Love, Lust and Infatuation in Midsummer Night’s Dream Essay

Fairies, mortals, magic, love, and hate all intertwine to make A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare a very enchanting tale, that takes the reader on a truly dream-like adventure. The action takes place in Athens, Greece in ancient times, but has the atmosphere of a land of fantasy and illusion which could be anywhere. The mischievousness and the emotions exhibited by characters in the play, along with their attempts to double-cross destiny, not only make the tale entertaining, but also help solidify one of the play’s major themes; that true love and it’s cleverly disguised counterparts can drive beings to do seemingly irrational things. In the first part of the play Egeus has asked the Duke of Athens, Theseus, to rule in†¦show more content†¦Oberon, riddled with jealousy over his queen’s beloved â€Å"changeling†, plots to make a fool out of Titania with his magic potion so he may steal away the child. Oberons love-potion has the same effect of that of the famed Cupids arrows, it charms the sight of those it is anointed upon, and gets them to fall in â€Å"love† with the first creature they see. Oberon anoints the eyes of Titania and she ends up falling in â€Å"love† with the first creature she sees, Bottom, an actor who is rehearsing in the woods, who’s head has been turned into that of an ass by Puck. Oberon plan is successful, he is in fact able to steal away the child while his queen dotes upon Bottom, but then things start to get more complicated in the moonlit woods. Two other mortals have entered the woods that night as well, Demetrius and Helena. Helena, hopelessly in love with Demetrius, is following him on his mission to find his betrothed, Hermia, and they are also subjected to the mischievous workings of Oberon and Puck. Oberon, after observing the two young mortals, feels bad for â€Å"sweet† Helena, that even though she is professing her undying love and devotio n to Demetrius he rejects her at every turn. Demetrius hatefully tells Helena â€Å" I’ll run from thee and hide me in the brakes, and leave thee to the mercy of wild beasts’’, along with other loathsome statements, in rebuttal to Helena’sShow MoreRelated Illusion of Love in Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream Essay1535 Words   |  7 PagesIllusion of Love in Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream The play A Midsummer Nights Dream is centered around themes that are seemingly apparent and clear: those of true love, false love, loves blindness and the inconstancy of love. However, this pattern of the themes of love dissipate to reveal that these themes are only apparent to the reader who wants them to exist. 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