A Midsummer Nights Dream

'A Midsummer Night's Dream' with T.R. Knight is a dreamscape — though short on feeling

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Learn more More Like This. The Tempest I King Lear TV Movie Edit Cast Cast overview, first billed only: Nick Bottom Zach Appelman Demetrius Jarrett Austin Brown Rude Elemental Brendan Averett Rude Elemental Marcus Bellamy Rude Elemental Ciaran Bowling Rude Elemental Roger Clark Duke Theseus Jon Viktor Corpuz As the primary sense of motivation, this desire is reflected even in the scenery depictions and the story's overall mood.

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In his essay "Preposterous Pleasures: Green explores possible interpretations of alternative sexuality that he finds within the text of the play, in juxtaposition to the proscribed social mores of the culture at the time the play was written. He writes that his essay "does not seek to rewrite A Midsummer Night's Dream as a gay play but rather explores some of its 'homoerotic significations' Green does not consider Shakespeare to have been a "sexual radical", but that the play represented a "topsy-turvy world" or "temporary holiday" that mediates or negotiates the "discontents of civilisation", which while resolved neatly in the story's conclusion, do not resolve so neatly in real life.

Slights albeit all the characters are played by males. Male dominance is one thematic element found in A Midsummer Night's Dream. Upon their arrival in Athens, the couples are married. Marriage is seen as the ultimate social achievement for women while men can go on to do many other great things and gain social recognition.

In reference to the triple wedding, he says, "The festive conclusion in A Midsummer Night's Dream depends upon the success of a process by which the feminine pride and power manifested in Amazon warriors, possessive mothers, unruly wives, and wilful daughters are brought under the control of lords and husbands. A connection between flowers and sexuality is drawn.

The juice employed by Oberon can be seen as symbolising menstrual blood as well as the sexual blood shed by virgins. While blood as a result of menstruation is representative of a woman's power, blood as a result of a first sexual encounter represents man's power over women. There are points in the play, however, when there is an absence of patriarchal control. Tennenhouse contrasts the patriarchal rule of Theseus in Athens with that of Oberon in the carnivalistic Faerie world.

The disorder in the land of the fairies completely opposes the world of Athens. He states that during times of carnival and festival, male power is broken down. For example, what happens to the four lovers in the woods as well as Bottom's dream represents chaos that contrasts with Theseus' political order. However, Theseus does not punish the lovers for their disobedience. According to Tennenhouse, by forgiving the lovers, he has made a distinction between the law of the patriarch Egeus and that of the monarch Theseus , creating two different voices of authority.

This distinction can be compared to the time of Elizabeth I , in which monarchs were seen as having two bodies: Elizabeth's succession itself represented both the voice of a patriarch as well as the voice of a monarch: Dorothea Kehler has attempted to trace the criticism of the work through the centuries. The earliest such piece of criticism was a entry in the diary of Samuel Pepys.

He found the play to be "the most insipid ridiculous play that ever I saw in my life". He was preoccupied with the question of whether fairies should be depicted in theatrical plays, since they did not exist. He concluded that poets should be allowed to depict things which do not exist but derive from popular belief. And fairies are of this sort, as are pigmies and the extraordinary effects of magick.

A Midsummer Night's Dream - Wikipedia

Based on this reasoning, Dryden defended the merits of three fantasy plays: Charles Gildon in the early 18th century recommended this play for its beautiful reflections, descriptions, similes, and topics. Gildon thought that Shakespeare drew inspiration from the works of Ovid and Virgil , and that he could read them in the original Latin and not in later translations. Horace Howard Furness , defending the play in , felt that the apparent inconsistency did not detract from the play's quality.

William Duff , writing in the s, also recommended this play. He felt the depiction of the supernatural was among Shakespeare's strengths, not weaknesses. He especially praised the poetry and wit of the fairies, and the quality of the verse involved. He felt that the poetry, the characterisation, and the originality of the play were its strengths, but that its major weaknesses were a "puerile" plot and that it consists of an odd mixture of incidents.

The connection of the incidents to each other seemed rather forced to Gentleman. Edmond Malone , a Shakespearean scholar and critic of the late 18th century, found another supposed flaw in this particular play, its lack of a proper decorum. He found that the "more exalted characters" the aristocrats of Athens are subservient to the interests of those beneath them. In other words, the lower-class characters play larger roles than their betters and overshadow them.

He found this to be a grave error of the writer. Malone thought that this play had to be an early and immature work of Shakespeare and, by implication, that an older writer would know better. Malone's main argument seems to derive from the classism of his era. He assumes that the aristocrats had to receive more attention in the narrative and to be more important, more distinguished, and better than the lower class.

