A Midsummer Night’s Dream Intro & Act Summaries English 12

Characters: Athenians Theseus - Duke of Athens Hippolyta - Queen of the Amazons and betrothed (fiancé) of Theseus Egeus - Father of Hermia; asks Theseus’ help in forcing Hermia to marry Demetrius Lysander - beloved (boyfriend) of Hermia Hermia - beloved (girlfriend) of Lysander Demetrius - in love with Hermia Helena - in love with Demetrius Philostrate - Master of the Revels for

Supernatural Characters Oberon- King of the Fairies Titania- Queen of the Fairies Puck (aka Robin Goodfellow) - servant to Oberon Titania's fairy servants (her "train")(wait on Bottom): Peaseblossom Cobweb Moth Mustardseed

The Acting Troupe (Company) Peter Quince - carpenter, who leads the troupe of actors Nick Bottom - weaver; he plays Pyramus in the troupe's production of "Pyramus and Thisbe" and is transformed into a jackass (hence the name Bottom) Francis Flute - the bellows-mender who plays Thisbe Robin Starveling - the tailor who plays Moonshine Tom Snout - the tinker who plays Wall Snug - the joiner who plays Lion

Act 1, Sc. 1 Theseus and Hippolyta are to be married in four days. Egeus, Hermia’s father, asks Theseus to help him force Hermia to marry Demetrius. Hermia’s 3 choices: 1) Marry Demetrius, 2) Join a convent, 3) Execution (death) Hermia decides to run away with Lysander. Hermia and Lysander tell Helena about their plans to elope. Helena plans to tell Demetrius about Hermia and Lysander’s plans in order to win his love.

The Love Game Hermia is betrothed (engaged by arranged marriage) to Demetrius, but she loves Lysander. Hermia and Lysander love each other and plan to elope. Both Demetrius and Lysander love Hermia. Hermia does not love Demetrius. Helena loves Demetrius. No one loves Helena.

Act 1, Sc. 2 The actors meet and discuss the roles they will play in the performance of Pyramus and Thisbe. Bottom wants to play all of the parts. They plan on meeting in the woods to rehearse the following evening.

Act 2, Sc. 1 Oberon and Titania have had an argument Titania refuses to give up the changeling (Indian child). To get revenge on Titania, Oberon asks Puck to gather “love juice” to make her fall in love with a hideous creature. Meanwhile, Helena follows Demetrius through the woods. Demetrius threatens Helena and tells her to leave him alone because he does not love her. Helena loves Demetrius and refuses to give up on love. Oberon sees Helena and empathizes with her (feels sorry for her) He asks Puck to make Demetrius fall in love with Helena.

Act 2, Sc. 2 Titania falls asleep and Oberon anoints her eyes with the “love juice”. Puck mistakes Lysander for Demetrius and sprinkles the love juice onto his eyes. When Lysander wakes up, he sees Helena and instantly falls in love with her. Helena thinks Lysander is making fun of her and runs away; Lysander follows her. Hermia awakes and finds herself alone.

Act 3, Sc. 1 The actors discuss how they will perform the play Pyramus and Thisbe for Theseus and Hippolyta’s wedding (moon & wall). They are worried about offending the ladies of the Court. They propose to omit the death scene and have the lion not roar. Instead, they will write a Prologue and have the lion “speak” to the audience. While the men rehearse, Puck puts a false head of a donkey onto Bottom and scares all of the fellow actors (they run away). Puck then leads Bottom to Titania who falls in love with him as soon as she awakens.

Act 3, Sc. 2 Puck tells Oberon about his success with making Titania fall in love with Bottom. Oberon realizes Puck’s mistake with Lysander. To fix it, Oberon puts the love juice on Demetrius to make him fall in love with Helena. Now both Lysander and Demetrius love Helena. No one loves Hermia (Role Reversal & Turning Point) Helena thinks that all three (Lysander, Demetrius and Hermia) are playing a cruel trick on her. Hermia gets upset at Helena for “stealing” Lysander and the women quarrel. To fix it, Puck distracts the four lovers (fog). He puts the love juice on Lysander so he will fall back in love with Hermia when he awakens.

