Scene i: A Midsummer Night's Dream opens with two romantic conflicts. The first part of the scene features two famous characters from Greek mythology: Theseus, the hero who defeats the Minotaur in the labyrinth, and Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons. Theseus, the "duke" or ruler of Athens, has just led his people to a defeat of the Amazons. In four days, Theseus will take Hippolyta as his wife as a spoil of the war, despite the fact that the Amazons, as devotees of the virgin goddess of the moon Diana, swear an oath of chastity. Even though this romantic/marital relationship has a very rocky beginning, Theseus demonstrates his impatience to marry Hippolyta and his intentions of good will. This first section of Scene 1 demonstrates a major theme in the play—love, whether romantic or marital, has its problems. These problems must be overcome in order to maintain a healthy relationship.

The second section of Scene 1 introduces one of the major plot issues of the play. Ordinarily a love triangle like that of Hermia, Lysander, and Demetrius would cause a great deal of trouble just for the sake of love, but this is complicated further by Egeus' staunch insistence that Hermia marry Demetrius despite her love for Lysander. This conflict highlights a key issue in parent-child relationships—the amount of control a parent should have over a child. By Athenian law, Egeus has the right to decide whom his daughter will marry. Egeus is shocked and angered by his daughter's refusal to follow his wishes on the matter because she should, by both ancient Greek and Elizabethan societal standards, be governed by her father. However, Egeus completely disregards Hermia's preferences and Demetrius' reputation, which has been tarnished by the breaking of his oath to Helena. Theseus claims at this point that he cannot change the law, and he tells Hermia to choose between Demetrius, life as a nun, and death. Although Theseus upholds Egeus' right to determine whom his daughter will marry, Theseus is clearly unhappy about the manner in which Egeus and Demetrius have handled the situation when he tells them that he has some "private schooling for them both" (l. 116). The action of the play also creates sympathy for Hermia and Lysander as well.

The third part of the scene gives more information about the relationship between Hermia and Lysander, and introduces another important character, Helena. When Theseus leaves with Egeus, Demetrius, and Hippolyta, Hermia begins to cry over the situation. Lysander then reminds her that "The course of true love never did run smooth," meaning that she should accept the fact that there will be problems for their relationship to overcome (l. 134). Although things definitely look bad for the lovers, Lysander is able to keep his head. His calm approach to the problem soothes Hermia's worries, and leads her to "teach our trial patience,/Because it is a customary cross" (ll. 152-153). Because Lysander and Hermia are able to stay calm, they are capable of creating a plan to elope from Athens and still have plenty of money to survive. The problem with the plan, however, is that they reveal it to Helena.

Helena is the symbol of everything that can go wrong with love. She pines, wails, and wastes away for Demetrius, who has spurned her several times over. Helena's obsession with Demetrius makes her try to view everything through his eyes, including Hermia, and this obsession punishes Helena constantly. Love that it out of control or obsessive is punished throughout the play, and Helena is the first, but not nearly the last, example of it. During her lament, Helena gives a soliloquy discoursing on the nature of love, which she paints as blind. Love, according to Helena, does not see with the eyes, which tell the truth, but with the mind, which changes the truth to what the person wants. Therefore, everyone in love is blind, including Cupid himself. The eyes also have the power to make people fall in love with others. This is what Helena believes has occurred to transfer Demetrius' love for her to Hermia. Although Helena recognizes that love makes no sense, she does not understand that this applies to herself as well. When Helena decides to tell Demetrius of the planned elopement of Hermia and Lysander, she brings misfortune and pain to herself when she should have simply let Lysander and Hermia go. Helena hopes to gain favor with Demetrius (or, at least, be near him for a while), but the pain and confusion that occurs in the wood is greatly attributable to Helena, without whom Demetrius would never have entered the wood in the first place.

Scene ii: After the tragedy and pain of love that occurs in the first scene, Shakespeare provides some comic relief. Here we are introduced to the "mechanicals"—the tradesmen who intend to stage a short play for Theseus' wedding. By the end of the scene, it is clear that the mechanicals, though well intentioned, have no idea how to put on a play. In the beginning of the scene, Quince attempts to organize the men, but Bottom takes immediately takes over by telling Quince how to do everything. This is a major aspect of Bottom's character—he pretends to be very knowledgeable and logical, but he is clearly lacking in both traits. One example of this is Bottom's attempt to play Pyramus, Thisbe, and the lion all at the same time. He also claims that the story of Pyramus and Thisbe is "merry," even though the play is described as a "most lamentable comedy and most cruel death." The other players are no better off. Flute does not want to play Thisbe because he has a beard coming (and is afraid of being cast in a female role although young men always played the female roles in Shakespeare's time), and Snug needs lines to play a lion when all he has to do is roar. The players are also frightened by the concept of being too realistic, and thus believe they would be hanged if the lion were to roar so well that it would scare the ladies. The mechanicals do not realize that their audience already knows that they are watching a work of fiction. Through the bumbling errors of the mechanicals, Shakespeare makes fun of his own profession.

