Symbols_And_Imagery

Symbols And Imagery In A Midsummer Night’s Dream, William Shakespeare brilliantly uses the night as a motif which plays a valuable role in the play. He combines this motif with the related symbols of the play to demonstrate the power of night and its correlation with love and vision. He uses symbolism and imagery to develop the motif and makes extensive use of the night forest which, in part, helps the situation of the four young lovers, one of the main plots of the play. It might seem strange that Shakespeare would choose a forest at night as the main setting for a comedy; the dark forest serves as the center of the play’s world, ousting Athens, a city that was regarded as the center of ancient Greek civilization. The darkness of the night is intensified in the forest; the dark is intense enough for the characters to fear being alone. Helena cries out to Demetrius not to abandon her “darkling”, or in the dark (Act II, Scene 2, 85). When Lysander abandons Hermia, she is convinced that being alone in the dark could lead her to death: Speak, of all loves; I swoon almost with fear. No' Then I will perceive you night, scene, love, act, play, vision, sight, shakespeare, sense, helena, dream, moon, lovers, forest, demetrius, darkness, motif, lysander, imagery, hermia, iii, four, eyes, day, dark, symbolizes, setting, power, magic, light, gaze, daylight, symbols, plan, new