In A Midsummer Night's Dream, Shakespeare questions the assumption of an objective reality through the subjectivity of the both the lovers and the audience. He disobeys the Great Chain of Being, a system which gives spiritual beings superiority, by subtly questioning God through the lovers. They are so interchangeable that their names are almost the same, demonstrating that any lover could fall for any other lover. Shakespeare is establishing that love is random because he is not including what most people thought was real-God. In the time of this play, people thought that God chose lovers, not that it was arbitrary. The subjectivity in the play has the power to disrupt the Great Chain of Being and ultimately question the authority of
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After they have affairs in the woods, Egeus "beg[s] [that the] law [be put] upon his head" (4.1.161), but Theseus must "overbear his will" (4.1.186) and let the lovers live. Theseus' subjectivity makes him partial to the lovers and lets them live. The law of Athens represents objectivity, and he overrides it because of his subjective point of view. Shakespeare is showing us that everything from the first moment of one’s life is subjective and that cannot be changed. By overriding the law, he is also abolishing the power of the Great Chain of Being because he is giving power to the people instead of the law. The law of Athens was considered the law of God, so Theseus is directly disobeying God. Correspondingly, at the end of A Midsummer Night's Dream, Robin tries to make up to the audience after disrupting the Great Chain of Being. He is questioning their individual reality throughout the line. Robin states: "if we shadows have offended, think but this and all is mended" (5.1.440-41). Shakespeare is trying to make up to the audience after questioning their reality throughout the play. He is letting them choose their ending; they can question how subjectivity affects them or they can brush it off as a dream. In the end, his point is that subjectivity trumps objectivity. One cannot really ever be objective because their past experiences give them a
After they have affairs in the woods, Egeus "beg[s] [that the] law [be put] upon his head" (4.1.161), but Theseus must "overbear his will" (4.1.186) and let the lovers live. Theseus' subjectivity makes him partial to the lovers and lets them live. The law of Athens represents objectivity, and he overrides it because of his subjective point of view. Shakespeare is showing us that everything from the first moment of one’s life is subjective and that cannot be changed. By overriding the law, he is also abolishing the power of the Great Chain of Being because he is giving power to the people instead of the law. The law of Athens was considered the law of God, so Theseus is directly disobeying God. Correspondingly, at the end of A Midsummer Night's Dream, Robin tries to make up to the audience after disrupting the Great Chain of Being. He is questioning their individual reality throughout the line. Robin states: "if we shadows have offended, think but this and all is mended" (5.1.440-41). Shakespeare is trying to make up to the audience after questioning their reality throughout the play. He is letting them choose their ending; they can question how subjectivity affects them or they can brush it off as a dream. In the end, his point is that subjectivity trumps objectivity. One cannot really ever be objective because their past experiences give them a