This scene also highlights an important point about language in the play. Because the mechanicals are "common folk" who are part of the lower class of society, they all speak in prose. This sets them apart from the "Athenians," or nobles, who speak in iambic pentameter. This class distinction through language will also be evident in the fairy world, where Oberon, Titania, and Puck speak in iambic pentameter, but the servant fairies often speak in a different meter.

Scene i: As with most of Shakespeare's plays, Act II of A Midsummer Night's Dream brings further plot complications, this time in the woods outside of Athens (where Hermia and Lysander and the mechanicals are scheduled to meet). Scene 1 portrays the problems of the fairy world ruled by Titania and Oberon. The first two characters in the scene are Puck (Robin Goodfellow) and one of Titania's fairies (speaking mainly in iambic tetrameter). Through them exposition is given as to the duties of attendant fairies, and, more importantly, the nature of the argument between Oberon and Titania. Oberon and Titania have been fighting since the beginning of midsummer about an Indian boy that Titania has taken into her train. Titania dotes on this child, who is the son of her late high priestess, and puts her love for him and his mother above her relationship with her husband. This is another comment on the nature of marriage in the play in that though there will be obstacles to overcome, married couples cannot favor someone else over their spouse if they hope to have a good relationship. Titania does this, as she explains to Oberon, for love of the priestess, but she will be punished for it. When the two meet in the wood, each accuses the other of having an affair with Theseus and Hippolyta and cannot come to a compromise. As a result, Oberon plots his revenge against Titania and a way to get the Indian boy by instructing Puck to go get the "love-in-idleness" flower, whose juice has the power to make someone fall in love with any living creature. The idea of this potion demonstrates another aspect of the love theme of the play—true love is not necessarily all-powerful. The love juice has the capacity to not only make someone fall in love with someone else, but it also has the power to turn someone away from true love. As with all of the other problems in the play, the juice of the love-in-idleness flower must be overcome if everything is to end happily.

The problems of Helena and Demetrius also become more complex in this scene. Having told Demetrius about the elopement of Hermia and Lysander in an attempt to gain favor with him, Helena enters the scene chasing Demetrius, who clearly does not appreciate her more for the information. In fact, Demetrius insults Helena several times because she insists on following him. Helena's betrayal of her childhood friend and her refusal to think before acting cause her more pain as well as danger in this scene, because it is dangerous for women to wander in the woods unprotected. However, Oberon, who has been secretly watching the confrontation, orders Puck to find the "Athenian" in order to turn his love to Helena. Oberon's purposes in doing this are not clear. While it seems that he has sympathy for Helena and believes that Demetrius' treatment of her is overly cruel, Oberon's comments about the situation are vague: "Fare thee well, nymph. Ere he do leave this grove,/Thou shalt fly him, and he shall seek thy love" (ll. 245-246). Certainly Helena would like Demetrius to love her again, but not so much that she would need to run away from him. Of course, this will not be a problem until much later than Oberon anticipates, as Puck mistakenly uses the potion on Lysander first.

Scene ii: In "the bank where the wild thyme grows," Titania is preparing to sleep for the night. The songs the fairies sing, as well as the spells they cast, are typically in iambic tetrameter (either in couplets or in alternating rhyme), which gives them a musical and magical quality. Once Titania sleeps, Oberon puts the juice on Titania's eyes. The fact that this potion must be applied to the eyes correlates to Helena's speech in Act I, scene 1, when she complains that love blinds people to reality. This is the exact effect of the love juice, whose application to the eyes renders the victim unable to see clearly. It should also be noted that this is the first example of scenes where at least one character is sleeping while the action of the scene occurs. The fact that a character sleeps brings the issue of dreams into question—are these actions actually occurring, or are we watching nothing more than the dreams of the characters who are sleeping? The "reality" of the scenes is also complicated by the title of the play itself. The play is a "dream" in terms of the reality of the audience, but plays usually are "real" to the characters in them. In this play, the playworld is called into question not only by those watching but by those living in it. This reality/dream dichotomy occurs throughout the play.

