“Goodness is about character. Integrity, honesty, kindness, and generosity. More than anything else, it is about how we treat other people” (Dennis Prager). In the play Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare, the main plot involves 5 main characters, Lysander, Helena, Hermia, Oberon, and Demetrius. Helena and Hermia are best friends. There is a love potion that messes with people and a lot of things go wrong. One character that stands out in the story is Oberon. Oberon is king of the fairies. He doesn’t seem like an important character at first and he lays low, but he ends up drastically changing characters and the story. In Midsummer Night’s Dream Oberon can be best described as devious, nosy, and impulsive.
Oberon can be described as devious for
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This is apparent when he tells Puck to put the potion on the “Athenian Youth”. “What has thou done?! Thou hast mistaken quite and laid the love-juice on some true-love’s sight” (3.2.1123). This example shows that when Oberon tells Puck to put the potion on the “Athenian Youth”, he messes up what he was supposed to do. Oberon tells Puck to put the potion on the “Athenian Youth” without telling him who that might be. Oberon doesn’t think his decision through that Puck may not know who he is talking about. He doesn’t think his decision through and messes up someone’s life. Another example is when Oberon, without much thought, gives the potion to Titania to give him the Indian boy. “What thou see when thoust wake, do it for thy true love take” (2.2.33-34). This evidence suggests that when Oberon wants Titania to fall in love with Bottom, so that he gets the boy, he never thinks through this plan. He never thinks about what will happen to Titania and Bottom. He never thinks through his plans, and if he does it is very rarely. He just gave Titania the potion, not thinking of effects and risks, like he did when Puck gave the potion to Lysander instead of
In conversation with Puck, he declares “The next thing then she waking looks upon, Be it on lion, bear, or wolf, or bull, On meddling monkey, or on busy ape, She shall pursue it with the soul of love.” Due to his hunger of power, Oberon tricks Titania into giving him the Indian Boy. This shows that he concerns himself more with having greater power over Titania than caring and loving her. In addition to that point, Oberon gives no reasons as to why he desires custody over the Indian boy, leaving the readers to assume that above all else, he wants to demonstrate his power over
Titania, before her bewitchment, warns Oberon that their own lovers' spat is causing havoc on earth. She speaks of "winds, piping to us in vain/As in revenge" (2.1 88, 90), of the moon, "pale in her anger" (104), and how the seasons "change/Their wonted liveries" (112-13). At first, Oberon cannot see beyond his jealousy of the little changeling Titania has adopted. He sets into motion fantastic spells that upend real love, mimicking the more serious complications wrought by human politics. Naturally, Titania's premonition bears fruit when Puck transforms Nick Bottom into an ass, and again when Lysander falls in love with Helena and forgets about Hermia. These turns of events eventually worry Oberon, too. He tells Puck to make sure to "lead these testy rivals so astray/As one come not within another's way" (3.2 358-59). He prescribes the potion to set things straight, calling the evening's pranks "a dream and fruitless vision," and declaring that with his corrective action, "all things shall be peace" (3.2 377).
