Midsummer Night's Dream Customs

Although Hermia and Lysander are in love, Egeus attempts to exert control over them by arranging Hermia to marry Demetrius. He declares, “As she is mine, I may dispose of her;/Which shall be either to this gentleman/Or to her death, according to our law” (1.1.42-44). At his side, Theseus furthermore exerts control with an additional option, “To death, or to a vow of single life” (1.1.121). This also affects Helena’s love for Demetrius, since the marriage is arranged by Egeus rather than between Hermia and Demtrius. However, Demetrius himself attempts to exert his control her as well as Lysander by declaring “Thy crazed title to my certain right” (1.1.92).

In the book, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, by William Shakespeare, Hermia is a strong-willed woman who wants to be free to marry her true love Lysander. She cannot marry him, because her father, Egeus, is making her marry Demetrius. She has two other choices, to either become a nun or die. She is not happy with his decision and feels he is being unfair. Lysander and Hermia plan to run away with each other to escape her father and the Athenian law. Hermia’s friend, Helena, may stop those plans though, because she is in love with Demetrius. She hopes to win Demetrius back by foiling Hermia’s plans. We will hear more about this intriguing story in just a bit. Hermia will make an appearance on the show, Talking with the Athenians, where we will interview her on her ideas of love.

Demetrius’ character is best emphasized, directly and indirectly, through the dialogue and actions of himself and those around him. In Act One, Scene One, after Egeus explains to King Theseus that he wants his daughter, Hermia, to marry Demetrius instead of Lysander, Demetrius demands that Lysander relinquish his love and “control” over Hermia because marrying her is his “certain right”. After the demand, King Theseus is reminded that Demetrius “made love to…Helena and won her soul” and that Helena still “devoutly dotes” over him. In this scene,

In the opening scene, Hermia refuses to follow her father’s orders to marry Demetrius and instead, demands to stay with Lysander. To act on the situation, Egeus appeals to the duke, Theseus, to force his daughter to marry Demetrius. Turning to Hermia, Theseus then tells her:

Hermia believes that love is something to fight for till the end. In fact, she goes against her father's will to marry Demetrius simply due to her love for another. Because of this, her father, Egeus, threatens her with either be killed or become a nun. Hermia chose neither to be killed or become a nun. In addition, she chose her own destiny.

Be advised, fair maid: To you your father should be as a god, one that composed your beauties, yea, and one to whom you are but as a form in wax, by him imprinted and within his power to leave the figure or disfigure it. Demetrius is a worthy gentleman.” To start, Theseus is praising Egeus, because he is the one that has all the power over Hermia. The men of this time rule in complete patriarchy, leaving no choices for women to make, and almost every aspect of a woman's’ life is completely chosen for them by men. Theseus is practically telling Hermia saying the is the reason she even has someone to be wed to.

In the play, there are five main characters that contribute to this theme. These characters are Egeus, Hermia, Lysander, Demetrius, and Helena. Lysander and Hermia are in love with each other, but Egeus does not agree to their relationship and

This means Hermia is only a possession and she does not have the power to choose for herself. He manipulates her with the power society gives him and gives her the choice to die or marry Demetrius. She is expected to be docile and agree to her father’s wishes because society has implemented these gender norms. When these norms are followed, external validation is given because these norms are seen by society as a goal to be reached. The gender norm of following her father's wishes to marry who he wants is expected of her but this norm does not get fulfilled.

Therefore, fair Hermia, question your desires; know of your youth, examine well your blood, whether, if you yield not to your father’s choice, you can endure the livery of a nun.” (Act I, Scene I, Lines 62-70). Hermia disobeys her father when it comes to marrying Demetrius over Lysander. Although it could end in losing her life and being sent to nunnery, she continues to go against her father’s will.

In Athens, women had very little rights. Womens fathers were the ones who got to choose whom they married, and that caused trouble for the lovers. Hermia’s father, Egeus, strongly believed in this rule. At the beginning, Egeus decides that he wants Hermia to marry Demetrius, which is good for Demetrius but bad for Hermia. Hermia, daringly refuses her father’s wishes, so they seek the help of Theseus, the Duke of Athens. Theseus listens to their situation, and being the authority in the situation, tells Hermia: “Either to die the death, or to abjure for the society of men. Therefore, fair Hermia,... if you yield not to your father’s choice, you can endure the livery of a nun...”(24). This shows how authority, in this case the law, gets in the way of “the course of true love…”(28). Egeus’s decision to have Hermia marry Demetrius does not only affect Hermia but also affects Helena. When Hermia’s father chooses Demetris to be her

In the play the reader gets the truth that Hermia’s father wants her to marry Demetrius, and as a woman living in a patriarchal society, she must obey; at least that is what the reader is lead to believe. Hermia takes a stand for herself and becomes powerless in her love for Lysander. With no reasonable explanation, besides her love for Lysander, she defiantly denies her father’s attempt for an arranged marriage. Since their love for each other is so immense, they prepare for the underlying bad circumstances they are going to suffer from for not obeying the wishes of her father. Hermia’s love for Lysander means so much more to her than the property or social placeholder she would gain by marrying Demetrius. Hermia dedicates herself to Lysander, saying he is worthy of the ultimate consummation of her love. She must convince her father that Demetrius is disgraceful and immoral. At the end of the play, Hermia and Lysander are eloped, and unlike Katherine and Petruccio in TOS, they demonstrate their dedication for each other from the beginning, disregarding a few

A Midsummer Night's Dream is a play about four Athenian lovers. Theseus listens to both Hermia and her father’s request and he tells her to bend to her father’s will or die due to the old Athenian law. Hermia and Lysander flee Athens, into the domain of the fairy kingdom. At this time, Oberon is in a fight with Titania. This fight is over a human child of Titania’s friend. Oberon tells Puck, one of his loyal servants, to get a flower hit by Cupid’s arrow, and drop the oil into Demetrius’s and Titania’s eyes. However, Puck drops the oil into Lysander’s eyes due to Oberon’s vague description, making him fall in love with Helena and despise Hermia. Titania falls in love Bottom, who has the head of an ass, after Oberon places the oil

“A Midsummer Night’s Dream” opens with Egeus pleading to invoke an ancient right to kill his daughter, Hermia, because she falls in love with Lysander instead of the man he chose for her, Demetrius. Hermia is considered property of her father, even though she is of the marrying age. Instead of a death sentence, the duke informs Hermia how she should act in regards to her father by saying,

Hermia has been promised to Demetrius by her father; however she is unwilling to marry him as she is in love with Lysander. We are introduced to this theme when they visit Thesus, the figure of authority in the play, who makes it clear that women are not to have their own identity, but instead are

Hermia is recognized as an inferior character due to her fathers commands-Egeus. Hermia endeavours to get Egeus to give permission for Lysander and herself to get married. However, he responds with a rational answer, giving her two choices: “Consent to marry with Demetrius…” “…or to her death, according to our laws…” (Shakespeare 1:1 40,44). This passage stats how Hermia is given the option to marry Demetrius or to be killed by her fathers request. Also, it describes that this act is legal and right in the laws of the Athenians as Egeus mentions. This means that women throughout the town are forced to do what their fathers say. Which proves that woman are powerless and males are given the role of superiority, this makes the society unjust. Hermia is shown as powerless towards what