After Oberon has cast his spell, Lysander and Hermia enter, having lost their way in the dark woods. They decide to sleep for the night and find their way in the morning. This exchange features an aspect of love not addressed previously in the play—sexual attraction. Lysander wants to sleep with Hermia, who he thinks will soon be his wife, but Hermia tells him to sleep further off in the interests of propriety. Although this is definitely the proper thing to do, Hermia's formality leads to the confusion that follows. Puck, having been ordered to find an "Athenian" and make sure he falls in love with the maid with him, applies the love juice to Lysander's eyes thinking that he must hate Hermia: "Pretty soul, she durst not lie/Near this lack-love, this kill-courtesy" (ll. 76-77). If things had worked out the way Puck intended, Lysander would have seen Hermia, and the spell would not have made any difference. However, Helena enters, and Lysander sees her first. Despite his true love for Hermia, the love juice overwhelms his mind and turns his affections to Helena. Helena's reaction to this is to believe that Lysander is mocking her because he has so quickly changed his preference, but she should be more than familiar with the idea of men changing their affections, as that is what occurred with Demetrius. However, Helena refuses once again to think about the situation because of her jealousy of Hermia and her obsession for Demetrius, and becomes angry about being teased. The two run off, leaving Hermia by asleep by herself and leaving the audience to question whether this may just be a dream (or nightmare) of Hermia's.

Scene i: Just when things seem to be at their most serious, the comedy returns. Close to Titania's sleeping place, the mechanicals assemble to rehearse their play. They are still concerned about the lion, and Bottom brings up an additional worry that the ladies will not be able to cope with the fact that Pyramus kills himself with his own sword. The solution, given by Bottom, is to write prologues explaining the situation. This theatrical convention, which Shakespeare himself utilizes upon occasion (including the epilogue at the end of this play), is made fun of through the mechanicals, who feel the need to explain everything through prologues instead of trusting to the intelligence of their audience.

While the mechanicals bumble through their first rehearsal, Puck comes into the scene and decides to become an "actor" himself. When Bottom goes off stage, Puck transforms Bottom's head into that of an ass. Although the rest of the mechanicals panic and run away, Puck has merely given Bottom a head that is a reflection of his character. Being the "ass" that he is, Bottom does not realize his transformation until after his own head has been restored. Shakespeare provides Bottom with plenty of references to asses in order to make the situation funnier.

Bottom's plight is not the end of the comedy in this scene, however. Under the influence of the love juice, Titania wakes when Bottom sings and instantly falls in love with him. Bottom's response to Titania's declaration of love reflects the main theme of the play: "And yet, to say the truth, reason and/love keep little company together nowadays. The more/the pity that some honest neighbors will not make them/friends" (ll. 130-133). Reason and love keep very little company in this play, which is the cause of all of the problems. Although Bottom is able to utter this perceptive comment, his foolishness keeps him from understanding anything else that goes on around him.

Scene ii: Doting is punished further in this scene. Oberon is extremely happy about Puck's account of Titania and Bottom, as well as the fact that Puck has supposedly successfully "latched" the Athenian's eyes for Helena. However, Puck's mistake quickly becomes evident as Hermia and Demetrius enter the scene. Hermia treats Demetrius very much like Demetrius treats Helena—with plenty of insults and sarcasm. Because Demetrius treats Helena this way, he should be prepared to receive Hermia's insults, but the exchange upsets and tires him, and he goes to sleep. This brings up the reality/dream dichotomy once again and also gives Oberon time to put the potion on Demetrius' eyes. Thus, part of the problem of the play is solved at this point—the original love triangle is over, and Demetrius is again in love with Helena. However, the interference of the fairies has caused another love triangle (Helena, Demetrius, and Lysander) to occur. When Helena enters the scene, she is once again punished for bringing Demetrius (and herself) into the woods in the first place because she believes that Demetrius and Lysander are mocking her. She even goes so far as to accuse Hermia of participating in this torment. If Helena were thinking, she would realize that Hermia wants nothing more than to elope with Lysander, and that such a game would be of no advantage in accomplishing that. However, Helena is as "blind" as the rest of the lovers. She is also hypocritical when she asks Hermia how she can participate in this teasing when they have always been such close friends. Helena accuses Hermia of betrayal when Helena has betrayed their friendship by bringing Demetrius into the woods in the first place.

Meanwhile, Lysander and Demetrius fight over Helena in a similar manner to the way they fought over Hermia in Act I, scene 1, clearly showing that they are not thinking any more than Helena. Hermia is illogical as well—the insults of Lysander and Helena lead Hermia to believe that Lysander has turned against her because she is short. The parallel to Act I, scene 1 is further heightened when Helena and Hermia begin to fight. When everyone runs away at the end of the scene, Oberon is compelled to remedy the situation after blaming Puck for mistakes that are clearly Oberon's. Because the actions of the fairies have led to the problem, Oberon orders Puck to fix the issue by applying the remedy to Lysander's eyes so that he will love Hermia again. While Oberon is concerned enough about the situation to bother to fix it, he is still more interested in Titania, whom he will be tormenting while Puck is solving the humans' problems.

