A Midsummer Night's Dream

A Midsummer Night's Dream

Questions and Answers

Act 1

1. What are thesues and Hippolyta discussing at the play's start?

    Theseus and Hippolyta are discussing their wedding.

2. How does Hippolyta come to be betrothed to Theseus?

    Theseus defeated her in battle and she fell in love with him.

3. Why is Egeus disturbed?

    Egeus is disturbed because, his daughter, Hermia refuses to marry

    Demetrius, but she's in love with Lysander.

4. What will be Hermia's fate if she refuses to marry Demetrius?

    Hermia's fate will be to die, marry Demetrius, or become a nun.

5. To what do Lysander and Hermia agree?

    Lysander and Hermia agree to meet on the next night in a wood a 

    league and go to Lysander's aunt where they will be married and safe.

6. What hope does Helena have by telling Demetrius of Lysander and Hermia's flight?

    Helena follows Demetrius while Demetrius pursues Hermia.

7. Who are the characters in scene two, and what do they plan?

    The characters in scene two are Thisby and Pyramus. They plan to honor the duke's 

    wedding day with some entertainment.

Act 2

1. Why is Oberon angry with his queen?

    Oberon is angry with his queen because she keeps a young boy as her attendant, and

    Oberon wants the boy for himself.

2. On what mission does Oberon send puck?

    Oberon sends Puck to find a flower with a love potion on it so that he may put it on

    Titania, causing her to blindly love the first thing she sees when she wakes.

3. Upon overhearing Demetrius and Helena, what does Oberon command Puck to do?

    Oberon commands Puck to find the Athenian couple and put the potion on their eyes as 

    they sleep.

4. Upon whose eyes does Puck apply the potion?

    Puck applies the potion to Lysander's eyes.

5. When he wakes up, who does Lysander see and love?

    Lysander sees and loves Helena.

6. What is Helena's reaction to Lysander's words of love?

    Helena thinks Lysander is cruelly teasing her.

7. To where has Lysander disappeared when Hermia awakes?

    Lysander has gone to follow Helena.

Act 3

1.Why does Bottom want a prologue written for the play?

    To explain that Pyramus is only an actor, and the author playing the lion must 

    show half of his face during his performance and the audience his true idenity.

2. What has Puck done to Bottom?

    Puck plays a joke on Bottom by giving him an ass' head.

3. Identify the speaker: "Tie up my love's tongue, bring him silently."

    Titania

4. What news does Oberon send Puck to fetch Helena?

    Puck tells Oberon the outcome of his experiments with the love potion?

5. Why does Oberon send Puck to fetch Helena?

    He realizes that another Athenian youth was dosed by Puck by mistake and that now 

    a maid has lost her true love and the interded youth is still repulsing Helena. While Puck 

    is away, Oberon charms Demetrius to love Helena when he sees her again.

6. What does Helena's situation at this point in the play?

    She's now loved by both Lysander and Demetrius and she believes that they've conspired to

     play a cruel prank on her.

7. What does Helena suppose of Hermia?

    She thinks that Hermia has joined in the malicicus prank with Lysander and Demetrius.

8. What does Hermia think Helena has done?

    She thinks that out of jealousy she has made known her taller height and therefore fer greater

    value of the two maids.

9. Why does Oberon send Puck to confuse the two young men?

    They are going to fight over Helena, so Oberon has Puck make the night darken and cloudy and

    use his voice to lead them away from each other and sleep.

10. What remedy corrects the crossed-loved couples?

    Puck drips the potion on Lysander's eyes so he will love his former sweetheart, Hermia. He leaves

    Demetrius loving Helena.

Act 4

1. Why does Titania give Oberon the child?

    She cares for him no longer now that he has Bottom on whom to dole.

2. How does Oberon find Titania and Bottom?

    They are asleep in each others arms.

3. Why does Oberon remove the spell he has cast over his queen?

    He has the bay and now he pities his queen her silly new love-pet. He wants her back to her

    true self.

4. Finding the two couples asleep in the wood and learning of their more balanced love,

what order does Theseus give?

    He orders that they should follow him and Hippolyta to be married with them at the temple.

5. What news does Bottom bring his companions?

    He says that their play has been chosen by the duke as an entertainment. They must now get

     ready and meet at the palace.

Act 5

1. Why do you think Shakespeare include a play within a play?

    The story of Pyramus and Thisby is an ancient tale well known to the audience in Shakespeare's time.

2. What do the fairies do after the palace goes to sleep?

    Oberon sends them off throughout the house to sing and dance and bless the new lovers on their

    wedding night.

3. Who does Puck address at the play's end?

    He talkis to the audience.

4. What is the purpose of this last speech?

    It closes the play and thanks the audience asking that they enjoy or else pardon a frivolous entertainment.

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