"The madman, the lover, and the poet have an imagination all compact" (Act 5, scene 1, lines 7-8). This quote from Theseus encompasses the notion of love as an illusion, a product of the imagination. Love is equated with madness and poetry, both intangible qualities, making it necessary to question its existence. In A Midsummer Night's Dream, love is seen in many different ways Bottom proves quite accurate in characterizing the four main lovers when he states, "Oh, how foolish these mortals are" (Act 3, scene 2, line 115 ). While the four main characters believe in romance, Theseus is a strong believer in realism. This establishes a comparison between the dichotomy of reason and love; that love is without reason and if we use reason to rationalize love, then perhaps it doesn't exist or, at best, is tenuous. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay In Act 1 Scene 1, Hermia declares her love for Lysander and swears "by Cupid's strongest bow, by his best arrow, tipped with gold", By the simplicity of Venus's doves , For what unites souls and prospers loves, And for that fire that burned the Carthaginian queen When the false Trojan was seen sailing. (Act 1, Scene 1, Lines 169-174)” The oath is strong and invokes the power of mythological beings. However, it is also intangible. As much as the oath hints at unbridled and powerful desires (Olson, 105), it cannot resist “Love in Idleness.” The introduction of the potion provides a reason to love; otherwise it is simply an intangible feeling. In other words, the existence of “Love in Idleness” gives a tangible representation of loving. However, this brings to mind the question: if a love willing to defy death cannot overcome a simple potion, then what is the strength of the love that Hermia and Lysander speak of? Furthermore, the potion interrupts the natural progression of love. Olson argues that “Love always moves to stamp its shape upon the source material of Chaos” (105). However, it is difficult to find an example of love in the work. The young lovers Hermia and Lysander, Helena and Demetrius do not show unshakable love. True love is embodied in Shakespeare's Sonnet 116, where it “looks upon the storms and is never shaken” (6). Here, we don't see the love that can overcome the chaos that Olson talks about; instead, it causes more chaos and imbalance: Demetrius and Lysander are magically forced to transfer their love from Hermia to Helena. The show seeks balance, which is why the young lovers are well-matched in the end. The chaos caused by the potion, which is an unnatural act, creates tension in the game that must be resolved by restoring balance. Marriage then becomes a convenient solution, a deus ex machina rather than a representation of love, and the potion is a catalyst for this seemingly loving ending. The potion is essentially a liquid, and this indicates the fluidity of the young lover's identities. As the show progresses, it is difficult to distinguish between Hermia and Helena. Even their names sound almost identical. This supports Marshall's claim that the characters are “shapeshifters, in the sense that the plot of the play revolves around their exchanges. (568)” I believe that Shakespeare uses the potion to show how easily the affections of the so-called lover can be influenced. The ease with which their affections change makes a mockery of Helena's stoic statement that “Love does not look with the eyes, but with the mind. (Act 1, scene 1, line 234)" His statement assumes that love is based on impressions formedby the lover, and if the lover's impressions can be so easily and fluidly influenced, then the will to love is undermined. It is worth noting that the lovers Hermia and Helena remain unswerving in their devotion to their lovers Lysander and Demetrius, while Lysander and Demetrius are affected by the potion and cannot remain faithful. The impotence of language is thus highlighted, and this undermines Hermia's oath at the beginning of the work stated in the previous paragraph. The presence of the use of the potion to induce love also serves as a mockery of love. “Love does not change with its short hours and weeks (11)” - this is love according to the aforementioned sonnet; but in the play, love is altered in a matter of hours and this further emphasizes the falsified nature of love. The fact that the play is titled A Midsummer Night's Dream reminds readers that a dream is an illusion. With this pretext, readers enter a world of fiction, where love can be tampered with. This notion perhaps offends traditional sensibilities and logic that love transcends failures. Puck acknowledges this when he concludes the play by apologizing: "If we shadows have wronged, think of this, and all will be mended - That you slept here while these visions appeared. And this theme weak and idle, No longer yielding but a dream.. . (Act 5, Scene 1, Lines 415-420)” Furthermore, the structure of having a play within the play, i.e. the inclusion of “The most deplorable and cruelest death of Pyramus and Tisby” reminds us that this it is just acting.This makes the reader understand that the scene is an act of illusion and we cannot ignore the element of uncertainty in the play.With this uncertainty, we are therefore wary of the displays of love in A Midsummer Night's Dream. There are many instances in A Midsummer Night's Dream where love is forced or forced upon reluctant people. In Act 1, scene 1, we are presented with the dilemma between Hermia's love and Lysander's insistence on it Hermia marries Demetrius or else she will die or become a nun. Marshall offers an explanation for Egeus' tyranny when he says that Egeus believes that Hermia's impression "is seen as rightfully his, which is why Hermia's claim to think and speak for herself itself is also a crime against his father. (551)” Both humans and fairies in the play seek to shape love into forms that are advantageous not to the lovers, but to the leaders. Egeus insists that Hermia submit to Demetrius or die; Hippolyta must marry Theseus as a symbol of her country's dominance over his. And the non-human characters are equally eager to control the romantic landscape. Again, love is subject to intervention and interferes with natural progression. A Midsummer Night's Dream is a play built on creating contrasts within scenes. Likewise, notions of love are compared. The young lovers are consumed by what they think is love to the point that they lose contact with the world and escape into an alternate reality embodied by the forest. For them, love is a fairy tale without reason. Theseus ridicules this idea when he states that “Lovers and madmen have brains so seething, fancies so molding, that they understand more than cold reason can comprehend. (Act 5, scene 1, lines 4-6)” With this, he is dismissing the love of the young lovers as a fantasy with no logical basis. This is true for lovers especially when they neglect their family and are even willing to die for their love. Helena represents this mad love when she confesses: "I am your spaniel, and Demetrius, the more you beat me, the more I will flatter myself." You. Use me only as your spaniel: reject me, strike me, neglect me, lose me; just give me permission, unworthy as I am, to follow you. What worse place, 1997. 1962.