Act III Scene II

After Class Reading Reflection

I feel pretty bad for Hermia because she is used to getting attention and now she's been stripped of it. Now, Helena is getting all the attention and doesn't know how to handle it. She believes they are just making fun of her, and with good reason. I do feel thta she should be a bit more trusting though, since these are her close friends. Hermia now believes that Helena was in on this turning of Lysander's love but little does she know that it is the workings of magic- she shouldn't be so distrusting of her best friend. I do wonder where their parents/chaperones have been though. It has been at least a day and no one has come looking for them. I think it would be thought of as scandalous that four young adults have gone missing.

Act III Scene I

Independent Reflection

Bottom is really obnoxious in saying he is the best actor there, he keeps putting down his castmates, and that doesn't show good character. I believe Shakespeare wants us to think him an ass and hence, he is cursed with an ass's head. How is it though that he doesn't know his head had been transformed? The act all in all was quite funny. Titania falls in love with Bottom just as Oberon wanted. Bottom starts acting ridiculously (not surprisingly) and we come to figure out one of his other traits: he always thinks he is right- he believes that a man should play the part of the wall and that they should introduce themselves in order not to scare the women in the audience and steadfastly believes there is no other way. My biggest question though, is how come he calls the fairies master if they are clearly women?

After Class Reading Reflection

Bottom has fallen in love wiht Titania and tries to impress her and her train with fancy words that just make him seem like an idiot, though Titania doesn't think so because her beter judgement has been fogged by the love potion's spell. Because Titania has falsely fallen in love with Bottom, she wants to keep him and make him into a fairy if possible.

In Athens, the women are treated as property with no value. With the faires Titania and Oberon are equal rulers, however Titania depicts Shakespeare's view of women: evil, bossy and gullible.

Act II Artistic Rendering

Peter Pan plays tricks on Captain Hook all the time as Puck plays tricks on Humans. They are both immature and always just want to have fun. Also, not only do they have an immature and playful side, but a serious and loyal side. They always follow through with whatever needs to be done and know how to fix their mistakes, even if they do not want to take the blame for them.

Act II Real Life Connections

1. Rugrats the tv show has similar compents that the play A Midsummer Night's Dream also does. In Rugrats, the twin brother and sister, Phil and Lil were always so competetive and couldn't stand when one of them got something the other one didn't; they would use whatever hijinks they had. This is similar to Titania and Oberon. They fought over the Indian boy, so finally Oberon decided to put Titania under a love spell that would make her fall in love with whatever living thing she saw first.

2. Tinkerbell from Peter Pan is similar to Puck in the play. They are both mischevious fairies that like to pull pranks on people for their own entertainment. They are also loyal to their 'masters'- Puck to Oberon and Tinkerbell to Peter Pan, and would do anything for them, even if they don't like the idea themselves.

Act II Quotes

1. "You are a shrewd and knavish sprite/ Called Robin Goodfellow." -Fairy to Puck/ Robin Goodfellow (Act 2, Scene 1, lines 33-34)
It is here in the play that we are introduced to Puck who is Oberon's jester of sorts- provides entertainment and does Oberon's bidding. We come to know him as Puck throughout most of the play, but we know that he is also refferred to as Robin Goodfellow. In the play there are many doubles: Titania and Oberon to Hippolyta and Thesues, Hermia and Lysander to Helena and Demetrius, and Puck to Robin Goodfellow. Puck has two sides to him and we figure it out here as well in various other places throughout the play. Puck is the jester and Robin is the do- gooder.

2. "Thou shalt know the man/ By the Athenian garments he hath on." -Oberon to Puck (Act 2, Scene 1, lines 268-269)
This quote is significant because it is where all the conflict that later appears in the play stems from. Oberon has only seen one man with Athenian garments on, but little does he know that there happen to be two of them in the forest, leaving it possible that Puck will put the potion on the wrong man's eyes and mess Oberon's whole plan up.

Act II Vocab.

1. dissemble: v. to pretend (Scene 2, line 98)
After commiting the horrible crime, the man could not dissemble his feelings in front of the jury.
2. flout: v. to mock (Scene 2, line 129)
The girl did not like her classmates flouting her lisp.

3. progeny: n. offspring (Scene 1, line 116)
It is a mystery how their progeny have blue eyes and blond hair when they themselves have dark features.

4. promontory: n. peak of land that juts out (Scene 1, line 151)
When we would take vaccations to the island, my mom always told me not to go near the promontory to insure that i would not hurt myself.

5. wanton: adj. shameless (Scene 1, line 64)
Her wanton courage proved to the world that woman could really do anything and everything a man could.

