A Midsummer Night’s Dream Group

Question:

skittlesof06
skittlesof06
Student
High School - 12th Grade

In "A Midsummer Night's Dream," what part of her appearance does Hermia believe Helena has exploited to win Lysander's love?

Rate question:

Posted by skittlesof06 on Monday January 19, 2009 at 5:12 AM and tagged with a midsummer night’s dream, characters, helena, hermia, lysander, plot.

Answers:

  1. jgomezada
    jgomezada Teacher
    College - Freshman

    eNotes Editor

    Hermia and Helena are described as opposites of one another. They are both beautiful, but in different ways: Helena is seen as tall, thin, and fair of skin, and Hermia is seen as voluptuous and has darker hair. When Hermia discovers that her sweet Lysander has fallen in love with Helena, she believes that Helena has used her height to gain Lysander's affections:

    HERMIA:

    ‘Puppet!’ why so? Ay, that way goes the game.
    Now I perceive that she hath made compare(300)
    Between our statures; she hath urged her height;
    And with her personage, her tall personage,
    Her height, forsooth, she hath prevail'd with him.
    And are you grown so high in his esteem
    Because I am so dwarfish and so low?(305)

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/midsummer-text/act-iii-scene-ii?sta...
    http://www.enotes.com/midsummer/summary

    Rate answer:

    Posted by jgomezada on Monday January 19, 2009 at 7:02 AM

  2. lit24
    lit24 Teacher
    Doctorate

    eNotes Editor

    In Act III Sc.2 because of Puck's unintentional mistakes Hermia and Helena, who  were originally very close friends begin to quarrel and call one another names. Hermia is short in stature  and Helena calls her a puppet, immediately Hermia retorts angrily in the follwing words:

    "Puppet? why so? ay, that way goes the game.
    Now I perceive that she hath made compare
    Between our statures; she hath urged her height;
    And with her personage, her tall personage,
    Her height, forsooth, she hath prevail'd with him.
    And are you grown so high in his esteem;
    Because I am so dwarfish and so low?
    How low am I, thou painted maypole? speak;
    How low am I? I am not yet so low
    But that my nails can reach unto thine eyes."

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/midsummer/character-analysis
    http://www.enotes.com/midsummer/criticism
    http://www.enotes.com/midsummer/summary

    Rate answer:

    Posted by lit24 on Monday January 19, 2009 at 7:08 AM