This play was written and performed around 1595-96 for a royal wedding. This play was written and performed around 1595-96 for a royal wedding

This play was written and performed around 1595-96 for a royal wedding.

• This play was written and performed around 1595-96 for a royal wedding.

• It is a romantic comedy.

Think about some romantic comedies that you’ve seen. What are some elements of this type of story?

• Think about some romantic comedies that you’ve seen. What are some elements of this type of story?

• How do they start?

• What happens in the middle?

• How do the stories usually end?

Athens, Greece

• Athens, Greece

• The setting of this play is a mythical version of ancient Athens and Duke Theseus’s palace where law and order abide.

• Woods outside of Athens

• Magical fairies roam the woods, ready to make mischief on humans and create chaos.

Theseus and Hippolyta :

• Theseus and Hippolyta :

• Duke and Queen of Athens

• Hermia, Lysander, Helena, Demetrius:

• Four young lovers

• The Tradesmen:

• a.k.a. The Rude Mechanicals

• Oberon, Titania , Puck:

• Kink and Queen of the Fairies, and the king’s assistant

Moon: night/ confusion… “lunacy” (“Luna” is Latin for moon)

• Moon: night/ confusion… “lunacy” (“Luna” is Latin for moon)

• Dreams/Sleep: illusion, the fickle nature of love

• Athens: law and order

• The Woods: imagination, dreams, chaos

• Day/Night: order/chaos

Shakespeare uses;

• Shakespeare uses;

• -humor to mock people’s common assumptions about love.

• -figurative language to explore the complexities of human

• emotions

• - dramatic irony to heighten the sense of comedy and humor in the play

• -soliloquy by major characters to draw the audience into central ideas and themes

What is the true nature of love?

• What is the true nature of love?

• Is love constant and unchanging, or changeable and fickle?

“The course of true love never did run smooth.”

• “The course of true love never did run smooth.”

• Lysander

• What might love be compared to in this quote?

• What might this say about the nature of love?

• List as many different types of love as you can.

Romantic Love

• Romantic Love

• Platonic Love

• Unrequited Love

• Blind Love

• Love at First Sight

• Unconditional Love

One summer night, two pairs of young lovers and a group of amateur actors wander into the fairies’ mad world.

• One summer night, two pairs of young lovers and a group of amateur actors wander into the fairies’ mad world.

• The magic begins…..

• When Hermia and Lysander sneak off to the forest to elope, Demetrius and Helena follow.

• Meanwhile, Oberon and Titania, the king and queen of the fairies, are having a quarrel.

• The results for innocent human bystanders are disastrous—and hilarious!

How will the fairies affect the situation of

• How will the fairies affect the situation of

• Hermia, Lysander, Helena, and Demetrius?

• Can love triumph over magical mischief as well as more ordinary obstacles?