"A Midsummer Night’s Dream" is Shakespeare’s most enchanting comedy and one of his most popular plays. It is very lyrical and poetic, filled with magical beings from mythological worlds and the power of true love.
Shakespeare’s age was the great time of fairy poetry in English literature, but no other work has influenced our visions of fairies as much as "A Midsummer Night’s Dream". Till today the idea of fairies, as we have them in our mind, is shaped by Shakespeare’s delighting comedy.
The play can be interpreted as “a fantasia on love” , because love, it’s follies, absurdities, conflicts and even dangers draw a red line through the play: from the quarrel between the fairy king and queen, to the heroic love of Theseus for his war-conquered Amazon queen, to the love-chase of Hermia, Helena, Lysander and Demetrius, and to the enchanted experiences of Bot-tom. In nearly all of these love affairs the fairies have their (sometimes helping) hand engaged and they are thus very important agents in the main- and in the sub-plots.
In this paper I will first take a survey of the historic belief in fairies in Shakespearian England, and then look at Shakespeare’s literary sources for the most important and most famous fairies who appear in this play, namely Oberon, Titania and Puck. Then I will show some parallels between the fairy queen Titania and Queen Elizabeth I, and afterwards I will analyze the quarrel between Oberon, king of fairies, and his wife. Finally I will give a comprehensive overview of the various ways of performing the play, both in theatre and in film.
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
2 The Shakespearian belief in fairies
3 The sources of Shakespeare’s fairies
3.1 Puck
3.2 Oberon
3.3 Titania
4 Queen Elizabeth I – The “fairy queen“
5 Oberon’s and Titania’s quarrel
5.1 Bad weather and dearth
5.2 Bottom’s metamorphosis
6 “Love-in-idleness”
7 The fairy world “on stage”
8 Conclusion
Objectives and Topics
This paper examines the role and cultural significance of fairy mythology in William Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream." It explores the historical belief in fairies during the sixteenth century, investigates the diverse literary and folklore sources behind Shakespeare’s fairy characters—specifically Puck, Oberon, and Titania—and analyzes the interplay between these supernatural beings, the political allegory involving Queen Elizabeth I, and the thematic representation of love and transformation.
- Historical survey of fairy belief in Shakespearian England
- Literary and mythological origins of Shakespeare's fairies
- Political allegories linking Titania to Queen Elizabeth I
- Analysis of the fairy king and queen's domestic quarrel
- Evolution of stage and film performances of the play
Excerpt from the Book
3.1 Puck
Puck, or Robin Goodfellow, in A Midsummer Night’s Dream has many literary sources. The earliest parallels to Puck can be found in the satyrs of the fantastical mythological world of Greece. The satyrs are of the train of Dionysus, who was a divinity of growth, plants and animals. Dionysus was a very mischievous youth who, as it is written in a Homeric hymn, amused himself in frightening Greek sailors by shape shifting and tricks of much the same nature as those which Puck likes to play.
There are also some parallels to the penates of the Romans, who, like Shakespeare’s Puck, would help the servants, especially the maids, with their work, but who also liked to play ill-natured tricks. In the 12th century, Gervase of Tilbury wrote about beings in England called “follets” who inhabited the houses of the simple peasants. Because they were invisible, they would amuse themselbes with throwing stones and billets at those who entered the door. These follets were, like Puck, sometimes useful and sometimes mischievous, and they could take on the shape of different animals.
Before the publication of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Robin Goodfellow and Puck were two different beings. Robin was larger, more sexual (he was supposed to be the cousin of the Incubus), and usually less demonic than Puck. In Elizabethan times, Robin Goodfellow and hobgoblins were as terrible and as credible to the people as witches became in later centuries.
Summary of Chapters
1 Introduction: Provides an overview of the play's popularity and sets the paper's goal of exploring the historical, literary, and performative aspects of Shakespeare's fairies.
2 The Shakespearian belief in fairies: Discusses how the sixteenth-century religious shift following the Protestant Reformation redefined beliefs in the supernatural.
3 The sources of Shakespeare’s fairies: Analyzes the amalgam of folklore and classical literature—including Homer and Ovid—that shaped the nature of Shakespeare's supernatural characters.
3.1 Puck: Investigates the origins of Puck and Robin Goodfellow, tracing them from Greek satyrs and Roman penates to Elizabethan folklore.
3.2 Oberon: Examines the derivation of the name Oberon from the French romance 'Huon of Bordeaux' and the German 'Alberich'.
3.3 Titania: Explores the inspiration for the name Titania, linking it to the goddess Diana and classical literary traditions.
4 Queen Elizabeth I – The “fairy queen“: Interprets Titania as a political allusion to Queen Elizabeth I, citing historical evidence and courtly performances.
5 Oberon’s and Titania’s quarrel: Analyzes the conflict over the changeling boy as a manifestation of male chauvinism and domestic disruption.
5.1 Bad weather and dearth: Connects the climatic disturbances described by the fairies to the actual harvest failures in England during the 1590s.
5.2 Bottom’s metamorphosis: Discusses the nature of Bottom's transformation and his forced erotic encounter with the fairy queen.
6 “Love-in-idleness”: Explains the magical properties of the flower used by Oberon to cause the play's central confusions.
7 The fairy world “on stage”: Surveys how directors and filmmakers have interpreted the representation of the fairy world from the 17th century to the late 20th century.
8 Conclusion: Summarizes the dreamlike structure of the play and reflects on why it continues to captivate audiences centuries later.
Keywords
William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Fairy Mythology, Elizabethan Era, Puck, Oberon, Titania, Queen Elizabeth I, Folklore, Metamorphosis, Love-in-idleness, Literary Sources, Performance History, Supernatural, Mythology.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core subject of this academic paper?
The paper explores the fairy mythology within William Shakespeare’s "A Midsummer Night’s Dream," focusing on how Shakespeare synthesized diverse folklore and literary traditions to create his supernatural characters.
What are the primary thematic areas covered?
The study covers the Elizabethan belief in magic, the literary origins of Puck, Oberon, and Titania, the political allegory regarding Queen Elizabeth I, and the evolving interpretative history of the play in theater and film.
What is the main objective of the author?
The author aims to provide a comprehensive overview of how fairy characters function as central agents in both the plot and sub-plots, while situating them within their historical and political context.
Which scientific or analytical methods are used?
The author employs a literary and historical analysis, comparing Shakespearean texts with classical poetry, medieval romances, and historical documents from the Elizabethan period.
What topics are discussed in the main section of the paper?
The main section analyzes specific characters (Puck, Oberon, Titania), investigates the correlation between the fairies' quarrel and Elizabethan weather/social issues, and tracks the performance history of the play.
Which keywords best characterize this work?
Key terms include Shakespeare, fairy mythology, Elizabethan folklore, political allegory, Titania, and the performance history of "A Midsummer Night's Dream."
How does the author connect Titania to Queen Elizabeth I?
The author identifies textual allusions, such as the "fair Vestal throned by the west," and references contemporary events and festivals that linked the Queen to the identity of a fairy queen.
What role does the flower "love-in-idleness" play in the author's argument?
The author argues that "love-in-idleness" serves as a crucial plot device rooted in the cultural belief in magic, triggering the transformations and confusions necessary to the play's "fantasia on love."
How is Bottom’s metamorphosis interpreted in this text?
The transformation is viewed through the lens of Ovidian metamorphosis and Elizabethan law, symbolizing the arbitrary power of the fairies and the interplay between mortal and supernatural realms.
- Quote paper
- M.A. Melitta Töller (Author), 2004, The fairy mythology in William Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream", Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/88026
