Personal Commentary on A Midsummer Night's Dream Essay

A Midsummer Nights Dream

More than 400 years ago, William Shakespeare wrote A Midsummer Nights Dream and it is still read today. Even though 400 years is a long time ago, Shakespeares jokes still make sense and make us laugh as well. In 1999, Michael Hoffman directed this play into a movie also called A Midsummer Nights Dream. The movie followed the play closely, but also added some extra movie magic and was more modern than the play. Showing the movie in an English class is a wonderful idea because when you are reading the play, you probably use your own imagination and try to figure things out. Watching A Midsummer Nights Dream from a movies point of view, and not just the play, will enhance your imagination and maybe clear things out in the play that didnt make sense before.

In the play, the main lovers are Hermia, Lysander, Demetrius and Helena. The main thespians in the play are Bottom, Quince, Flute, Snug, Snout and Starveling. Other characters that add to the plot and storyline are Theseus, Hippoltya, Titania, Oberon, Egeus and Puck. In the movie, these characters have the same names and play the same roles. The characters have their own distinct personalities in the movie, unlike in the play, where you dont have side notes telling you if the character is short-tempered or jovial and kind. For example, Theseus has a speech in which he describes consequences for Hermias actions in Act I Scene I. When you are reading it, you dont know if Theseus is a harsh quick-tempered judge or a nice, mellow patient person. Theseus in the movie is shown as a patient and understanding person, so this actually gives him a characteristic.

I strongly suggest that the movie should be shown in class because it is fun to watch any play come to life. To take a wonderful piece from Shakespeare and watch it from a modernized view helped me understand A Midsummer Nights Dream more than when I just read it. Even though the movie stuck with the same storyline, there were a few changes that Michael Hoffman made. First of all, the time period was different and because of that, the characters used bicycles. In the play there wasnt any mention of bicycles. When all the lovers woke up after Puck finally got the eye drops right, they were all naked because the fairies washed their clothes. Another difference is that when Flute played Thisbe, he added a serious tone to his performance. There were no bikes, nudity, washing of clothes or mood changes in the play, but Hoffman just added these things in to add in his own originality. These changes didnt affect the storyline but the bicycles gave the characters a mean of transportation and a different side of Flute we didnt read about.

The play A Midsummer Nights Dream had a variety of characters which made this comedy interesting and original. Reading the play in its entirety is hard to comprehend right away, but watching what you read explains much more. It is important to read A Midsummer Nights Dream first before you watch the movie. That way you can compare the movie to the play, and not vice versa. There are many subtle jokes that Shakespeare uses, and if you dont read the play first, you may not understand what the jokes mean. It is even better when you see those jokes played out in the movie because it adds to the hilarity. In the movie, you can clearly see the habitat of the fairies and some rituals that they do. The woods were a magical place where everyone came together and added their two cents to the plot line.

A Midsummer Nights Dream is still an awesome play today even though it was written more than 400 years ago. The movie was also a very good production of the play because it followed the main storyline and kept all the characters. I believe that the movie A Midsummer Nights Dream should be shown in English class because it clearly shows what happened in the play, and gives personality to the characters. I also believe that it is very important to read the play first before watching the movie. The play will give you a basic understanding of what happens, and break it down for you in words. After you are done reading the play, then you should watch the movie because its funny and amusing to watch the characters come to life. Watching A Midsummer Nights Dream puts your imagination at rest because it shows you how the characters look, the fairies dance, how Bottom looked with an ass face and other interesting details wrote in the play. The movie is great for struggling readers because it may be confusing storyline to read about many different characters in the woods at the same time, and the movie makes it clear who is who and where they are when. Shakespeares play A Midsummer Nights Dream is enjoyed in this day and age, and should be read before watching a modernized recreation of his original work.