A Midsummer Night's Dream
Directions: There are no Discussion Questions due for this week because of the holiday. But I have provided questions for you below to help you understand the play. If you have any comments or questions, feel free to post them on the Discussion Board.
We will be using the Canvas Discussion Board for this class. Click on the link below to get to the LACCD portal, sign in, and then click on the link for Canvas in the right column. This will take you to the Canvas dashboard. From there, click on the square with the name of our class. Once you've entered the class, you will find the "Discussions" link on the left side of the screen:
A Midsummer Night's Dream
1. Park Honan argues that "At the heart of Shakespeare's comic view of life is his tragic sense..." Do you see any hints of tragedy in the play?
2. What is the purpose of the play-within-the-play? Is it significant that the players choose to perform Pyramus and Thisbe?
3. What is your opinion of Bloom's assertion that Bottom is the protagonist of the play?
1. As the play opens, how long is it until the wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta?
2. What is Egeus's complaint about his daughter, Hermia?
3. Why doesn't Hermia want to marry Demetrius?
4. According to Theseus, what are Hermia's choices?
5. There is an anachronism in this scene; what is it?
6. What plans do Lysander and Hermia make after Theseus and Egeus leave the room?
7. Why is Helena unhappy?
8. Why does Helena decide to tell Demetrius about Hermia and Lysander's plans?
8. Bottom is a ham, who wants to play all the parts in the play. How does Quince flatter him into playing the part of Pyramus?
10. Why are Oberon and Titania angry at each other?
11. What kinds of tricks does Robin Goodfellow (Puck) play on people?
12. What calamities have fallen upon the world as a result of Titania and Oberon's fighting?
13. Why does Titania refuse to give the boy to Oberon?
14. What magic power does the "love-in-idleness" flower have? What does Oberon plan to do with it?
15. What does Oberon order Robin (Puck) to do? What mistake does he make?
16. When Lysander awakes, who does he see? What is his reaction?
17. What is Helena's reaction to Lysander's declaration of love?
18. By the end of Act II, how does Lysander feel about Hermia?
19. What trick does Robin play on Bottom at the beginning of Act III?
20. How do his friends react to Bottom's new appearance?
21. What happens when Titania wakes up and sees Bottom?
22. Of what does Hermia accuse Demetrius, when she wakes and finds Lysander gone?
23. In Act III, Scene 2, Robin brings Helena to Demetrius while he is sleeping. What happens when Demetrius wakes up?
24. What is Helena's reaction to Demetrius's vows?
25. What happens when Hermia arrives on the scene?
26. What is hypocritical about Helena's pleas to Hermia in Act III, Scene 2, lines 200ff.?
27. What is Robin's reaction to the conflict between the lovers?
28. What does Oberon order Robin to do to fix the mess he's made?
29. In Act IV, what is Oberon's reaction when he sees Titania's infatuation with Bottom?
30. When the lovers are awakened in the forest by Theseus, what does Demetrius tell Theseus? What is Theseus's decision?
31. How do the lovers account for the events of the previous night?
32. When Bottom awakes, how does he account for the events of the previous night?
33. All of the conflicts are resolved by the end of Act IV. Why is Act V necessary?
34. In Act V, how does Philostrate describe "Pyramus and Thisbe"?
35. Why do the fairies come to Theseus's house in Act V?
36. What does Robin say in his closing speech? Who is he addressing?
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