Part of: The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (The Oxford Shakespeare) A Midsummer-Night's Dream

A Midsummer Night’s Dream is one of Shakespeare’s most performed comedies.Fairy magic, feuding pairs of lovers, and a bumbling amateur theater troupe combine to produce comedy, romance, and a little mayhem. This edition comes from the 1916 Oxford University Press edition of all of Shakespeare’s plays and poems.

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Citation

The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (The Oxford Shakespeare), ed. with a glossary by W.J. Craig M.A. (Oxford University Press, 1916).

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Christopher Marlowe (Author)

Marlowe and Shakespeare were the top two poets and playwrights of their day. They referenced one another’s work and competed with and inspired each other.
Alexander Pope (Author)

A great poet in his own right, Pope also edited Shakespeare’s work, regularizing and “smoothing” it to accord with 18th century aesthetic judgements.
Geoffrey Chaucer (Author)

The greatest English writer before Shakespeare, Chaucer pioneered the use of English, rather than French or Latin, for serious literary works. He also brought all classes of society onto the page together, particularly in his masterwork, The Canterbury Tales.

John Dryden (Author)

One of the great English poets and playwrights who followed Shakespeare, Dryden is similarly interested in portraying the importance of English history for English audiences. Dryden was also deeply interested in establishing the theater as a legitimate art form rather than just a popular entertainment

Critical Responses

An Artistic Tour of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Daily Art Magazine

The lovers, fairies, comic actors, and romantic forest setting of A Midsummer Night’s Dream have provided irresistible inspiration for artists. Daily Art Magazine collects a sampling.

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Ballet

Felix Mendelsohn and George Balanchine

Felix Mendelsohn wrote a full ballet score for A Midsummer Night’s Dream. View it here, as choreographed by George Balanchine.

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Connected Readings

Pyramus and Thisbe

Ovid

The play performed by the “rude mechanicals” is Pyramus and Thisbe, and its plot is taken from Ovid’s Metamorphoses.

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What to read next.

In Praise of Folly

Desiderius Erasmus

Desiderus Erasmus

Shakespeare’s comedies are known for their use of the “fool.” His fools are sometimes truly foolish, and sometimes foolish in a way that reveals a deep and important wisdom. Inspiration for the wise fool can be traced to Erasmus’s Praise of Folly.

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