Play of the Month: A Midsummer Night's Dream

I just completed studying my "Play of the Month": A Midsummer Night's Dream, one of the most performed comedies by Shakespeare. This is the 4th Shakespeare’s play I've studied, with the first three all tragedies.

While I had never been exposed to Shakespeare’s plays until 3 months ago, I first heard of A Midsummer Night's Dream when I was in my junior high school more than 50 years ago. I'm thrilled that I finally explored throughout this time-tested masterpiece of Shakespeare, and was able to understand most of the texts of the play, both literally and figuratively.

I have to confess, though, that the plots and stories of the play are far more complicated, dramatic and philosophical than I had imagined by its title, which just sounded romantic to me, and nothing more. To this end, I also understand now why they say Shakespeare’s plays are best appreciated through listening and watching the performance, instead of reading the texts (and explanations) alone.

On the other hand, reading is crucial for good understanding about the play, particularly in terms of its historical and cultural content, which may sound natural to those who are native to it, but is totally foreign to me as a new and distant fan of Shakespeare. Luckily, before starting my self-learning journey of Shakespeare’s works, I had read some Greco-Roman mythology works, including The Iliad, The Odyssey, The Aeneid and Metamorphoses, which Shakespeare had drawn inspiration from significantly for his works. Had I not read these works of mythology beforehand, my studying A Midsummer Night's Dream would not have been as smooth.

To start with, I was instantly attracted at the beginning of the play when the Athenian Duke Theseus is to marry Hippolyta, as both characters are among the most notable heroes and heroines in Greco-Roman mythology: Theseus, the founder of Athens, and Hippolyta, the legendary warrior queen of the Amazons. Then, I was amazed by the "ancient privilege of Athens" that Egeus claims to have over his daughter Hermia: she is to marry Demetrius, as Egeus wishes, otherwise she must die or spend the rest of her life as a nun.

Thus Lysander, Hermia's true love, plots a plan by that this unblessed young couple can run away to get married, and to start their new life without being sanctioned by the Athenian law. Before that, they run into Helen, a close friend of Hermia hopelessly in love with Demetrius who once wooed Helen but now asks for Hermia's hand through her father Egeus.

Hoping to win gratefulness from Demetrius, Helen tells him of Lysander and Hermia's plan, and then Demetrius follows as the couple flee into the woods, and so does Helen. Catch and run among the four young lovers plays out before A Midsummer Night's Dream will come.

Note that the inspiration of the character Helen comes from Helen of Troy,  the most beautiful woman in the world per Homer's The Iliad, and ironically she is disgusted at the beginning by Demetrius, as he reflects later, after being enchanted by the fairy king Oberon, in his words "But, like in sickness, did I loathe this food, But, as in health, come to my natural taste ...". How eloquent his words are: Demetrius means he was sick so he felt fed up with Helen and turned to Hermia. Now he's recovered so he wants to come back to Helen, his healthy and natural love.

Then, here come the fairies, masters of the woods, including Oberon the king and his servant Puck, Titania the queen and her attendants Peaseblossom, Cobweb, Mote, and Mustardseed. Without their "contributions", Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night's Dream would not have been possible.

While Puck is no doubt the busiest role in the play, humans and fairies alike, I'm particularly fascinated by the long lines cited by Titania about, among other stories, the consequences of the quarrels between she and her estranged husband Oberon, the changeling boy she has raised after his mother died at his birth, and her accusation about Oberon's unfaithful intent of coming to see his old love, the soon to be bride of Theseus, Hippolyta the Amazon queen.

And, equally amusing to me is what Oberon cites in accusation of Titania's improper help extended to Theseus, alluding her admiration and love of Theseus.

The Tragedy of Pyramus and Thisbe, the play in the play, at first sounds foolish and ridiculous, but ends up the main reason that makes the play a great comedy of all-time, in my view. Among many episodes, I'm particularly amazed by Bottom's soliloquy, after awaking from the enchantment, about having Quince write him a ballad about his dream.

Elsewhere, what's equally funny is Quince's prologue cited before the staging of their performance at Theseus' palace: without proper punctuation and pauses, what he says sounds exactly opposite to what he means to the audience. 

Still, these six mechanicals (Quince, Bottom, Snug, Flute, Snout and Starveling) are allowed to complete their performance, though ending it with a bergomask dance instead of an epilogue, thanks to the empathetic Duke Theseus who insists, in his words, "The kinder we, to give them thanks for nothing...And, what poor duty cannot do, noble respect.  Take it in mind, not merit". 

People say Shakespeare’s plays are unmatched in the sense that they richly combine dramas, poetry, and philosophy within, and what  Theseus cites above represents great philosophy to me, indeed.

Talking about poetry, I'm by no means a poet, but now I understand what Iambic pentameter is, having studied 4 Shakespeare’s plays. Now I know it's a type of metric line used in traditional English poetry and verse drama, including most if not all Shakespeare's works.

A great imaginery journey with A Midsummer Night's Dream. Look forward to exploring my next play.