Sep 8, 2008

Shakespeare A to Z | Dreams

Dreams play a major role in many of Shakespeare’s works. In the plays they serve two major functions: to provoke guilt for past deeds and to foretell events to come. Many of Shakespeare’s characters compare dreams with waking reality, often noting that things that seem real may be as insubstantial as dreams.

Prophetic dreams, which warn of future events, feature especially prominently in Julius Caesar. Early in the play, Caesar receives numerous warnings of his upcoming assassination. A soothsayer* urges him to “Beware the IDES OF MARCH” (I.ii.23) (the day on which he...