“ “The course of true love never
did run smooth.”
”
Themes in AMSND
The difficulties of Love
“The course of true love never did run smooth,” comments Lysander “
u The theme of love’s difficulty is often explored through the motif of love out of
balance— that is, romantic situations in which a disparity or inequality interferes
with the harmony of a relationship.
u Hermia loves Lysander, Lysander loves Hermia, Helena loves Demetrius, and
Demetrius loves Hermia instead of Helena—a simple numeric imbalance in
which two men love the same woman, leaving one woman with too many
suitors and one with too few, leaving one woman with too many suitors and
one with too few.
u Although, most of the conflict in the play stems from the troubles of romance,
and though the play involves a number of romantic elements, it is not truly a
love story; it distances the audience from the emotions of the characters in
order to poke fun at the torments and afflictions that those in love suffer.
u Pitfalls of love
u Does love conquers all?
u Ask students to list as many different kinds of love as they can think of—
parent for child, person for pet, etc. Group these kinds of love in as many
ways as possible such as by age, importance, etc.
u Divide the class into an even number of groups. One half of the groups will
devise arguments in favor of love for and duty to parent taking
precedence over all other loves and duties. The other half of the groups
will devise arguments against. Pair up groups to debate using their lists.
Dreams
u As the title suggests, dreams are an important theme in A Midsummer
Night’s Dream; they are linked to the bizarre, magical mishaps in the forest:
u Hippolyta’s first words in the play evidence the prevalence of dreams
(“Four days will quickly steep themselves in night, / Four nights will quickly
dream away the time”), and various characters mention dreams
throughout (I.i.7–8).
u The theme of dreaming recurs when characters attempt to explain bizarre
events in which these characters are involved: “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,” Bottom says, unable to fathom the magical
happenings that have affected him as anything but the result of slumber.
CONT’D
u Shakespeare is also interested in the actual workings of dreams, in how
events occur without explanation, time loses its normal sense of flow, and
the impossible occurs as a matter of course; he seeks to recreate this
environment in the play through the intervention of the fairies in the
magical forest.
u At the end of the play, Puck extends the idea of dreams to the audience
members themselves, saying that, if they have been offended by the play,
they should remember it as nothing more than a dream.
u This sense of illusion and gauzy fragility is crucial to the atmosphere of A
Midsummer Night’s Dream, as it helps render the play a fantastical
experience rather than a heavy drama.
Magic/Illusion
u The fairies’ magic, which brings about many of the most bizarre and
hilarious situations in the play, is another element central to the fantastic
atmosphere of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
u Shakespeare uses magic both to embody the almost supernatural power
of love (symbolized by the love potion) and to create a surreal world.
Although the misuse of magic causes chaos, as when Puck mistakenly
applies the love potion to Lysander’s eyelids, magic ultimately resolves the
play’s tensions by restoring love to balance among the quartet of
Athenian youths.
u Additionally, the ease with which Puck uses magic to his own ends, as
when he reshapes Bottom’s head into that of an ass and recreates the
voices of
CONT’D
u Lysander and Demetrius, stands in contrast to the laboriousness and
gracelessness of the craftsmen’s attempt to stage their play.
u Have students consider the following questions: To what extent can one
believe one’s own eyes? What is the nature of reality? In what ways is
illusion important? What part does imagination play in romance? Why do
we need illusions in our lives?