Act 4, Sc. 1 Bottom and Titania fall asleep together. Prior, Oberon gets the changeling child fromTitania. Oberon removes the “love spell” from Titania. Puck removes the ass’s head from Bottom. Titania believes that she experienced a dream of being in love with an ass. Oberon, Titania, and the other fairies leave. The Lovers (Hermia & Lysander and Helena and Demetrius) are woken by Theseus and his court. They join him in returning for the marriage ceremony after telling them about the “dream” they had. Bottom also goes back to Athens. He also feels as if he has experienced a strange dream.

Act 4, Sc. 2 In his absence, the actors discuss their fondness of Bottom. Bottom returns to Athens and the actors rejoice! Bottom and the others prepare to go to the palace to perform at Hippolyta and Theseus’ wedding.

Act 5, Sc. 1 Theseus and Hippolyta discuss the “dream” the four lovers had. The following marriages take place: Hippolyta and Theseus Hermia and Lysander Helena and Demetrius The couples watch the play put on by Bottom & Company (the worst acting they have ever seen, making the tragedy more of a comedy). When the couples have gone to bed, the fairies bless the marriages. Puck gives an epilogue apologizing if they have offended anyone with their story.

Research/ Analytical Essay #1 (Honors) This paper must be a minimum of 5-7 pages in length, typed, double spaced and in MLA format (12 point font). We will work on this paper in class, but the majority of your paper should be written at home. This paper should not be a summary of the play, but an analysis of the play. You will be using quotes from the text to support your argument. You must also use 2-3 scholarly sources for this paper which you must quote and include in your Works Cited Page (this is in addition to the citations you will be using from the text). All students must upload their assignments to www.Turnitin.com. I will help you with the research and citations. You must choose one of the following options:

Choice 1 Write an analytical paper on A Midsummer Night’s Dream. In this paper you will analyze each of the main characters and make an argument for the role they play and affect they have on the other characters in the play. How are they depicted? You may also discuss the minor characters in the play as well. Explain each of their situations, views on life, love, ethics, and morality. Compare and contrast them as characters. How do they interact with others (friends, loved ones, strangers)? Give examples to support your argument. For this essay, you will need to look up critical theories on this subject matter. What social commentary does Shakespeare make by using his characters as symbols? You must include 2-3 scholarly resources in addition to the text.

Choice 2 Write a research paper on the symbolism and themes in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Focus on the symbolism of the names, the forest, and dreams. Also focus on the themes of transformation, love, and the intermingling of the societal (mortal realm) world and the supernatural world.

Due Dates Friday, November 5th: 2 scholarly articles or books and outline posted on the class blog (you may not have the same articles as another class member) Friday, November 12th: Turn in Annotated Bibliography Tuesday, November 23rd: Have written pages 1-3 to be turned in on www.turnitin.com; students will complete a peer review assignment Wednesday, December 1st: Final Paper Due (2 copies: 1 paper copy and 1 through www.turnitin.com) *Late assignments will not be accepted.

Suggested Books Shakespeare for students: critical interpretations of As you like it, Hamlet, Julius Caesar, Macbeth, The merchant of Venice, A midsummer night's dream, Othello, and Romeo and Juliet by Scott, Mark W. William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream (Bloom's Modern Critical Interpretations) by Harold Bloom Understanding A midsummer night's dream: a student casebook to issues, sources, and historical documents by Faith Nostbakken . (2003) The soul of Athens : Shakespeare's A midsummer night's dream by Jan H. Blits. (2003) Our moonlight revels [electronic resource] : A midsummer night's dream in the theatre by Gary Jay Williams. (1997) Shakespeare and impure aesthetics by Hugh Grady. (2009) Shakespearean criticism. Volume 102 [electronic resource] / Michelle Lee, editor. (2007) Shakespeare's philosophy : discovering the meaning behind the plays by Colin McGinn. (2006) Lectures on Shakespeare by W.H. Auden ; reconstructed and edited by Arthur Kirsch. (2000) Shakespeare's comedies : comprehensive research and study guide edited and with an introduction by Harold Bloom. (2000)

Recommended Journals, Databases, and Websites Journals and Databases Project Muse JSTOR Literature Criticism Online MLA International Bibliography Shakespeare Quarterly Other Sites: Internet Public Library   Shakespeare Online