Character guide for A Midsummer Night's Dream.
The mischievous fairy servant of Oberon. He makes the mistakes that drive the comedy. His famous closing speech asks the audience to forgive the play's improbabilities as if they were a dream.
The weaver is one of Shakespeare's great comic creations — enthusiastic, self-important and blissfully unaware of his limitations. His experience with Titania is both funny and strangely moving.
The fairy king — powerful, jealous and manipulative. His quarrel with Titania sets the plot in motion.
The fairy queen — proud and beautiful. Her love for the donkey-headed Bottom is the play's most surreal comic device.
The two young women are friends who become rivals for the same man because of the love potion. Shakespeare uses their conflict to explore how quickly love and friendship can be destabilised.
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