Oh, wow. Someone smack me upside the head. I’m about to review Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. I am not a fan of William Shakespeare by any stretch of the imagination. This is because most any story/play he wrote involves at least one or two characters dying, more often than not one of the main characters. But, a friend (who is very familiar with Shakespeare, at least compared to me) recommended this story to me, so I decided to at least try it.
Ah, young love. Hermia wishes to marry Lysander, but her father wishes her to marry Demetrius. Alas, Helena loves Demetrius. They flew by night into the woods, but even there where the human eye does not see, there is discord as well. Oberon wishes to claim the Indian boy that Titania protects. There are also about a half-dozen actor hopefuls who wish to rehearse in peace, but with a mischievous Puck about doing the bidding of his master, Oberon, that shall not happen.
With the confusion of love spells, transformation spells, and the odd spell to break the love spell . . . what will happen to the lovers, Hermia, Helena, Lysander, and Demetrius? What about the poor fellow, Bottom, who is granted a donkey’s head? Shall Oberon have his way? Will the hodgepodge cast please Duke Theseus and his new bride? Is it possible that no one dies?
Okay, I’ll admit, compared to my limited knowledge of Shakespearean works, I’ll admit that it is absolutely ridiculous and with the right director could make this into a comedy that sends the audience rolling with laughter. But . . . dare I say this? . . . I hardly saw plot. Yes, yes, I know it is a stage production that may last only a few hours. But . . . I would like to know Oberon’s motive for trying to steal away the Indian boy, whose fate appears unfortunate at best. Why not just simply appear before Titania himself after swiping her eyes with the love potion? Maybe it’s because I read an abridged version, but I did not understand that. And . . . maybe I simply don’t appreciate Old English humor, but I found the tale of the lovers and the actors utterly ridiculous.
What is the true distinction between the two suitors? One previously fell in love with the one girl before being enamored with the other, and that was before Puck messed things up. What I am trying to understand is what the father saw in the one and not the other. When it came down to it, I couldn’t see any difference. I didn’t notice anything in act or speech to distinguish one from the other. The same could almost be said for the girls. Sure, one is being rebellious against her father, while the other is fawning after one of the young men. But again, I can’t tell any character differences. It may be the older English, but I’m just not seeing it.
The version I read was abridged by Leon Garfield and illustrated by Elena Prorokova. Included in this book is a brief description of Shakespeare’s theater, The Globe; a short biography about Shakespeare; and a little introduction about the play in question at the start of the book. I will confess that I found these to be more interesting than the story/play itself. The book was forty-eight pages long, with at least one illustration per two pages. And although the pictures made the book more colorful, they failed to make me appreciate any part of this book. So, I’ll have to give you only one love-besotted dragon out of five.
Personally, I’d never recommend any of Shakespeare’s works. But for those of you out there who are great fans of his or anything classical, enjoy and roam as you wish. I shall not stop you.
That said, I pray forgiveness from any Shakespearean lovers I may have offended in this post. For at an early age, I never felt inclined to the works of this playwright. The closest is Disney’s The Lion King, it’s sequel, Simba’s Pride (loosely based on Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet), and a recent film, Gnomeo and Juliet, is the closest I have ever come to his works. So it may be that this post is overly biased on my part. I can only ask that you pardon me, Shakespeareans, and allow us to agree to disagree on this playwright’s magnificence.
Until next time. Bye.
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