Junior Rasmussen
In Shakespeare's *A Midsummer Night's Dream*, Bottom and Titania's actions threaten to ruin Oberon's plans to bless the wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta. Oberon, quarrelling with his wife, uses a love potion on Titania, causing her to fall in love with Bottom, who has been transformed into an ass by Robin Goodfellow. This distracts Titania from their dispute over a changeling boy, which has disrupted the human and natural worlds. Ultimately, Oberon undoes the spell on Titania and Bottom, and the two reconcile to bless the marriages of the play's protagonists.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Do Bottom and Titania ruin Oberon's wedding? | No, they do not ruin the wedding. |
| Reason for the quarrel between Oberon and Titania | They quarrel over possession of a young Indian boy. |
| Oberon's plan for revenge | He wants to make Titania fall in love with a beast and use her infatuation to get the Indian boy from her. |
| Oberon's plan for revenge successful? | Yes, Titania falls in love with Bottom, who has an ass's head. |
| Outcome | Titania gives up the Indian boy and Oberon removes the spell from her and Bottom. They reconcile and bless the marriages of the play's protagonists. |
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What You'll Learn
Oberon and Titania quarrel over a young Indian boy
In Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream", Oberon and Titania, king and queen of the fairies, quarrel over the custody of a young Indian boy. The boy is half-mortal and half-fairy, and Titania has raised him since he was a baby, as his mother, her close friend, died giving birth to him. Before her death, the boy's mother, a devotee of Titania, had requested that she care for him.
Oberon, motivated by jealousy and a desire for his wife's undivided attention, wants the boy as his attendant or henchman. He believes that, as her husband, Titania should obey him and hand over the boy. However, Titania refuses to give up the boy, honouring her promise to her friend. Their argument affects the weather and sets off a chain of events that impact the other characters and conflicts in the play.
To get his way, Oberon devises a plan. He orders Robin Goodfellow, a hobgoblin or "puck", to obtain a special flower that makes people fall in love with the next creature they see. He intends to make Titania fall in love with a beast and then take the boy from her while she is infatuated. Robin applies the flower's magic nectar to the eyes of Demetrius, an Athenian man, causing him to fall in love with Helena, whom he had previously tried to drive off. Oberon also uses the flower juice on Titania's eyes, making her fall in love with Bottom, who now has the head of an ass thanks to Robin's magic.
Eventually, Titania gives in and surrenders the boy to Oberon, and they work together to remove the spells from each other and from Bottom and the four lovers. They then charm everyone into a deep sleep and exit. When the lovers wake up, they are over their romantic entanglements, and each young woman is now matched with the man she loves. Bottom, too, wakes up and attempts to recall his night's experience, which seems to him like a dream.
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Oberon uses a love potion on Titania
In Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Oberon, king of the fairies, quarrels with his wife, Titania, over the possession of a young Indian boy whom she has adopted. To get the boy from her, Oberon decides to make Titania fall in love with a beast. He sends one of his fairies, Robin Goodfellow, to find a magic flower. Oberon then uses the flower to make a love potion, which he applies to the sleeping Titania's eyes, making her fall in love with the next person she sees.
Unfortunately for Oberon's plan, Robin Goodfellow accidentally applies the love potion to the eyes of Lysander, one of the four young Athenians in a romantic tangle. To fix his mistake, Robin applies the potion to Demetrius, the man Hermia's father wants her to marry, instead. Meanwhile, Bottom the weaver, who is rehearsing a play in the woods with his friends, is transformed by Robin into having the head of an ass.
When Bottom sings, he awakens Titania, who falls in love with him. She takes him away to sleep in her bower, and Oberon succeeds in convincing her to give him the Indian boy. Robin is then sent to use the love potion on Demetrius, but he accidentally uses it on Lysander, who wakes and falls in love with Helena. Oberon then orders Robin to fetch Helena while he anoints the eyes of the sleeping Demetrius. When Demetrius awakes, he falls in love with Helena and begins to woo her.