According to Kehler, significant 19th-century criticism began in with August Wilhelm Schlegel. Schlegel perceived unity in the multiple plot lines. He noted that the donkey's head is not a random transformation, but reflects Bottom's true nature. He identified the tale of Pyramus and Thisbe as a burlesque of the Athenian lovers. He found the work to be "a delightful fiction" [29] but when staged, it is reduced to a dull pantomime. He concluded that poetry and the stage do not fit together. She notes that prior to the s, all stage productions of this play were adaptations unfaithful to the original text.

In —, Samuel Taylor Coleridge made two points of criticism about this play. The first was that the entire play should be seen as a dream. Second, that Helena is guilty of "ungrateful treachery" to Hermia. He thought that this was a reflection of the lack of principles in women, who are more likely to follow their own passions and inclinations than men. Women, in his view, feel less abhorrence for moral evil , though they are concerned with its outward consequences.

Coleridge was probably the earliest critic to introduce gender issues to the analysis of this play. Kehler dismisses his views on Helena as indications of Coleridge's own misogyny , rather than genuine reflections of Helena's morality. In , William Maginn produced essays on the play. He turned his attention to Theseus' speech about "the lunatic, the lover, and the poet" [a] and to Hippolyta's response to it. He regarded Theseus as the voice of Shakespeare himself and the speech as a call for imaginative audiences.

He also viewed Bottom as a lucky man on whom Fortune showered favours beyond measure. He was particularly amused by the way Bottom reacts to the love of the fairy queen: Maginn argued that "Theseus would have bent in reverent awe before Titania. Bottom treats her as carelessly as if she were the wench of the next-door tapster. He viewed Oberon as angry with the "caprices" [31] of his queen, but unable to anticipate that her charmed affections would be reserved for a weaver with a donkey's head. In , the philosopher Hermann Ulrici wrote that the play and its depiction of human life reflected the views of Platonism.

In his view, Shakespeare implied that human life is nothing but a dream, suggesting influence from Plato and his followers who thought human reality is deprived of all genuine existence. Ulrici noted the way Theseus and Hippolyta behave here, like ordinary people.

He agreed with Malone that this did not fit their stations in life, but viewed this behaviour as an indication of parody about class differences. In , Charles Knight also wrote about the play and its apparent lack of proper social stratification. He thought that this play indicated Shakespeare's maturity as a playwright, and that its "Thesean harmony" [33] reflects proper decorum of character. He also viewed Bottom as the best-drawn character, with his self-confidence, authority, and self-love. He argued that Bottom stands as a representative of the whole human race.

Like Hazlitt he felt that the work is best appreciated when read as a text, rather than acted on stage. He found the writing to be "subtle and ethereal", and standing above literary criticism and its reductive reasoning. Also in , Georg Gottfried Gervinus wrote extensively about the play. He denied the theory that this play should be seen as a dream. He argued that it should be seen as an ethical construct and an allegory. He thought that it was an allegorical depiction of the errors of sensual love, which is likened to a dream.

In his view, Hermia lacks in filial obedience and acts as if devoid of conscience when she runs away with Lysander. Lysander is also guilty for disobeying and mocking his prospective father-in-law. Pyramus and Thisbe also lack in filial obedience, since they "woo by moonlight" [33] behind their parents' backs. The fairies, in his view, should be seen as "personified dream gods". Gervinus also wrote on where the fairyland of the play is located. Not in Attica , but in the Indies. His views on the Indies seem to Kehler to be influenced by Orientalism.

He speaks of the Indies as scented with the aroma of flowers and as the place where mortals live in the state of a half-dream. Gervinus denies and devalues the loyalty of Titania to her friend. He views this supposed friendship as not grounded in spiritual association. Titania merely "delight in her beauty, her 'swimming gait,' and her powers of imitation".

In her resentment, Titania seeks separation from him, which Gervinus blames her for. Gervinus wrote with elitist disdain about the mechanicals of the play and their acting aspirations. He described them as homely creatures with "hard hands and thick heads". They are not real artists. Gervinus reserves his praise and respect only for Theseus, who he thinks represents the intellectual man. Like several of his predecessors, Gervinus thought that this work should be read as a text and not acted on stage.

In , Charles Cowden Clarke also wrote on this play. Kehler notes he was the husband of famous Shakespearean scholar Mary Cowden Clarke. Charles was more appreciative of the lower-class mechanicals of the play. He commented favourably on their individualisation and their collective richness of character. He thought that Bottom was conceited but good natured, and shows a considerable store of imagination in his interaction with the representatives of the fairy world. He also argued that Bottom's conceit was a quality inseparable from his secondary profession, that of an actor.

In , Henry N. Hudson, an American clergyman and editor of Shakespeare, also wrote comments on this play. Kehler pays little attention to his writings, as they were largely derivative of previous works. She notes, however, that Hudson too believed that the play should be viewed as a dream.