Titania gets deceived by Oberon because he ordered Puck to put a love potion into Titania’s eyes.He did it because he wanted her attention and wanted the child for himself. “I'll watch Titania when she is asleep, And drop the liquor of it in her eyes” (II,1,551-552). Titania was busy with the child and never payed attention to Oberon. “Give me that boy, and I will go with thee” (II,1,513). Oberon deceiving Titania wasn't the only deception, the second deception was the love potion. The love potion made Bottom to appear handsome, but in reality Bottom had a face of an ass (donkey). “I pray thee, gentle mortal, sing
The book has some moments when things went well for the characters after they sought to control someone. Oberon and Titania had been fighting for a while and part of the reason was because Titania wouldn’t give him the changeling boy. “ I then did ask of her, her changeling child which straight she gave me.” Oberon is now satisfied because after putting the potion in Titania’s eyes, she gave him the changeling child with no hesitation. Still in the end section of the play, things are finally coming to good terms, for one the lovers are getting married. “ Sing and dance trippingly… will we sing and bless this place.” This is the scene where they are celebrating due to the success of getting the couples together.Which included controlling Lysander to get him to love Hermia again. As you read A Midsummer Night's Dream, you might notice that there are more downfalls than victories when it comes to control. Although some might look at the broad picture being drawn, if you dig deeper you will notice that Shakespeare makes known that controlling isn’t possible. Even though in the play Oberon seemed to have it his way, in reality things don’t always turnout that way, especially when dealing with
This is corroborated when Oberon declares that like earthly monarchs, he has his jester, “the shrewd and knavish sprite called Robin Goodfellow” (2.1.33-34) as expressed by a fairy. A Midsummer Night’s Dream draws on common beliefs of the Elizabethan era, who were superstitious people – the belief of fairies was widespread, that irrational forces and powers that had potential of being good or harmful, especially in the role of Puck who is a force of confusion; creating mischief and
Afterwards, Oberon comes and undoes the love spell on her. “My Oberon, what visions have I seen! Methought I was enamored of an ass”(IV.i.77-78). This ties into the idea that true love never did run smooth, as the monarchs of the fairies were fighting over the ownership of a young boy. This parallels a custody battle in real life. This demonstrates that true love can sometimes result in fighting between a couple. The scene where Titania falls in love with Bottom also demonstrates how people can fall in love with very bad choices. The use of the love potion reflects the idea that love is not always logical and is often random. The fact that this is Oberon’s idea shows how people in a relationship can try to undermine each other. Later in the same scene, Theseus and his party encounter Lysander, Hermia, Demetrius and Helena. Lysander states: “My lord, I shall reply amazèdly, Half sleep, half waking. But as yet, I swear, I cannot truly say how I came here. But as I think—for truly would I speak, And now do I bethink me, so it is— I came with Hermia hither. Our intent Was to be gone from Athens, where we might, Without the peril of the Athenian law—”(IV.i.133-140). Here, Lysander explains to Theseus the events that led him and the others in the group to this point. Lysander and Hermia both ran away from their homes in order to escape
In William Shakespeare’s book, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, magic is a powerful and useful tool for the characters that have the capability to use it. Some of the characters abuse the power of magic, while others are more responsible in how they use it. Oberon is one the characters that abuses the power of magic. Oberon’s magic has an immense impact on the plot of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. More specifically, Oberon’s magic affects his own life, the lives of other characters, and all the characters in the story experience his magic differently. We will see that even the person who has power to use the magic can become surprised by it. Magic, the ultimate supernatural power, is often unpredictable and inexplicable.
In the play, A Midsummer Night’s dream, Hermia, Egeus’s daughter is denied to wed her love Lysander, but has to comply with her father’s wishes and marry Demetrius. Infuriated, Hermia runs off with Lysander to his aunt’s house, sick of the Athenian law. As the lovers wander off into the forest, Helena, who is madly in love with Demetrius, tells him about the whereabouts of Hermia. In another part of the forest, Oberon, king of fairies meets Titania, the queen of fairies, arguing for a changeling child from India. When Titania refuses to give him up, Oberon plans revenge, by hiring Robin Goodfellow, also known as “Puck”, to retrieve a magical love flower, anointing her eyes and Demetrius’s, feeling bad for Helena after how Demetrius had treated her. Accidentally, Puck spreads it on Lysander’s eyes, creating major conflicts, later being resolved as the 4 lovers get married.
