Relationships In A Midsummer Night's Dream

Titania, before her bewitchment, warns Oberon that their own lovers' spat is causing havoc on earth. She speaks of "winds, piping to us in vain/As in revenge" (2.1 88, 90), of the moon, "pale in her anger" (104), and how the seasons "change/Their wonted liveries" (112-13). At first, Oberon cannot see beyond his jealousy of the little changeling Titania has adopted. He sets into motion fantastic spells that upend real love, mimicking the more serious complications wrought by human politics. Naturally, Titania's premonition bears fruit when Puck transforms Nick Bottom into an ass, and again when Lysander falls in love with Helena and forgets about Hermia. These turns of events eventually worry Oberon, too. He tells Puck to make sure to "lead these testy rivals so astray/As one come not within another's way" (3.2 358-59). He prescribes the potion to set things straight, calling the evening's pranks "a dream and fruitless vision," and declaring that with his corrective action, "all things shall be peace" (3.2 377).

Oberon conjures up a plan in order to get a young child away from Titania, queen of the fairies, whilst doing this he is met with two of our other characters, Helena and Demetrius, “A sweet Athenian lady is in love/ with a huge disdainful youth. Anoint his eyes with the flower as well,” (II.i.268-269) in this point of the story Oberon encounters Helena who is trying to get the attention of Demetrius, who is completely ignoring her. This displays his need to place forceful authority because he is trying to controls Demetrius’s love, by putting him under a spell and making him fall in love with Helena. Unlike Egeus though, Oberon takes control over more than just one character, we see this in act 2 scene 1 lines 83-85 which says “Having once this juice,/ I’ll watch Titania when she is asleep/ And drop the liquor of it in her eyes,” out of the two Oberon would have to be the most controlling, because he in these three lines it shows yet another character Oberon is controlling. In this line though he is attempting to manipulate Titania in order to get the young changeling boy. Thereupon showing that in the face of love, control still will not

Furthermore, the lines earlier shows Oberon’s plan to control and submit Titania to his will. His plan to make her fall in love with animals by using a potion indicates that he wants to embarrass Titania. He wants to use his power to manipulate her feelings. He craves the control that he did not have earlier in the play when Titania did what she wanted to do. Therefore, his desire to gain control results in the changing of Titania’s fate. Titania’s actions are based on Oberon’s power. Likewise, Oberon gains satisfaction by executing his plan which empowers him and gives authority. Further, not only does Oberon make plans to control Titania, but he also becomes the cause of the conflict among Lysander, Demetrius, Hermia, and Helena. Oberon’s decision to meddle in their affairs directly impacts their fate as they become powerless over their situation. Oberon’s overwhelming sense of entitlement for utter control affects the events that transpire in their lives. Specifically, Oberon’s interference changes how two of the main characters, Lysander and Hermia interact with each other. Their mutual attraction to each other is altered as a result of Lysander’s will becoming influenced by Oberon. Thus, Lysander professes his love for Helena. Then, Hermia verbally attacks Helena:

The above shows that Titania and Oberon share a relationship that is inseparable. They swallow their pride and come back together, planning to even bless the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta even though those were the other two in the affairs. Hippolyta proceeds to call Oberon ‘my Lord’ and Oberon calls Hippolyta ‘my Queen’. This shows that their love is still prevalent. ‘True love’ is the baseline in the play and is the primary form of love.

In spite of that, Oberon and Titania do not show those qualities towards each other. During Oberon and Titania’s argument about the rightful caregiver of the changeling boy, they both throw several accusations at one another, including Titania’s betrayal to her husband. Oberon reveals Titania's affair with Theseus, “Knowing I know thy love to Theseus/ First thought not leave him through the glimmering night/From Perigenia, whom he ravished,/And make him with fair Aegles break his faith,” (II.I.76-79) Titania’s incoherent affair negatively impacts the lives of many, as she persuades Theseus to commit unjust acts of rape and abandonment to numerous women.

This causes jealousy in the fairy king. Oberon is jealous and angry with Titania, his anger drives the entire action of the play. He desperately desires to make a knight of the young Indian prince that Titania has been given:

Titania then had the Indian Boy, but gave it to Oberon when he asked. Since Oberon now has what he wanted all along he feels bad for making Titania fall in love with the repulsive, Nick Bottom. After analyzing and annotating this monologue from Act 4 Scene 1, I was led to

Oberon is not an admirable king especially since he put his selfishness before his fairies. Oberon gets mad at Titania for not giving Oberon the boy as the author includes, “Well, go thy way. Thou shalt not form this grove till I torment thee for this injury” (Shakespeare 16). Oberon will try and injure Titania until he gets the boy. Oberon also displays his selfishness when he convinces Puck to place love juice on the Athenian’s eyes to control who he falls in love with.

Oberon was so jealous over a boy that he decides to apply the potion on his own wife Titania, wanting her to fall in love with the first ugly creature she see’s. Oberon makes this decision because he gets into a fight with Titania with how her attention is more towards the changeling boy then over him, making him want to apply the potion. This is a foolish thing to do because Oberon should understand that Titania is taking care of this baby because she feels like she owes the mother of the child, he should know that the little boys need a lot of attention to be taken care of. Instead of feeling jealous, he should of felt proud that his wife was doing a kind act. Instead he takes it in the wrong way, playing a mean prank on his wife and making her fall in love with Bottom, to take away the changeling boy. People are fools, even to their loved ones .

“I do but beg a little changeling boy/ To be my henchman (2.1.120-1).” Oberon wants the boy for himself, but could it be that perhaps he also wants the boy away from Titania? At this point, we know that Oberon is jealous of his wife’s lovers during the passage in Act 2 scene one, where Oberon is telling his wife of all the lovers that Theseus has had, and she quickly tells him that “These are the forgeries of jealousy” (1.2.81). Oberon’s jealousy is an interesting aspect of the story.

Oberon wanted him and Titania was being selfish. He said, “. . . I do but beg a little changeling

They get into a fight over an “indian boy” that Titania has agreed to look after and he doesn’t agree with that due to the fact that they are fairies and the “indian boy” is not. By the end they come to their senses and Oberon expresses his happiness that they are “in love again” by saying, “Sound, music! Come, my queen, take hands with me, And rock the ground whereon these sleepers be. Now thou and I are new in amity,” (4.1 80-82).

In addition, the hatred in Titania’s heart thrives each minute Oberon’s controlling behaviour and his mentality of depicting her decisions as unreasonable continues, even if Oberon’s choices are against her will. With a sarcastic tone Titania continues, “Then I must be thy lady” (II.i.64), prefacing the fact that Titania is not Oberon’s property and his respect for her is overdue. Therefore, inderticaly indicating towards Titania’s pursuit to rise victorious in her disagreements, with society’s judgemental behaviours, her upbringing and morals ceasing her pursuit of happiness. Lastly, Hermia a prepossessing maiden, suffers under Athenian law as it obliges her to wed Demetrius, a pococurante yet affectionate person at times.

Moreover, Oberon begins his transformation to becoming an Elizabethan fairy when Titania give him the Indian boy. First, Titania asked Oberon to dance with her on Theseus’ wedding day. Oberon replied, “Give me that boy, and I will go with thee” (54), yet Titania still refuses to. This shows Oberon is still jealous of the Indian boy and has not began to transform yet.

Oberon demands, “How can you stand there shamelessly talking about me and Hippolyta, when you know that I know about your love for Theseus? And weren’t you the one who made him cheat on all of his other girlfriends, like Aegles, Ariadne, and Antiopa? (Shakespeare II.ii.76).