He cited the lightness of the characterisation as supporting of his view. He also argued that Theseus was one of the "heroic men of action" [36] so central to Shakespeare's theatrical works. Clapp and Horace Howard Furness were both more concerned with the problem of the play's duration, though they held opposing views. He also viewed the play as representing three phases or movements.

The first is the Real World of the play, which represents reason. The second is the Fairy World, an ideal world which represents imagination and the supernatural.

The third is their representation in art, where the action is self-reflective. Snider viewed Titania and her caprice as solely to blame for her marital strife with Oberon. She therefore deserves punishment, and Oberon is a dutiful husband who provides her with one. For failing to live in peace with Oberon and her kind, Titania is sentenced to fall in love with a human. And this human, unlike Oberon is a "horrid brute". Towards the end of the 19th century, Georg Brandes —6 and Frederick S. Boas were the last major additions to A Midsummer Night's Dream criticism.

To Boas the play is, despite its fantastical and exotic trappings, "essentially English and Elizabethan". Summing up their contributions, Kehler writes: The 20th century brought new insights into the play. In , Elizabeth Sewell argued that Shakespeare aligns himself not with the aristocrats of the play, but with Bottom and the artisans.

It is their task to produce a wedding entertainment, precisely the purpose of the writer on working in this play. He counted among them fantasy, blind love, and divine love. He traced these themes to the works of Macrobius , Apuleius , and Giordano Bruno. Bottom also briefly alludes to a passage from the First Epistle to the Corinthians by Paul the Apostle , dealing with divine love. Dent argued against theories that the exemplary model of love in the play is the rational love of Theseus and Hippolyta. He argued that in this work, love is inexplicable. It is the offspring of imagination, not reason.

However the exemplary love of the play is one of an imagination controlled and restrained, and avoids the excesses of "dotage".

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Dent also denied the rationality and wisdom typically attributed to Theseus. He reminded his readers that this is the character of Theseus from Greek mythology , a creation himself of "antique fable". He can't tell the difference between an actual play and its interlude. The interlude of the play's acting troop is less about the art and more of an expression of the mechanicals' distrust of their own audience. They fear the audience reactions will be either excessive or inadequate, and say so on stage.

Theseus fails to get the message. Also in , Jan Kott offered his own views on the play. He viewed as main themes of the play violence and "unrepressed animalistic sexuality". The changeling that Oberon desires is his new "sexual toy". As for the Athenian lovers following their night in the forest, they are ashamed to talk about it because that night liberated them from themselves and social norms, and allowed them to reveal their real selves.

In , John A. Allen theorised that Bottom is a symbol of the animalistic aspect of humanity. He also thought Bottom was redeemed through the maternal tenderness of Titania, which allowed him to understand the love and self-sacrifice of Pyramus and Thisbe. He emphasised the "terrifying power" [40] of the fairies and argued that they control the play's events. They are the most powerful figures featured, not Theseus as often thought.

He also emphasised the ethically ambivalent characters of the play. Finally, Fender noted a layer of complexity in the play. Theseus, Hippolyta, and Bottom have contradictory reactions to the events of the night, and each has partly valid reasons for their reactions, implying that the puzzles offered to the play's audience can have no singular answer or meaning.

In , Michael Taylor argued that previous critics offered a too cheerful view of what the play depicts. He emphasised the less pleasant aspects of the otherwise appealing fairies and the nastiness of the mortal Demetrius prior to his enchantment.

New York Shakespeare Exchange Announces A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

He argued that the overall themes are the often painful aspects of love and the pettiness of people, which here include the fairies. Zimbardo viewed the play as full of symbols. The Moon and its phases alluded to in the play, in his view, stand for permanence in mutability. The play uses the principle of discordia concors in several of its key scenes. Theseus and Hippolyta represent marriage and, symbolically, the reconciliation of the natural seasons or the phases of time.

Hippolyta's story arc is that she must submit to Theseus and become a matron. Titania has to give up her motherly obsession with the changeling boy and passes through a symbolic death, and Oberon has to once again woo and win his wife. Kehler notes that Zimbardo took for granted the female subordination within the obligatory marriage, social views that were already challenged in the s.

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In , James L. Calderwood offered a new view on the role of Oberon. He viewed the king as specialising in the arts of illusion. Oberon, in his view, is the interior dramatist of the play, orchestrating events. He is responsible for the play's happy ending, when he influences Theseus to overrule Egeus and allow the lovers to marry.

Oberon and Theseus bring harmony out of discord. IMDb's Guide to Streaming. Share this Rating Title: A Midsummer Night's Dream 6.

Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Which is your favorite? Selkies, wood spirits, banshees, and fairies oh my! Learn more More Like This. A Midsummer Night's Dream. Lovers' lives are complicated by city law, feuding faerie royalty, and The Importance of Being Earnest Edit Cast Cast overview, first billed only: Nick Bottom Finbar Lynch Edit Storyline A boy dreams the play.

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