“’A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ ends in marriage which suggests that harmony has been restored”
“’A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ ends in marriage which suggests that harmony has been restored”
How far do you agree?
In his play ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ Shakespeare includes a trio of marriages between the main characters with Hermia finally marrying Lysander, Helena marrying Demetrius and Hippolyta marrying Theseus. On the surface it seems that everything is resolved as Theseus describes the young lovers as being ‘eternally knit’ but if we look closer can we be certain that these marriages will be so harmonious and that everything really is resolved? There are clearly problems between the couples that may not easily be forgiven or forgotten: Hippolyta hasn’t really fallen in love with Theseus as he states ‘I wooed thee with my sword’ which shows that Hippolyta may not love him enough to have him as her husband. Lysander’s mean comments towards Hermia whilst under the spell of the ‘love juice’ may influence the way their relationship develops; and finally with Demetrius still under the influence of the ‘love juice’ can we be sure that he really loves Helena or whether their relationship will end when the effects of the love juice wears off.
Shakespeare presents Hermia’s statement at the end of act 4 after the couples have been reunited to suggest that everything is still not clear;
“Methinks I see these things with parted eye.” The point of this is to show that their relationship is still unfocused as a parted eye would be and therefore that their relationship was not actually that strong. This could resemble how their future together could be blurred or distant, as when your eyes are just parted it means that you cannot see into the distance. Meaning that they may not even have a future together because they cannot see how it will transpire. The use of ‘parted eye’ could be perceived by the audience as she can still see their future together just not necessarily in the light or way that she wanted their relationship to be in. However, ‘I have found
How far do you agree?
In his play ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ Shakespeare includes a trio of marriages between the main characters with Hermia finally marrying Lysander, Helena marrying Demetrius and Hippolyta marrying Theseus. On the surface it seems that everything is resolved as Theseus describes the young lovers as being ‘eternally knit’ but if we look closer can we be certain that these marriages will be so harmonious and that everything really is resolved? There are clearly problems between the couples that may not easily be forgiven or forgotten: Hippolyta hasn’t really fallen in love with Theseus as he states ‘I wooed thee with my sword’ which shows that Hippolyta may not love him enough to have him as her husband. Lysander’s mean comments towards Hermia whilst under the spell of the ‘love juice’ may influence the way their relationship develops; and finally with Demetrius still under the influence of the ‘love juice’ can we be sure that he really loves Helena or whether their relationship will end when the effects of the love juice wears off.
Shakespeare presents Hermia’s statement at the end of act 4 after the couples have been reunited to suggest that everything is still not clear;
“Methinks I see these things with parted eye.” The point of this is to show that their relationship is still unfocused as a parted eye would be and therefore that their relationship was not actually that strong. This could resemble how their future together could be blurred or distant, as when your eyes are just parted it means that you cannot see into the distance. Meaning that they may not even have a future together because they cannot see how it will transpire. The use of ‘parted eye’ could be perceived by the audience as she can still see their future together just not necessarily in the light or way that she wanted their relationship to be in. However, ‘I have found