Oberon conjures up a plan in order to get a young child away from Titania, queen of the fairies, whilst doing this he is met with two of our other characters, Helena and Demetrius, “A sweet Athenian lady is in love/ with a huge disdainful youth. Anoint his eyes with the flower as well,” (II.i.268-269) in this point of the story Oberon encounters Helena who is trying to get the attention of Demetrius, who is completely ignoring her. This displays his need to place forceful authority because he is trying to controls Demetrius’s love, by putting him under a spell and making him fall in love with Helena. Unlike Egeus though, Oberon takes control over more than just one character, we see this in act 2 scene 1 lines 83-85 which says “Having once this juice,/ I’ll watch Titania when she is asleep/ And drop the liquor of it in her eyes,” out of the two Oberon would have to be the most controlling, because he in these three lines it shows yet another character Oberon is controlling. In this line though he is attempting to manipulate Titania in order to get the young changeling boy. Thereupon showing that in the face of love, control still will not
Despite magic and freedom there is also a hierarchy commitment, Puck serves to Oberon, Fairies serves to Titania. Oberon used the magic and deception to obtain desired. But he doesn’t like the results of misunderstood between lovers caused with magic, he orders Puck to prevent fight between Lysander and Demetrius “and all things shall be peace”.
Oberon is so controlling that he controls people without them even knowing. Oberon is the Fairy King he is married to Titania. Oberon is the most controlling person in Mid Summer’s Nights dream because he puts love potions on people and he controls Puck, but other people think that Egeus is the most controlling.
Theseus says things that are nice or complementive. He says, “Fair lovers, you are fortunately met: Of this discourse we more will hear anon. Egeus, I will overbear your will.”(4.1.l180-182) He is telling them that they have met at a convenient time and that they will hear more of what happened shortly. The nice thing about what he said is that he won’t have to kill anyone on that day and that the two pairs of lovers will be wed together. Also, after each part in the play, he compliments each actor for their performance. Oberon says things that are mean or on his mind. He says, “Tarry, rash wanton: am I not thy lord?” (2.1.63) First, he calls her a tar like presumptuous woman that displays a lack of consideration of the possible consequences of an action. Next, he implies that he is above her by calling himself her lord. This is just a mean thing to say to anyone and the fact that he said it to his wife just amplifies that what he says to others is awful. Oberon also says, “This is thy negligence: still thou mistakest, Or else committ'st thy knaveries wilfully.”(3.2.345-346) He is scorning Puck at this point because of the mistake he had made in the description of Demetrius. He assumes that Puck did this on purpose to cause the couples harm. He doesn’t even suspect that his vague description was the problem. What a person says to others can reveal a lot that might otherwise not be
Shakespeare's good characters, in the play King Lear, are considered good because they are loyal even when they are disguised from or unrecognizable by those to whom they owe loyalty. In addition, their loyalty does not waver even when they are banished or mistreated by those to whom they are loyal. Cordelia, Edgar and Kent are all characters that exemplify this goodness and unwavering loyalty.
This leads Oberon to take matters into his own hands. Where Puck was taking the place of Cupid, casting love relatively blindly and stupidly about the forest, as"...love [is] said to be a child because in choice he is so oft beguil'd" Oberon, therefore, takes the place of reason in the unreasonable realm of love. True love in A Midsummer Night's Dream is in 3 forms. Theseus and Hippolyta, Oberon and Titania and Hermia and Lysander.
It is only through the machinations of the play’s metatheatrical stage managers that the issue of Demetrius’ unhappiness can be smoothed over into something that resembles the happy ending we expect as an audience. It is, in the end, the Faeries’ magic that allows the happy ending to emerge from all the chaos within the Green World, even if some of that chaos was caused by the Faeries to begin with. Puck, for instance, mistakenly applies the love-in-idleness to Lysander’s eyelids and causes him to fall in love with Helena. Oberon later realizes the mistake, and utilizes the love-in-idleness once more to enchant Demetrius, so it is now Helena who has too many suitors, and Hermia too few. Magic becomes the only force capable of undoing its own mischief, and resolves the play’s tensions by restoring a balance to the love between the four young Athenians. That surreal, fantastic element in the play’s major action allows for happiness to come to light in the end, even if we view the outside influence as something artificial within the relationships.