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A Midsummer Night's Dream

by William Shakespeare

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What are the different types of love in A Midsummer Night's Dream and how do the lovers react when "true" love is threatened?

Expert Answers

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There is passionate but wild love between Titania and Oberon.
There is mature love between Theseus and Hippolyta.
There is young and fairly immature love between and among the four lovers (Hermia and Lysander, Helen for Demetrius, Demetrius for Hermia).
There is love produced by magic (Titania for Oberon)
There is pretend love (played by the rude mechanicals, and, in a way, by Puck with his tricks).

To determine how the lovers react when true love is threatened is difficult, because we have not yet defined true love. Personally, I think Titania and Oberon have the most impressive passion, but they treat one another badly/abusively.

If you define Theseus and Hippolyta as true love, then threatening true love doesn’t cause the lovers to react at all.

If you define it as what the young couples feel, then they hurt, but shallowly.

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