Portfolio: Act 2

Act II Scene I:

1. What does the reader find out about the current relationship between Oberon, King of the Fairies, and Titania, Queen of the Fairies, from Puck and the first fairy?

The king and queen aren't in a great marriage, fighting over an indian boy. 

Puck is a trickster fairy. 

2. How have Oberon and Titania been involved in the past with Theseus and Hippolyta, and why have they come to Athens?

Because Theseus and Hippolyta are going to get married and they don't want to make a big problem.

3. What effect has their quarrel had on nature, on the seasons, on humans?

rivers flood, farmers crops wilt... 

4. Why won’t Titania give up the changeling to Oberon?

because Oberon wants the boy for his own use but she doesn't want him to do that and wants to keep the boy.

5. What does Oberon send Puck to find?

A magic potion, place it on the eyelid of them sleeping then when you wake up the first person you see you'll fall in love with them. (appearance and reality)

6. What are Oberon’s plans for Titania?

To use the magic potion when she is sleeping, to make her in love with a someone.

7. How does Helena react to Demetrius’s verbal abuse?

She still loves him and she doesn't care if he treats her like that.

8. What is her response to his threats of physical abuse?

She doesn't care either

9. In what way is Helena’s behavior inappropriate for Athenian women?

because the man is supposed to woo the women and not the women woo the men

10. What does Oberon tell Puck to do about Demetrius and Helena?

put the potion on Demetrius but make sure the next thing he sees is Helena.

Act II Scene II Questions:

1. In Act II, Helena must experience a range of emotions. Demetrius, whom she loves, wants nothing to do with her (Act II Sc I lines 188-244) and Lysander, under the "love-in-idleness" spell, is fawning over her (Act II Sc II lines 94-150)! Pretend that you are Helena. Write a diary entry to in response to one these two events. What must she be thinking? How is she feeling? Review the lines carefully and take note of what both she and Lysander or Demetrius say. How does she react? 

*Helena's P.O.V.*

Tonight after following Demetrius trying to get his love, but on a chase to find Lysander and Hermia, I had to stop from the mad chase. As stopping I had seen Lysander and Hermia. At first I thought Lysander was either sleeping or dead. As I checked for a heartbeat he was not dead. As waking he had said, "Who will not change a raven for a dove?" I think he was speaking of mockery.  I do not think he loves me, only trying to make me feel even worse than I already do. I am already hurt that Demetrius doesn't love me, but loves my best friend Hermia, who Lysander should love because she loves him dearly. But no Lysander has either started to love me the way I want Demetrius to or he is playing a trick against me. If he is trying to love me, I don't love him back, I have decided to run from him, not love him, until I know for sure that he loves me. But this still does not feel right that he loves me and not Hermia, I can't hurt Hermia. But she has taken the love that Demetrius should have with me and yet she doesn't love him back. 

2. Dramatic irony is when a character says something, but the audience knows more than the character does about other characters or events, so the statement comes across with a double meaning that the audience "gets" and the character doesn't. Find one example of dramatic irony in Act II Scene II.

An example of dramatic irony in Act II Scene II is how the love potion was put on Titania and Lysander. And another is how it was Lysander not Demetrius who has the potion on his eyes.  

3. When Hermia awakes at the end of Act II Scene II, she describes a dream that she had: "Lysander, look how I do quake with fear-/ Methought a serpent ate my heart away,/ And you sat smiling at his cruel pray" (Act II Sc. II lines 154-156). Is this only a dream? Explain.

 No, the dream was of Lysander and Demetrius. Demetrius is the serpent, and Lysander is "in love" with Helena that he doesn't love Hermia anymore, smiling at what Demetrius is doing.