Scene i: Most of the resolutions of the play occur in this scene. In the first part of the scene, Oberon reveals to Puck that Titania, consumed with her love for Bottom, has given Oberon the Indian boy. Thus Titania's doting, now focused on Bottom, has lost her the one thing she has been fighting for since the beginning of the play. As a result, Oberon lifts the spell and takes Titania away from Bottom. Although Oberon has enough "mercy" to lift the spell, his anger has not quite abated. When Titania says that she has had a dream about being in love with an ass, Oberon is cruel enough to point out Bottom to her, clearly showing that it was no dream. However, Oberon tells Puck to make sure that the Athenian lovers see the night's events as nothing more than a dream. Although Oberon implies that all is forgiven, the dispute between Oberon and Titania is not exactly forgotten.

When dawn breaks, the fairies disappear, and the mortal world takes over once again. Theseus, Hippolyta, and Egeus come to the edge of the woods to observe the rites of May Day. Hippolyta makes reference to a mythological episode where she went hunting with Hercules and Cadmus. Her pleasure over the remembrance of the incident seems to spark a bit of jealousy from Theseus, who quickly states that his dogs are more musical than those of Hercules. This shows further complications in the relationship of Hippolyta and Theseus, and although they will wed, it is unlikely that they will ever have a successful marital relationship because of the circumstances surrounding their wedding.

The Athenian nobles then discover the lovers, who have been asleep since the last scene. When Lysander recounts the night's events, including the fact that he and Hermia had intended to elope, Egeus immediately demands that Lysander be executed, and appeals to Demetrius for support. However, as we already know, Demetrius now wants Helena, not Hermia, which gives Theseus the opportunity to countermand the law and declare that the two couples will be married in the same ceremony as himself and Hippolyta. This is an interesting contradiction to Theseus' statements in Act I, scene 1, where he claims that he cannot go against the laws of Athens and allow Hermia to marry the man of her choice. Theseus' order that Hermia marry Lysander in this scene is a violation of that assertion.

Once all of the Athenians leave, Bottom awakens. It is only at this point that he realizes that he has spent the night with the head of an ass, but he believes it was a dream. He claims that anyone who talks about what he has dreamed is a fool, and yet this is exactly what Shakespeare does in showing Bottom's adventures through the night. Shakespeare is again making fun of his profession here—plays sometimes have idiotic storylines. Bottom also shows himself to be a fool when he says that he will have Quince write a ballet of this dream (which he says only a fool will tell), which he will sing as an epilogue to Thisbe's death.

Scene ii: The other mechanicals, who have spent the night worrying about their "star" peformer, lament the loss of their friend, who they believe would have most certainly won the prize being offered for the wedding entertainment. However, "sweet bully Bottom" reappears, and at first says that he cannot tell his friends what has happened to him overnight because he would be "no true Athenian" (l. 18, 1. 27). Then he says that he will not say a word about it. Bottom then takes over the play once again, and hands out strange orders in preparation for the play.

Scene i: The beginning of the last scene gives one more glance at Theseus and Hippolyta. When Hippolyta notes that the events the lovers have told them are "strange," Theseus questions the validity of the story despite the fact that all four lovers have told them exact same story. This short exchange demonstrates once again that these two do not see things in a similar way, which will make their marriage difficult. Theseus' refusal to listen to Hippolyta's opinions appears again when he orders that the mechanicals bring forth their play, despite the Philostrate's warning that it is "nothing" and Hippolyta's distaste for "wretchedness." Determined to have his own will, Theseus orders the play, which, as the audience as come to expect, unfolds disastrously. The mechanicals miss lines, talk to the audience directly, and have far too many prologues for one short scene. Most of the audience members (especially Hippolyta) take the opportunity to insult the mechanicals at every turn. By the end, even Theseus is forced to concede the silliness of the play. Once the mortals have gone to sleep, the fairies come to the palace in order to bless the marriage beds. This is a compromise on the part of Oberon and Titania, as they bless the bed of their former paramours. Puck also appears with a broom (traditionally associated with Robin Goodfellow) in order to clean up after the actors. After having made fun of the conventions of the prologue and epilogue through the mechanicals, Shakespeare gives Puck an epilogue to deliver to the audience written in iambic tetrameter couplets. Puck advises the audience that if they do not like the play, they should think of it as nothing more than a dream. This recalls one last time the issue of reality and dreams in the play. The suggestion that the audience should accept the play as unreal if they did not enjoy it correlates with the characters' acceptance of the unpleasant events of Midsummer's night as nothing more than a dream. However, if the audience does enjoy the play, then they should "Give [Puck} your hands, if we be friends," or applaud (l. 426). The advice here seems to be that unpleasant things should be remembered as only a dream, and good things remembered as reality.