Midsummer Night’s Dream was not an easy read. Reading a piece of literature that is supposed to be performed on a stage and not consumed as a whole was a challenging experience. To fully understand a play that shifts between extreme metaphor, dark dreams and unstable reality, I had break the acts down by scenes and focus on the scenes to comprehend the hidden meanings and symbolism in the acts. Even though reading the play that way was lengthy and tedious, the process of keeping the certain scenes separate was beneficial and helped me better understand the play.
I do admit that the play was confusing at times, so even though I finished reading the play in about a week, I had to go back and re-read a few scenes to finally figure them out. When I began researching this book | did not really know where to start. Shakespeare has been analyzed so many times and different ways that there is almost too much research to pull from. The Metropolitan Library System was a good starting point but there was not a great deal of psychological research on Shakespeare in the system so sources beyond the library were necessary.
Because that information I needed was obscure, the research process took about a little less than a month and the majority of that time was spent just finding the correct sources rather than analyzing them. Thproblems writing this paper was mainly finding the sources and psychological research to justify my claims. Also, while writing this paper, the plot was so intricate and symbolism so profound that the desire to ramble was intense. But for the purpose of this paper, analyzing those topics was pointless, so I had to cut it.
Between reading and researching Ladeidra Alford Mr. Gargas AP Literature and Composition 9 November 2015 Midsummer Night’s Dream and Lost Reality Dreams and reality blurring together, unconscious lust, and darkly altered perception are a few themes that show the complex composition of Midsummer Night’s Dream. In the fictional play Midsummer Night’s Dream, Shakespeare creates characters that are dynamic due to the vastly different psychological profiles. Each character has contrasting goals that are motivated by their subconscious.
There are strong oedipal connotations in the play: the son’s desire for his mother and rivalry for the mothers’ attention between father and son. The complex operates on a subconscious level to avoid breaking the social norm. The characters unconscious desires are expressed throughout their dreams where judgement from society is absent. When the realm of dream, drama and waking reality disappear, the characters perception of reality, motives, and unconscious desires in Midsummer Night’s Dream are revealed. There are many ways to look at the main theme of magic in this play.
One cannot help but wonder if the magic is seen as real or just a dream in the characters and readers eves alike. In the end, the mystical realm of the unconscious becomes the reality. Act I begins with a fairly pragmatic tone as it begins with Theseus and Hippolyta talking. They represent the mature sensibilities of love throughout the play. Theseus just won the right to marry Hippolyta’s through war. Foolish whims or immature jealousy does not exist between them. Realism stays present with Egeus interfering between his daughter Hermia and Lysander.
Hermia sums up their relationship when she says, “The more I hate, the more he follows me. The more I love, the more he hateth me” (Shakespeare 1. 1. 8-9). The relationship between her and her father Egeus is strained because she was not supposed to marry Lysander, but instead she was supposed to be wed to Demetrius. Then, the story begins to take on an otherworldly shift in Act II when the reality and dreams begin to meld in the play. Fairies cannot be seen by mortals but the audience are allowed to see the for the sake of the plays story.
Not only does the reader get to experience the seemingly invisible world that is disconnected from reality, but the reader can hear them speak in poetry. The switch from prose to poetry indicates the shift from reality to dreams as well. While the play begins in the light of day, the bright light of reality, when the night falls the moon comes up and all the magic begins. And like in most dreams where things are hazy and confusing, it is difficult to be sure of what is really happening and what is not.
Puck pours love potion into the lover’s eyes and after they fall for the first person they see. Shakespeare uses this as a metaphor for explores the almost magical and unstable nature of love and to show how fickle hearts are when it comes to romance. The magic of love can sometimes create a distorted haze that leads partners to only see their loved ones through rose-colored glasses and often keep the other person from realizing their partners’ true nature, good or bad.
A perfect example of this is Titania and Bottom. Bottom’s behavior reflects that of a Jackass’, so he is given the head of one by the fairies so his nature is for all to witness. Even though he looks more like an animal more than a man, Titania falls in love with him at first sight due to the potion. Although it is almost impossible to imagine, it did hold the metaphorical truth of how blind love actually can be when it comes to a person’s appearance, actions or even morals.
