It is not enough to just analyse a passage or scene in isolation; you must also consider why a particular passage or scene is important to the text as a whole. What key themes or ideas does it represent? Does it foreshadow future events? Does it reveal more about a character’s motivations, thoughts or feelings, remind the audience of what has happened or anticipate what is to come?
Revise some of the key moments from the play and how they are relevant to the rest of the text:
Key moment:
Act 1, Scene 1
Lysander: “The course of true love never did run smooth”
Summary of key moment:
- Lysander tries to comfort Hermia after her father and the Duke told her that she must either marry Demetrius, her father’s choice, or face the consequences
Why this is important in relation to the play as a whole:
- This quote foreshadows the challenges and misunderstandings among characters that will unfold as the play progresses:
- It sets the tone for the romantic complications that will be a central focus of the play’s plot
- While A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a romantic comedy with elements of fantasy, Lysander’s remark introduces a touch of realism by acknowledging the complexities of love:
- The realism adds depth to the characters and their relationships, making them more relatable to the audience
- The quote recognises that different characters in the play will experience love in diverse ways and each of these experiences will have its own set of challenges
Key moment
Act 2, Scene 2
Robin: (squeezes flower juice on LYSANDER’S eyelids)
“Churl, upon thy eyes I throw
All the power this charm doth owe.
When thou wakest, let love forbid
Sleep his seat on thy eyelid.
So awake when I am gone,
For I must now to Oberon”
Summary of key moment:
- Puck, acting on Oberon’s orders, places the juice of the enchanted flower on Lysander’s eyelids, mistaking him for Demetrius
- Lysander wakes and falls in love with Helena
Why this is important in relation to the play as a whole:
- This quotation reveals a crucial point in the plot, the magical intervention of Puck:
- It sets the stage for a shift in Lysander’s affections and further complicates the love triangle involving Hermia, Lysander and Demetrius
- Lysander, upon waking, falls in love with Helena and rejects Hermia:
- He then begins to chase and pursue Helena while Hermia chases Lysander
- The ensuing confusion among the lovers adds to the humour and farcical nature of the play:
- This action begins a series of events that will lead to misunderstandings, conflicts, and eventual resolutions
- The love potion creates a chaotic and unpredictable element in the play:
- The audience anticipates the consequences of this magical intervention, heightening the element of surprise and amusement