When we get together next, it will be an early winter's day and we'll be discussing A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare.
This play is one of Shakespeare's comedies, which you can probably tell from this picture in which a man with a donkey's head is "flying" next to Titania, the Fairy Queen.
The main plot of AMND revolves around the plight of four lovers whose emotions are toyed with by fairies and sprites, but there are also three subplots:
- the upcoming wedding of Theseus (the Duke of Athens) and Hippolyta (the Queen of the Amazons);
- an ongoing fight between the Fairy King (Oberon) and Queen (Titania); and
- an effort by the "rude mechanicals" (six common tradesmen) to produce a dramatic play which will be the featured entertainment at the wedding celebration.
Also, I know many of you will be reading from the No Fear Shakespeare version of the play. That's fine, but please -- don't allow yourself to skip the Shakespeare completely by only reading the modern translation. If you do, you'll miss out on Shakespeare's incredible ability to turn a phrase. His plots are good, but it's the way he says what he says that really sets him apart from other playwrights.
Consider for a moment, this simple line from Act II, scene i:
In the original version, Robin (aka Puck), greets a fairy with: "How now, spirit? Whither wander you?"
In the modern translation, this becomes: "Hello, spirit! Where are you going?"
Now try saying those two lines aloud.
They mean the same thing, but one of them is SO. MUCH. PRETTIER. Not to mention more fun to say. Really. Try it out on your parents. A cheerful, "How now, Mother? Whither wander you?" as your mom crosses the room will surely get her attention.
So yes, by all means use the modern translation to help you understand, but don't leave the original words behind altogether or you'll miss out on what makes Shakespeare, well . . . Shakespeare.
