HistoryandMythology1

Answer prepared by: Olivia Williamson **
 * WHAT IS THE HISTORY OF //A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM,// THE MYTHOLOGY or story BEHIND THESEUS AND HIPPOLYTA, CUPID, “PYRAMUS AND THISBE,” AND “THE GOLDEN ASS”?

//A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Dream) // is arguably Shakespeare’s most famous comedy. The play includes many allusions that are sometimes skimmed over by the audience. An allusion is a reference in a work of literature to culture, history, or the arts. Allusions enhance a story as any literary device would. They help to tie in the past and the present, and they give stories a stronger foundation. The allusions in //Dream// only enhance the story.

One allusion in //Dream// is Theseus and Hippolyta. The play opens with Theseus and Hippolyta conversing about their upcoming wedding day. This is an allusion to Greek mythology. Theseus was a great hero, who had made his way out of the labyrinth and killed the Minotaur. In exchange for a magic string that would lead him out of the labyrinth, Theseus was to marry Ariadne. However, when Theseus escaped the labyrinth, Dionysus, the wine god, claimed Ariadne as his bride. Theseus goes on to marry Ariadne’s sister. In Greek mythology, Theseus is a fantastic hero with many accomplishments to his name. In //Dream//, Theseus is the duke of Athens, and his character is very regal and commanding, as a hero should be. Hippolyta is also an allusion from Greek mythology. She is the Amazon queen. Amazons were “wild and warlike women who rode better and fought harder than any men”, says Edgar Parin d'Aulaire, author of __Book of Greek Myths(136)__. Hippolyta had a golden belt, and in the story, Heracles is sent to fetch it. Hippolyta is so overwhelmed with Heracles that she gives him the belt. In //Dream//, Hippolyta is to be Theseus’s bride, though Titania also claims that she is Oberon’s lover in Act 2, Scene 1. Theseus and Hippolyta symbolize royalty and stability in the play.

Cupid is the essence of love, the symbol for love and Valentine’s Day. According to Michele Karl, author of __Greetings with Love: The Book of Valentines__, Valentine’s Day is a mixture of Roman and Christian traditions, though there are disagreements about its origin. (13). She says that the Catholic church recognizes three different saints as Valentine/Valentinus. Some people think that St. Valentine was a priest in third century Rome. Emperor Claudius II decreed that men could not get married, for he believed that single men fought better than married men. St. Valentine continued to perform marriages, which led to Claudius putting him to death. A more popular legend is that St. Valentine was a priest and physician. He was a compassionate doctor who made sure that his patients were always comfortable and that the medicine tasted good. One patient he had was a blind girl. She kept coming to Dr. Valentine, hoping to get her sight restored. After many visits, the girl was still blind. The soldiers came to arrest Dr. Valentine, and before his execution date of February 14, he wrote a note to the girl and signed it “From your Valentine” (Karl 15). The girl received the letter, and her sight was restored, as she could read his words. People believe that St. Valentine’s Day is on February 14 to celebrate the anniversary of St. Valentine’s death. Also, in AD 496, Valentine was said to have been made the patron saint of epilepsy and love. In France, the first boy that a girl laid eyes on on February 14 was to be her boyfriend for that next year (Karl 17). This tradition is particularly interesting in terms of //Dream// because of the effects of the love potion. In //Dream//, Helena makes a reference to Cupid in Act 1, Scene 1. Helena is angry that Demetrius doesn’t love her, and she says “Love looks not with the eyes but with the mind; And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind” (1.1.240-241). Helena also uses personification as she describes love “a child” (1.1.244). Cupid symbolizes love and devotion in //Dream//.

Pyramus and Thisbe is the play inside the play. The players perform Pyramus and Thisbe for the three couples at the end of the play. Pyramus and Thisbe is a tale of love gone wrong, as it ends in a double suicide. This begs the question, what was William Shakespeare’s infatuation with plays that end in double suicide? The idea for a play within a play, and for using Pyramus and Thisbe, was possibly obtained from Ovid’s //Metamorpheses//, according to the Folger Shakespeare Library website, and the page on //A Midsummer Night’s Dream//. The title of Ovid’s play shows the change in emotion and feeling in //Dream//. It also shows the physical change that Bottom undergoes.

//The Golden Ass // is the allusion that most caters to a specific character. //The Golden Ass// was a play that was written in the second century by Apuleius, according to the Royal Shakespeare Company website. The main character in //The Golden Ass// is named Lucius. When his inquisitiveness, lust, and enchantment combine, he is transformed into a donkey. The website also says that he is turned back into a man by the goddess Isis. It is also thought that //The Golden Ass// is where Shakespeare got his idea for how the fairies treat Bottom. Bottom is turned into a donkey because of a practical joke, in combination with Bottom’s arrogance. Bottom and Lucius show us what our actions can do.

The plot of //Dream// enchants the audience. According to Leslie Dunton-Downer and Alan Riding, authors of __Essential Shakespeare Handbook__, the title shows the arrival of summer, which is thought to bring madness, magic, and enchantment (199). Also, the play takes place over four days, and ends on May 1. May 1 is also known as May Day, and May Day is a traditional wedding day (Dunton-Downer and Riding 199). All the stories that intertwine make for an amazing show. Titania and Oberon represent the hardships of love. Hermia, Helena, Lysander, and Demetrius show betrayal and that love does not always work out the way you want it to. The players represent laughter. While not all the ideas are Shakespeare’s own original stories, he combines them all into a captivating show.

“A Midsummer Night’s Dream”. Folger.edu. Folger Shakespeare Library, Web. 4 April 2010 []
 * Works Cited:**

d'Aulaire, Edgar Parin, and Ingri d'Aulaire. //Book of Greek Myths//. New York: Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group Inc., 1962. 150-153, 157136-137. Print.  Dunton-Downer, Leslie, and Alan Riding. //Essential Shakespeare Handbook//. 1st. New York: DK Publishing, Inc., 2004. 199. Print.

Karl, Michele. //Greetings with Love: The Book of Valentines//. Pelican Publishing Company, Inc., 2003. 13-17. Print.

Morford, Mark P O, and Robert J Lenardon. //Classical Mythology//. Fourth. White Plains, NY: Longman Publishing Group, 1991. 466,496. Print.

"The ass’ Head". //Rsc.org.uk.// Royal Shakespeare Company//.// Web. 4 Apr 2010. <**@http://www.rsc.org.uk/exploringshakespeare/dstagingchoices/makeupandtransformationtheasshead.htm>**