Ashwin Thomas
Michael Currie
ENG 3UY
22 April 2017
Tussle for Supremacy
Throughout the course of human history, there have been numerous occasions where humans have experienced an increasing desire to attain power and authority over others. It could be to assert dominance and control over another, to manipulate situations in order to maximize individual pleasure, or to display a higher status in the society. However, accomplishing this task can be quite grueling and when the need for power over another exists in a relationship, it can create significant amounts of tension and turmoil. This is clearly apparent in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, where relationships between characters are in constant jeopardy due to the heavy dominance …show more content…
The first example can be observed with Theseus and Hippolyta when Theseus boasts his victory over the Amazons. Despite the Amazons being courageous and powerful fighters, Theseus is able to conquer Hippolyta, the Queen of Amazons. He uses sheer force to attain her love, and then proceeds to act as if it is an important accomplishment saying: “Hippolyta, I wooed thee with my sword/And won thy love doing thee injuries;” (1.1.16-17). With his victory and his status, he is able to get Hippolyta betrothed to him, ultimately making him dominant in this relationship. However, Hippolyta is not in dispute with him and therefore this marriage avoided potential fights or confusion. A more extreme example of control over another is how Egeus treats his daughter Hermia like his own property. He states: “True, he hath my love,/ And what is mine my love shall render him./ And she is mine, and all my right for her/ I do estate unto Demetrius” (1.1.95-98). Here, Egeus wants Demetrius to be Hermia’s groom rather than Lysander. However, when Hermia refuses to marry Demetrius, Egeus interjects saying that he imposes absolute power over her and that she must obey him and follow his commands dutifully, displaying the lack of respect he has for his daughter. Physical and verbal force are not the sole methods that characters employ to get …show more content…
Hermia shows a defiant nature against her father and Theseus. She is unyielding about her dissatisfaction of Demetrius, and voices it out to Theseus. In response to his claim that“Demetrius is a worthy gentleman”, she boldly retorts “So is Lysander.” (1.1.52-53). Theseus also persuades Hermia to follow the will of her father. He advises “To you and 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” (1.1 47-51). He is trying to emphasize the fact that her choices are restricted and he uses the analogy of wax to say that her father could mold her into whatever he pleases and in this case, if Hermia did not marry Demetrius, it would result in her death or her conversion into a nun. Hermia, however is able to withstand the pressure between the two and states her decision: “So will I grow, so live, so die, my lord,/Ere I will yield my virgin patent up/Unto His Lordship, whose unwishèd yoke/My soul consents not to give sovereignty.” (1.1.79-82). Her decision to die for loving Lysander rather than complying with her father enforces the fact that she is a resilient and confident woman, despite the pressure coming from two dominant males. Hermia’s
Michael Currie
ENG 3UY
22 April 2017
Tussle for Supremacy
Throughout the course of human history, there have been numerous occasions where humans have experienced an increasing desire to attain power and authority over others. It could be to assert dominance and control over another, to manipulate situations in order to maximize individual pleasure, or to display a higher status in the society. However, accomplishing this task can be quite grueling and when the need for power over another exists in a relationship, it can create significant amounts of tension and turmoil. This is clearly apparent in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, where relationships between characters are in constant jeopardy due to the heavy dominance …show more content…
The first example can be observed with Theseus and Hippolyta when Theseus boasts his victory over the Amazons. Despite the Amazons being courageous and powerful fighters, Theseus is able to conquer Hippolyta, the Queen of Amazons. He uses sheer force to attain her love, and then proceeds to act as if it is an important accomplishment saying: “Hippolyta, I wooed thee with my sword/And won thy love doing thee injuries;” (1.1.16-17). With his victory and his status, he is able to get Hippolyta betrothed to him, ultimately making him dominant in this relationship. However, Hippolyta is not in dispute with him and therefore this marriage avoided potential fights or confusion. A more extreme example of control over another is how Egeus treats his daughter Hermia like his own property. He states: “True, he hath my love,/ And what is mine my love shall render him./ And she is mine, and all my right for her/ I do estate unto Demetrius” (1.1.95-98). Here, Egeus wants Demetrius to be Hermia’s groom rather than Lysander. However, when Hermia refuses to marry Demetrius, Egeus interjects saying that he imposes absolute power over her and that she must obey him and follow his commands dutifully, displaying the lack of respect he has for his daughter. Physical and verbal force are not the sole methods that characters employ to get …show more content…
Hermia shows a defiant nature against her father and Theseus. She is unyielding about her dissatisfaction of Demetrius, and voices it out to Theseus. In response to his claim that“Demetrius is a worthy gentleman”, she boldly retorts “So is Lysander.” (1.1.52-53). Theseus also persuades Hermia to follow the will of her father. He advises “To you and 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” (1.1 47-51). He is trying to emphasize the fact that her choices are restricted and he uses the analogy of wax to say that her father could mold her into whatever he pleases and in this case, if Hermia did not marry Demetrius, it would result in her death or her conversion into a nun. Hermia, however is able to withstand the pressure between the two and states her decision: “So will I grow, so live, so die, my lord,/Ere I will yield my virgin patent up/Unto His Lordship, whose unwishèd yoke/My soul consents not to give sovereignty.” (1.1.79-82). Her decision to die for loving Lysander rather than complying with her father enforces the fact that she is a resilient and confident woman, despite the pressure coming from two dominant males. Hermia’s