Midsummer Night's Dream.

The theme of the Play - Love is the dominant theme of  Shakespeare's play 'Midsummer Night's Dream. Most of the plays of William Shakespeare's deals with the theme love and death. He has in-depth knowledge of human nature. All tend to fall in love with someone by looking at its beauty. Only physical attraction is the base of their love. Though real love is different from mere physical attraction.

👰Characters👮

👑Theseus:- The hero, Duke of Athens who won the war as well as Hippolyta the queen of Amazons. He has been engaged with her and plans to marry her at the earliest. 

👑Hippolyta:-The queen of Amazons, who was in love with the Duck of Athens, Theseus, both of them were about to marry at the earliest.  

🦸Hermia:- Daughter of Egeus, she is in love with Lysander who also loves her. But her father wanted her to get married to Demetrius. 

🦸Helena:- Friend of Hermia who is in love with Demetrius. He also was in love with Helena, but since Egeus wanted him to marry Hermia he is after Hermia and no longer loves Helena anymore. 

🧒Lysander:- One who is in love with Hermia but when Hera mia's father forced her to marry Demetrius Lysander and Hermia eloped in the wood to get married. 

🧒Demetrius:- He used to love Helena but now he is in love with Hermia. (Hermia is not in love with Demetrius) 

🧚Oberon:- The king of fairies, Who wanted to have the custody of an Indian boy from his wife Titania. 

🧚Titania:- The queen of fairies, she too wanted the custody of the Indian boy from her husband. 

🤵Puck:- Robin Goodfellow, one who created a magical land fairy land potion to arouse the feeling of love. He is a mischievous fairy who played pranks on the mortals. 

The Title of the play "Midsummer Night's Dream" The play has the significance that it is like a dream that the character had seen in the summer season. Since it's fantasy dream-likely objects like fairyland wood. The title is significant as it deals were dream-like fantasy and fairyland fairy appropriate for the summer season. Hence the title of the Play is appropriate. 

Plot - The main plot of the play is the wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta is the main plot. There are many subplots drama 'Midsummer Night's Dream. 

1. The subplot of Hermia and Lysander. Hermia is in love with Lysander want wants to get married to him. But her father wanted her to get married to Demetrius. When she didn't listen to her father Egues, he brought her along with Demetrius and Lysander to the Duke of Athens Theseus. He had given three alternatives to her, she has to marry Demetrius or become a nun or be ready to accept the death Sentence.

2. The subplot of Demetrius and Helena,  the friend of Hermia, both of them used to love each other. But now Demetrius is interested in Hermia and wanted to get married to her, as a result, Helena gets hurt. 

3. The next subplot is of Oberon, the king of fairies, and Titania, the queen of fairies. Both of them desperately wanted the custody of the Indian boy, Oberon played a magic trick on her so that she can give the custody to him. 

All the above subplots are associated with the main plot of These and Hippolyta. Thus though the subplots are seems different but all of them are associated and well connected with the main plot. 

The Title of the extract is "Another Part in the Wood"

The whole story is wovens around the character of Theseus, the Duke of Athens, after winning Miss Hippolyta in the war, Theseus had planned to get marry her. But suddenly Egeus came to the court with his daughter Hermia, her Lover Lysander, and Demetrius. He gave the judgment that Hermia should get married to Demetrius as per her father's desire, or be ready to live the life of a nun or be ready for death. 

Story of the Extract 'Another Part of the Woods

The second scene of Act III starts with an entry of Oberon to check the effects of the magic potion on Titania. Whom she might have seen when she woke up. At the same time, Puck also enters the scene and reports that he has poured the potion as instructed. Oberon praises Puck when he informs him about the affair of Titania with Bottom. However, when Demetrius and Hermia enter the scene quarreling, Oberon realizes that Puck has made a mistake and poured the potion on Lysander instead of Demetrius. Hermia, who is angry with Demetris because she was under the impression that Demetrius killed Lysander while he was asleep, leaves the scene and Demetrius realizes that it would useless to go after Hermia when she is so angry. Therefore, he chooses to sleep in the Woods. Oberon understands the situation and decides to intervene and instructs Puck to bring Helena where Demetrius is sleeping. Meanwhile, Oberon pours the potion on Demetrius' eyelids. When Helena arrives at the scene, she is accompanied by Lysander who is trying to persuade her that he loves her and not Hermia, Helena is further shocked when Demetrius wakes up and declares he loves her too. Helena, hurt and annoyed, think that Lysander and Demetrius are mocking her. The situation is worsened when Hermia enters the scene and witnesses Lysander and Demetrius declaring their love for Helena Hemma, who is confused by Lysander's behavior and is accused of pretending by Helena. Helena thinks that Hernia is a part of the whole plan designed to trick and mock Helena. Hermia, hurt by Lysander's arrogant Lude towards her, accuses Helena of stealing Lysander away from her. Due to the cross-purposes, Lysander and Demetrius leave the scene to fight for Helena while Helena and Hermia fight with each other because they both think they have been wronged by the other. Frustrated. Helena leaves the scene. At this moment, Oberon decides to clear the confusion and sends Puck to lead Lysander and Demetrius away from each other, so that they don't fight. On Oberon's orders, Puck mimics Demetrius and Lysander's voices so he can anger each of them by shouting insults in the other's voice. He thus misguides them and as the night draws to a close, they are tired of finding each other and decide to get some sleep. At this moment, Helena and Hermia also enter the scene and go to sleep as they too are exhausted. This is when Puck pours the juice

fa flower on Lysander's eyes to reverse the effect of the potion and says that Lysander will go back to loving the woman whom he loved before and all will be right again.

Match the character in columns A with its proper identity in column B

✒️Answer:-

Write a character sketch of Oberon as an enemy of his wife but a friend of the lovers. 

Answers:- Oberon was the king of fairies. He was not happy that his wife Titania spend more time with the Indian boy so, he tried to get the custody of the boy in cunning way and hence enemy to his wife. At the same time when he realized the dryness in the relationship between Demetrius and Helena he tried to restore their relation with the help of Puck. Thus Oberon was an enemy of his wife but friend of lovers. 

What is the theme of the play "Midsummer Night's Dream"

Answer:- The play "A Midsummer Night's Dream" has following dominant themes.

1. Love and its complexities

2. The power of imagination

3. Reality versus illusion.

 In the Play "A Midsummer Night's Dream," Shakespeare deepens the exploration of love's complexities and the whims of the human heart. The entangled relationships of Hermia, Lysander, Helena, and Demetrius, combined with the mischievous interventions of Oberon and Puck, highlight the irrationality of desire and the blurred lines between reality and fantasy. Through humor and wit, Shakespeare underscores the transformative power of imagination, set against the backdrop of a dreamlike forest. The play celebrates the joy and folly of love, revealing its ability to transcend societal norms and evoke both laughter and introspection in equal measure.

Q 2 Write the character sketch of Hermia. 

Answer:- Hermia is portrayed as a determined and courageous young woman in "A Midsummer Night's Dream." Despite facing opposition from her father, Egeus, who insists she marry Demetrius, Hermia remains steadfast in her love for Lysander. Her unwavering commitment to her own desires demonstrates her independence and strength of character.

Hermia finds herself in a challenging situation when she learns of her father's ultimatum through the Duck Thesus who gave her the option to marry Demetrius or face death or life in a convent. Despite the threat of severe consequences, Hermia refuses to compromise her feelings for Lysander. Her defiance against societal expectations and patriarchal authority showcases her resilience and inner conviction.

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