Love, Hate, Resentment, and Desire: Jealousy in A Midsummer Night's Dream
In William Shakespeare 's A Midsummer Night 's Dream, the most important, recurring theme is jealousy. Best defined as resentment, anger, or sadness caused by longing or suspicion, jealousy motivates the characters ' actions and feelings and influences the events of the story throughout the play. Between Helena, Hermia, Demetrius, Lysander, and even the fairies, jealousy is a very significant, driving force. One of the most powerful, complex human emotions is that of jealousy, and this is a dominant theme in A Midsummer Night 's Dream.
One good example of jealousy in A Midsummer Night 's Dream is Helena 's jealousy toward Hermia at the beginning of the play. Hermia had something Helena wanted more than anything else: Demetrius ' love. This caused Helena to become very jealous and had various negative effects on her mental state. She became suspicious and angry toward Helena. In their fight later in the play, she remarks, "O, when she 's angry, she is keen and shrewd! / She was a vixen when she went to school;/ And though she be but little, she is fierce," (3.2.323-325) a nasty comment to make to someone who was once a close friend. She also started to think much less of herself and have a low self-esteem. This is memorably evidenced when she follows Demetrius through the woods and begs him to take her back as he chased after his true love Hermia. She even pathetically pleads to Demetrius, "What worser place can I beg in your love, --/ And yet a place of high respect with me,--/ Than to be uséd as you use your dog?" (2.1.208-210) In her love and jealousy, she lowers herself to the level of a dog, showing how jealousy, especially over love, can devastate someone emotionally.
When Puck accidently makes both Demetrius and Lysander fall in love with Helena, Hermia similarly experiences jealousy. She too quickly starts to think less of herself. In her self-pity and insecurity, she even suggests it is Helena 's height that caused the two men to change the objects of
One good example of jealousy in A Midsummer Night 's Dream is Helena 's jealousy toward Hermia at the beginning of the play. Hermia had something Helena wanted more than anything else: Demetrius ' love. This caused Helena to become very jealous and had various negative effects on her mental state. She became suspicious and angry toward Helena. In their fight later in the play, she remarks, "O, when she 's angry, she is keen and shrewd! / She was a vixen when she went to school;/ And though she be but little, she is fierce," (3.2.323-325) a nasty comment to make to someone who was once a close friend. She also started to think much less of herself and have a low self-esteem. This is memorably evidenced when she follows Demetrius through the woods and begs him to take her back as he chased after his true love Hermia. She even pathetically pleads to Demetrius, "What worser place can I beg in your love, --/ And yet a place of high respect with me,--/ Than to be uséd as you use your dog?" (2.1.208-210) In her love and jealousy, she lowers herself to the level of a dog, showing how jealousy, especially over love, can devastate someone emotionally.
When Puck accidently makes both Demetrius and Lysander fall in love with Helena, Hermia similarly experiences jealousy. She too quickly starts to think less of herself. In her self-pity and insecurity, she even suggests it is Helena 's height that caused the two men to change the objects of
Bibliography: rowther, John, ed. "No Fear A Midsummer Night 's Dream." SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes LLC. 2005. Web. 21 May 2009. Shakespeare, William. A Midsummer Night 's Dream. 1596. Print.