Oberon eventually undoes the potion on Titania and removes Bottom's ass's head. The two reconcile and, together with two young couples, join Theseus and Hippolyta's wedding celebrations. Bottom rejoins his friends to perform the play.
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Titania falls in love with Bottom
In Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Oberon and Titania, king and queen of the fairies, quarrel over the possession of a young Indian boy. Oberon wants to make the boy his knight, but Titania refuses to give him up as she had promised the boy's mother, before her death, that she would care for him.
Oberon orders his servant, Robin Goodfellow (or Puck), to obtain a special flower that makes people fall in love with the next creature they see. He plans to make Titania fall in love with a beast and then use her infatuation to get the Indian boy from her. When Robin returns, Oberon, who sympathizes with Helena’s love, orders him to find Demetrius and apply some of the flower’s magic nectar to his eyes.
Oberon, who is quarrelling with his wife, then uses the flower juice on Titania's eyes. She falls in love with Bottom, a weaver who has been transformed and now wears an ass’s head. Titania and her attendants pamper Bottom, who falls asleep with her. Oberon, watching them, tells Robin that Titania has given him the Indian boy and that they can now remove the spells from Titania and Bottom. Reunited, Titania and Oberon use music to charm Bottom and the four lovers into a deep sleep.
Oberon later taunts Titania about her love for Bottom, an "ass-headed man", until she gives up the child. He then undoes the potion and they reconcile.
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Oberon and Titania reconcile
In Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Oberon and Titania, king and queen of the fairies, reconcile after a quarrel over the possession of a young Indian boy. Oberon wants to make Titania fall in love with a beast and, in doing so, get the Indian boy from her. He orders Robin Goodfellow, a hobgoblin or "puck", to obtain a special flower that makes people fall in love with the next creature they see. Robin applies the flower's juice to Titania's eyes, and she falls in love with Bottom, who has been transformed to have an ass's head.
Oberon and Puck watch Titania make a fool of herself to woo Bottom, and Oberon eventually reverses the spell. Titania and Oberon then use music to charm Bottom and the four lovers into a deep sleep. They exit, and Theseus and Hippolyta, accompanied by Egeus and others, discover the four lovers asleep and wake them. Oberon and Titania lead a fairy blessing of the marriages of the play's protagonists.
Although the couple reconciles, some might argue that Oberon did not truly honour their marriage, as he drugged, mocked, and stole from Titania.
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Bottom performs at the wedding celebrations
In Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Bottom the weaver and his friends rehearse in the woods a play they hope to stage for Theseus and Hippolyta's wedding celebrations. Bottom is set to play Pyramus, with Thisbe played by Francis Flute the bellows-mender.
However, before Bottom can perform at the wedding celebrations, he becomes entangled in the quarrel between Oberon and Titania, the fairy king and queen. Oberon and Titania are at odds over the possession of a young Indian boy, whom Titania refuses to give up. Oberon instructs his servant, Robin Goodfellow (also known as Puck), to obtain a special flower that makes people fall in love with the next creature they see. He plans to make Titania fall in love with a beast and then use her infatuation to get the Indian boy from her.
Robin applies the flower's juice to Titania's eyes while she is sleeping, and she falls in love with Bottom, who has been transformed to have an ass's head. Oberon eventually reverses the spell on Titania and removes Bottom's ass's head. Bottom then rejoins his friends to perform the play for the wedding celebrations.
Bottom's performance at the wedding celebrations is not described in detail, but it is mentioned that he and his friend play the lovers Pyramus and Thisbe, who commit suicide after misinterpreting events.
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Frequently asked questions
No, they do not ruin the wedding. Bottom and his friends are actually rehearsing a play they hope to stage for the wedding celebrations of Theseus and Hippolyta.
Oberon quarrels with his wife, Titania, and uses a love potion on her eyes, causing her to fall in love with Bottom, who has an ass's head.
Titania and Oberon are reunited after the spell is reversed. They lead a fairy blessing of the marriages of the play's protagonists.
