Act 1 scene 1 and 2
In the plays opening scene we see that Theseus and Hippolyte are about to get married. I got the feeling that Theseus thinks love can only be won not earned. Theseus believes women must marry against their will who ever their fathers choose. He says “Hippolyta, I woo'd thee with my sword and won thy love doing thee injuries, but I will wed thee in another key, with pomp, with triumph, and with reveling” (1.1) Should a queen of the Amazon be married to a hero of Athens? Hippolyta thinks it is a good engagement, how do you think their relationship will end? Would you be ok being forced to marry someone? Even if that someone was a perfect match? Just the idea of not having an option and love not earned but expected is an idea hard for me to grasp. What do you believe Shakespeare prefers? Arranged marriage or true love? Also how do you feel about Shakespeare putting a play inside a play? “Here is the scroll of every man's name which is thought fit, through all Athens, to play in our interlude before the Duke and the Duchess on his wedding day at night” (1.2). Do you believe Shakespeare is giving a wink to the culture of his time or is it just something to do as entertainment so it fits the piece?
So far, I do see what you’re talking about with Theseus wanting women to marry someone their father approves of, and his belief is backed by Egeus, who argues againt his daughter to Theseus by saying, “Be it so she will not here before your grace / Consent to marry Demetrius, / I beg the ancient privilege of Athens…As she is mine, I may dispose of her” (I.i.40-43). It’s weird to think about, but marriages like this were a normal thing in this time in Greece. I could never marry someone I didn’t love just because someone else told me to, and I think looking back to when that was common is always odd for us as people from a completely different time and culture.
ReplyDeleteAs for Hippolyta’s marriage to Theseus, I don’t think the question is whether she ‘should’ be married to him, because she seems like she’s going to go through with it regardless. I am curious about the quote that you mentioned though, “I wooed thee with my sword / And won thy love doing thee injuries” (I.i.16-17). What do you think he means by this? It sounds like he ‘won’ her love by hurting her. How do you think that happened?
Ptting a play inside a play is something I’ve seen before, like in Hamlet there’s a play. I do think that Shakespeare probably likes to give a nod to plays, since he was a play writer, but I think the inclusion of plays in his works is just like how we would mention movies or pop culture casually in modern literature. Plays were like the movies of ancient Greece, so it wouldn’t be uncommon for the characters to mention, see, or perform them.
My question for you is, what do you think will happen with the whole Helena loves Demetrius who loves Hermia who loves Lysander thing? Will it work out for everyone?
I think Helana loving Demetrius who loves Hermia who loves Lysander is a far to complicated love shape of some sort. I do not think it all will work out because none of them could ever truly love the person they would end up with. They shape of the love that they are in is like a web, to intertwined and tangled. Overseen states “fetch me that flower; the herb I shew'd thee once. The juice of it on sleeping eye-lids laid will make or man or woman madly dote upon the next live creature that it sees” (2.1). This fits into the witch craft of his time, where they believed in all sorts of supernatural things. He is explaining how the magic love juice can be sparkled like holy water onto someones head and have them magical instantaneously fall in love with the first thing it sees. I feel like this is how Shakespeare explains love at first sight. Do you believe in love at first sight? Why or why not do you believe in love at first sight? I feel like this juice is symbolism. Do you think it is symbolism or just coincide? A midsummer nights dream has a lot of messed up relationship and gives us examples of the good and bad of relationships. Who do you thing would make the best couple and why?
ReplyDeletePersonally, I don’t think that the magic flower is necessarily Shakespeare explaining love at first sight, but only because the flower here makes everything overcomplicated when ‘true love’ is usually mutually reciprocated in fiction. I’m not sure if I believe in love at first sight; I’m a romantic but it seems pretty Hallmark. As for the flower being a symbol, what do you think it might symbolize?
ReplyDeleteI think that now the main conflict of the play has been introduced, things will only get more complicated with the main characters’ relationships. I’m partial to Hermia and Lysander ending up together, but I think that Helena’s love for Demetrius is on the edge of unhealthy. It really hit me when she says, “Use me but as your spaniel—spurn me, strike me, / Neglect me, lose me. Only give me leave, / Unworthy as I am, to follow you” (II.i.190-193). He treats her so horribly, but she keeps following him around. I really hope that she doesn’t end up with Demetrius, because I don’t like the self-deprecation she endures when she’s around him. What do you think, is it alright, or would it be bad for her to end up with Demetrius?
Also, now that Titania has the juice of the flower in her eyes, do you think Oberon will get his revenge? I don’t think she’s going to wake up and see an animal like he wanted, but I don’t know if Shakespeare would further complicate the relationship dynamic by having her fall for another main character. Your thoughts?
