the forest.
Flute Bellows mender. Plays Thisbe in Pyramus and Thisbe.
Snout The tinker. Plays the Wall in Pyramus and Thisbe.
Snug the Joiner. Plays the Lion in Pyramus and Thisbe.
Starveling The tailor. Plays the moon in Pyramus and Thisbe.
Oberon King of the fairies. He wants the boy Titania cares for and his potions begins all the troubles.
Puck aka Robin Goodfellow. Serves Oberon. Loves to play pranks on mortals and mixes up the lovers.
Titania Queen of the fairies. Briefly falls in love with Bottom while under a spell
Athens city that is the play’s setting (along with the woods outside the city of course)
alliteration (poetry term) repetition of initial consonant sounds in neighboring words
assonance (poetry term) repetition of vowel sounds in neighboring words
apostrophe (poetry term) direct address to an absent or imaginary person or thing as though it were present and could respond
hyperbole (poetry term) exaggeration used for emphasis
allusion (poetry term) a reference to a historical or literary figure or event
metaphor (poetry term) a figurative comparison between to objects or ideas that does not include “like” or “as”
simile (poetry term) a figurative comparison between to objects or ideas that does include “like” or “as”
personification (poetry term) figurative language that gives human traits to nonhuman things
example of alliteration “dainty duck dear”
example of assonance “one shAde the more, one rAy the less / had half impaired the nAmeless grAce”
example of metaphor “lily lips”
example of apostrophe “Hello, It’s Me” (Adele song)
example of personification The storm was like Mother Earth shaking her fist at us.
example of hyperbole “Hello from the other side / I must have called 1000 times” (Adele song)
Act 1, scene 1 Theseus and Hippolyta discuss their upcoming wedding day; Egeus brings his complaint about his daughter Hermia to Theseus; Lysander & Hermia to escape Athens and tell Helena their plan
Act 1, scene 2 the Rude Mechanicals gather to begin rehearsals for “Pyramus and Thisbe,” a play they hope to perform at the Duke’s wedding
Act 2, scene 1 Robin Goodfellow (Puck) is introduced; we learn of Oberon and Titania’s fight over a changeling boy and how Oberon plans to resolve it by tricking her with a love spell
Act 2, scene 2 Puck mistakes Lysander for Demetrius and applies the love potion; Helena chases Demetrius to the spot where Lysander and Hermia lie sleeping, but he leaves her there; she wakes Lysander who (under the spell) immediately falls in love with her and chases her into the forest; Hermia wakes alone from a nightmare
Act 3, scene 1 the Mechanicals rehearse and Puck puts an ass’s head on Bottom; his singing wakes Titania who (under the spell) immediately falls in love with him
Act 3, scene 2 play’s longest scene: Oberon realizes Puck screwed up the potion and now applies it to Demetrius who immediately falls in love with Helena; both men pursue her though she thinks they are mocking her and that Hermia put them up to it; Oberon & Puck devise a plan to fix it for good
Act 4, scene 1 Titania gives Oberon the boy and he releases her from the spell; Theseus, Hippolya, and Egeus come upon the 4 lovers in the woods and find order restored and Hermia is pardoned; Bottom awakes
Act 4, scene 2 Bottom re-joins the Mechanicals and tells them their play is preferred for the Duke’s wedding.
Act 5, scene 1 Theseus & Hippolyta discuss the lovers’ story about their night in the wood; the Rude Mechanicals get to perform their play!