1. A Midsummer Night’s Dream
By William Shakespeare

2. Characters: Theseus – Duke of Athens
Hippolyta – Queen of the Amazons (engaged to Theseus)
Oberon – King of the Fairies
Titania – Queen of the Fairies
Puck – Fairy trickster, also Robin (devil) Goodfellow; servant to Oberon; known for misleading travellers
Egeus – Hermia’s father

3. Characters: Hermia – Originally loves Lysander
Helena – Originally loves Demetrius
Demetrius – Broke up with Helena in order to pursue Hermia
Lysander – Originally lives Hermia
Peter Quince – Leader of the actors
Bottom – Cocky, egotistical actor (turned into a donkey)

4. Plot and Characters: Theseus Hippolyta
Theseus is the Duke of Athens (Greece)
Won the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta, in battle...therefore they must MARRY in four days.

5. Plot and Characters: Egeus Father of Hermia.
Wants Hermia to marry Demetrius
Hermia wants to marry Lysander (in love)
There is no difference between Demetrius’ and Lysander’s social status
Egeus accuses Lysander of bewitching his daughter with poetry and magic
Demetrius
Lysander

6. Plot and Characters:
Duke Theseus thinks that Hermia should listen to her father and marry Demetrius.
By law Hermia MUST obey her father.
If Hermia does not obey, she has 2 choices:
Either die by execution or live a solitary life as a nun in a convent.

7. Plot and Character:
In defense of his relationship with Hermia, Lysander brings up the argument that he is a better man because at least he doesn’t lead women on like Demetrius led Helena on.

8. Plot and Characters:
Hippolyta is upset about the conversation so they start talking about the wedding preparations once more.

9. Plot and Characters:
Lysander and Hermia make a plan to run away and elope.
They plan to travel 16 miles outside of Athens where the death sentence can not be followed through.
They plan to live with his aunt.
Hermia agrees to meet Lysander in the woods on May Day morning, 2.5 miles outside of Athens.

10. Plot and Characters:
Demetrius learns of Hermia’s plan to run away with Lysander and follows her into the wood.
Helena who is still in love with Demetrius follows Demetrius.
Demetrius is incredibly rude to Helena and tells her to leave him alone or he will hurt her.
Oberon hears this disagreement and orders his servant Puck to apply a potion to Demetrius’ eyes to make him love Helena back.

11. PLOT ORGANIZER
PLOT 1:
Hermia, Helena, Lysander, Demetrius
Hermia and Lysander plan to elope; run to the woods
Demetrius follows to stop Hermia
Helena follows to win Demetrius back
...PUCK INTERVENES...
Theme of inconsistent love
PLOT 2:
Oberon and Titania
Fairy King and Queen
Fighting over the ‘Changeling’ boy
Oberon is allowed to go around flirting with other females, but Titania is not allowed to take care of the human child that she promised she would care for.
Theme of jealousy
PLOT 3:
Hippolyta and Theseus
Duke of Athens and Queen of the Amazons
To be married
See following notes...
Plot 4:
Actors
Peter Quince, Bottom and others are putting on a play for the wedding festivities in four days.
They are worried about the play being too ‘common’ but they try their best and are eventually appreciated for it.
Play of Pyramus and Thisbe

12. Fairy Folklore: Traditionally portrayed as evil creatures
Associated with superstition
Meant to scare children from wandering too far from home (form of protection)
i.e. NL fairy stories

13. Fairy Folklore
The view of fairies as malevolent/evil creatures has changed partly because of Shakespeare’s portrayal of them.
He made fairies amiable (likeable) to humans
He stuck with the stereotype of fairies as tricksters (Puck)
He made fairies friends to lovers
Thus Oberon’s interference with
Demetrius and Lysander