I feel as though the flowers represent purity. Theseus talks about the “withering on the virgin thorn” (1.1) However a rose by any other word is still a rose but a flower could be countless types. I think it will be bad for Hermina to end up with Lysander. Hermina goes against her father will to be with him. No boy, man, lover or anything is worth destroying your parents trust. Trust once broken can never be repaired. So if she does anything stupid and needs to come home, do you thing her father would take her back with open arms? Also, as for Oberon I feel like he will get his revenge. He sent off Puck to get the magic flower thing, and sprinkle it on her while she's asleep, and does not care about all the mischief that he tells Puke to get into along the way. Oberon has one goal in mind and he is very set on reaching it. To be completely honest it is Shakespeare and he likes confusing people to make them think so yes, Titania will fall in love with another main character. Puke states “lord, what fools these mortals be” (3.2). The humor and contrast between people in love who become so consumed by there emotions, and the magical fairies who are light hearted and never that serious. This contrast is so black and white. Shakespeare uses contrast to add to the emphasis on what love does to you and to show how to be to in love or to out of love is not human. The mythical things, such as fairies or potions, that so deep in love or so out of love is not human. Its psychotic to be either extreme. Do you act more out of logic or emotion? Do you think any other mischief will pop up?
ReplyDeleteI think that if Hermia did end up needing to go back to her father for whatever reason, he’d take her back as long as she wasn’t with Lysander. I think he really cares more about being right than holding a grudge, like when he says that Hermia’s obedience “is due to [him]” (I.i.38). To me it feels like he just wants Hermia to listen to him and accept his way.
ReplyDeleteAs for whether I act more out of logic or emotion, I use a mix but I definitely have a preference for emotion, especially when reacting to something unexpected. What about you?
Since we’re almost done with the play, I doubt there will be any more major mischief like there’s been in Act III. Now that Puck is (hopefully) going to cure Lysander, I think the rest of the play with be reconciliation and the main characters trying to figure out what just happened to them.
By the way, what did you think of the whole confusion and near-fights of Act III Scene II? Do you think that Lysander will go back to loving Hermia, and if so, how do you think she’ll react to his very sudden change in feelings after the way he’s been treating her? I have to admit I’d be kind of upset if she just accepted it without question. Lysander has insulted her so much in this scene, calling her “vile thing…loathed medicine…hated potion” (III.ii.266-270). To see her just forgive his insults would be kind of disappointing to me. What do you think?
I am a pretty unemotional person, and not much phases me. However I don't always use logic, mostly I act on instincts. I feel like he will go back to loving her, and I feel like she will be very skeptical of his love and put up a guard to protect herself from someone loving her again. Also I am not a very forgiving person so seeing her just forgive him would not be pleasing to me. I would never talk to someone again if they insulted me in ways like that but equivalent to insults of our own time. Bottoms wakes up and states: “I have had a most rare vision. I have had a dream past the wit of man to say what dream it was. Man is but an ass if he go about t’expound this dream” (4.1). Bottom wakes up from his adventure with Titania. His human head is back on his head and believes his weird dream was just that a bazar dream. Do you believe dreams can be a way to get insight on certain things? I believe some people are in touch enough with spirits or god or what ever they want to call it where the supernatural can communicate with them. Dreams in a mid summer nights dream give humorous commentary on the theme. What do you believe is a major theme? What can you take from Shakespeare or this work in particular? Did you like a mid summer nights dream? Why or why not?
ReplyDeleteI think dreams can be insight for certain topics, especially revealing someone’s true feelings on something. Dreams are definitely important in this play, but arguably none of the characters have dreams, they only think they do. I did like how the play was wrapped up like a dream, though, with Puck saying, “you have but slumbered here / While these visions did appear” (V.i). I felt like it really brought the story full circle in addressing the audience and bringing them into the dream.
ReplyDeleteI’d say one of the major themes in A Midsummer Night’s Dream is that love is complicated. Most of the story revolves around the characters falling in and out of love with each other in a comedic, mixed-up way, so it’s not hard to look at the play and take away that relationships and love can be convoluted, especially when there’s a fairy king’s servant spraying you with magic flower juice.
I did like A Midsummer Night’s Dream more than I expected to, actually. I thought it was especially funny towards the end when the play was going on. My favorite part was when Bottom broke character just to correct Theseus by saying, “‘Deceiving me’ is Thisbe’s cue. She is to enter now” (V.i.). I love it when actors break character, but the fact that he did it like that just drives home that the play they’re putting on is horrible. It seems like they don’t care at all, which is really ironic when they spent a good part of the play rehearsing. Overall, I thought it was really witty and funny.
Great comments on the use of dreams and contrasts to examine love. How do you think Shakespeare uses the Titania/Ass-headed Bottom relationship to comment on or usefully contrast the human relationships, if at all? You were both hoping the reconciliations at the end would be believable...do you think they all ultimately forgive each other too easily after all? Remember to keep discussion centered on the author's choices. Thanks. Grade on PP.
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