Act II Questions

1. Why does Oberon want to help other people's love lives when his own is unstable?
Oberon and Titania's love is not built trust and they don't share a sexual connection. Oberon helps Helena because he can see her desire of Demetrius and his scorn for her. He realizes that they once had a sexual relationship, but now he dotes on Hermia who does not love him back. Oberon notices all of this and decides that while he plays a cruel trick on his wife so that he can achieve what he wants, he will also help the mortal Helena so that she too can be happy.
2. How might the magical herb described by Oberon act as a metaphor for the way infatuation operates in real life?
The magical herb described by Oberon acts as a metaphor for the way infatuation operates in real life. This is because you can't control who you are attracted to and much less who you love. Your infatuations can change at the blink of an eye, with no rhyme or reason. That's just the way love works, and that is also how the magical herb Oberon talks about works.
3. How would you describe the character of Puck? What kind of mood does he create?
I would describe Puck as a lively sprite who is an accomplished prankster. He creates a playful and yet turmoiled mood all throughout the play. Though he messes up Oberon's plan, he is able to ultimately fix his accident, and right things for the four mortals that wander in the woods.
4. By the end of act 2, what is similar about the following pairs: Lysander and Hermia, Demetrius and Helena, and Oberon and Titania?
At the end of act 2 the pairs of: Lysander and Hermia, Demetrius and Helena, and Oberon and Titania all have something in common. This is that they were all lovers, but now in this act, one of the lovers in the pair's affections have turned to someone else, whether it be from the magical herb or from their own will, something is wrong. In this case, Lysander loves Helena instead of Hermia, Titania loves Bottom instead of Oberon, and Demetrius loves Hermia instead of Helena, as Oberon had planned. There has been a big mix up and somehow it needs to be fixed.
5. At the end of act 2, why does Lysander turn his back on Hermaia?
Lysander turns his back on Hermia at the end of act 2 because Puck mistakenly places the juice from the magical herb on his eyes, thinking him to be Demetrius. He was doing Oberon's bidding- Oberon having told him to put the juice on a man with Athenian garments on, not knowing that there were two in the woods at the time.

Act II Scene II

After Class Reading Reflection
In this scene, Oberon's plans start to unfold. I feel bad for Helena, because little does she know that magic is at work here. She is so used to being shunned and pushed away, that all the attention that she is now getting by Lysander is strange and foreign to her. I feel as if she has a right to think that he is just playing a men trick on her because only a few hours before, he was madly in love with Hermia.

Act II Scene I

Independent Reading Reflection

Scene I is far from a bore. Puck is quite the trickster and I find him to be really comical. I don't really understand how this whole predicament between Oberon and Titania come from. The Indian Boy is really random. Also, I wonder why Oberon and Titania seem not to be exactly civil with each other? I feel as though Oberon is kind of the head honcho of the fairies and Titania is in a useless struggle to be equal or more powerful than him. Though he controls all males and she controls the females, it seems to me that if Oberon was to give a command that most of the females as well as the males would do his bidding. I also wonder why Oberon cares to help Helena...
After Class Discussion Reflection

Oberon and Titania's relationship is strange and is not 'normal' as we would see it today in modern society. Their relationship is not really loving, but it is more of a convenience. Almost as if the two most powerful faires were brought together to lead the people. Oberon's intentions for placing Titania under the flower's juice-potion spell is very childish. Normally a man would let his lady have the thing that she desires before himself, but instead he is just as selfish as she.

Act I Artistic Rendering

This sculpture is of a love triangle which is prevalent thorughout the play. In the sculpture, we could see the hugging couple as Hermia and Lysander- happy to be together, and the man on the ground Demetrius, who is biting the young woman's ankles to keep ahold of her and wrapping his legs around the other young man's in an effort to try to push him away. This love triangle is the basis of the play, which therefor makes this picture signifcant to the play.

Act I Vocab.

1. austerity: n. condition of lacking pleasure and luxury (Scene 1, line 92) The trip through the Middle Passage for captured Africans was very austere- they were jam packed into barracks with barely any space to breathe, and were never allowed out to use the facilities.

2. beguile: v. to trick (Scene 1, line 245)
Puck is a beguiling fairy who turns Nick Bottom's head into an ass' head in the play.

3. cloister: n. place where members of a religious community live (Scene 1, line 73)
In the movie The Sound of Music, the nuns were safely cloistered behind the convent walls.

4. dote: v. to live with foolish fondness (Scene1, line 236)
Like any doting teenager, i wanted to show off the amazing gift I had been given.

5. feign: v. to pretend (Scene 1, line 32)
Liam feigned a stomach ache to the nurses so that they would call his mom to take him home so that he would not have to take his Spanish test in the last period of the day.

Act I Real Life Connections

1. The "reality" tv show Parental Control is a real life example to the play so far. Parental Control is a show where the parents of a child that has an intolerable boyfriend/girlfriend pick a candidate each that they feel would suit their son/daughter well, and in high hopes will make a good enough impression on their child, that the son/daughter will dump their boyfriend/girlfriend for one of the others. This is like the novel because Egeus has a man that he wants Hermia to love and marry, Demetrius. However, Hermia sees Demetrius as a man with little moral and loathes him, and instead loves Lysander, whom her father hates. But sometimes, on Parental Control, the son/daughter chooses to stay with their loved one, as does Hermia.

2. Another example is the Disney Movie Aladdin. Princess Jazmin needs to marry a prince before her next birthday, but none of the suitors are good enough for her, so her father is tempted to just pick one for her, and it is against the law for her to marry the man she actually loves. this is like the play because Egeus wants Hermia to marry the man he chose, but she does not love him, and it would be against the law for her to marry the man she does love, Lysander.

Act I Quotes

1. "With cunning hast thou filched my daughter's heart, / Turned her obedience, which is due to me, / to stubborn harshness." -Egeus about Lysander Act 1 Scene 1, lines 37-39
Egeus is saying that Lysander has captured Hermia's heart and made her love him. That he turned her obedience to him into stubborness by not marrying the man Egeus wants her to, Demetrius, and instead loves Lysander and hence, has caused all the turmoil. Without this conflict, the play would have no plot, which makes the quote quite significant. It shows Egeus's personal view of Lysander and the quarrel- that it is all Lysander's fault and that his daughter shall not marry him.

2. "The course of true love never did run smooth." -Lysander to Hermia Act 1 Scene 1, line 136
Lysander is saying that no true love is easy and must be worked for to achieve. This quote is significant, because, in all the relationships displayed in the play: Theseus and Hippolyta, Oberon and Titania, Helena and Demetrius, Demetrius and Hermia, and Hermia and Lysander, we notice that none of the relationships are smooth and all full of great joy, but somewhere within them lies conflict and that is what is souht to be straightened out and made right in the play.

Act I Questions

Questions and Answers

1. Is Egeus's anger at Hermia justified?

It really depends on perpective in this case. Egeus is angry with Hermia for disobeying him and not accepting Demetrius, but instead continues to love Lysander and fight for their love. From the perpective of Theseus, who could stand for the Law in this case, Hermia must obey her father's wishes of marrying Demetrius, because, as Egeus's daughter, Hermia is his property. If she does not marry Demetrius she will have to become a nun, or face death. In our perspective, as modern readers, we would think this as repressive for her not to be able to chose who she loves and the punishments unjust. Though children are supposed to obey what their parents command of them, the solutions given to her seem unreasonable. However, in some countries today, there are still arranged marriages, so it really depends on the perspective of the reader, which make Egues's anger aguably justified or not.

2. Why do Lysander and Hermia tell Helena of their plan, knowing that she is a bit crazy?

Lysander and Hermia tell Helena of their plan in hopes that she will keep their secret and won't wonder or miss them too much. They tell her, so that she will be able to take her place by Demetrius's side once Hermia is gone. Instead of understanding that she would have Demetrius all to herself, she tells him and he at once goes looking for them to try and stop Lysander from taking Hermia away.

3. What other reasons would Egeus have for wanting Demetrius to marry Hermia?

In the 19th century, it was common for fathers to pick the man who they want their daughters to marry for a few reasons. One was last name and title, if a man took a fancy for another's daughter and he was a lord or some higher title than the father's family, then naturally, a father would choose that man to marry his daughter. Another was wealth, after all, what father doesn't want his daughter to marry a wealthy man that could help support the family?

4. What similarities do Egeus and Demetrius share?

Egeus and Demetrius are similar in the fact that they are both naive and short sighted. Egeus is this because he believes that by choosing the man that he wants his daughter to marry, he believes that she will just be able to love him even though she loves another man dearly. He does not understand the fact that just because he may see Demetrius as the best man for her to marry, that it may not be the best choice for her. Demetrius is the same as Egeus because of his arrogance that any woman will love him and do his bidding, and his naiveness of believing so.

5. At the end of the act, the characters seem as if they are all on the same path, is this significant or not?

The characters are all on a similar path and as it would seem they will all meet up at one point or another. This is a way for Shakespeare to foreshadow their meet, which will probably be something very significant that may change the course of some peoples desires or affection later in the play.

Act I Scene II

After Class Reading Reflection

This scene was awfully funny with Bottom's ignorance and malapropisms and such., though i don't know how the other characters are able to take Bottom's obnoxiousness. Though this scene was short and only told of the rude mechanicals who would be putting on a play for the competiton at Theseus and Hippolyta's wedding, I have a feeling these characters will have something to do with the main plot.

Act I Scene I

Independent Reading Reflections

I think it is unfair that Hermia can't choose to marry whomever she wants, and that her father is not understanding of her feelings for Lysander and lack, thereof, for Demetrius. Shakespeare is a little hard to interpret at times, and seems to get a little long winded, but besides that, the play is quite enjoyable. I think Theseus to be pompous and arrogant, considering himself a God of sorts and I think that wrong of him. Helena is crazy and stalkerish, maybe it's because of the deprication she has faced from Demetrius. I do not understand why Demetrius still chases after Hermia if it is not him that she loves.

After Class Reading Reflection

Helena and Demetrius had some sort of sexual relationship in the past and that is why she feels the need to follow him around and try to force her love on him. Demetrius is a decieving youth with little morals to go on. Why Egeus thinks him suitable for Hermia is still escapes me. And why Helena can't just move on and find someone better is even more of a wonder. Time will only tell the answers.