A Midsummer Night’s Dream: style

Style and Genre of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”

“A Midsummer Night’s Dream” is a play written by William Shakespeare with comedy as its main genre.
The play is a concoction of romance and fantasy, often intertwining in an elaborate manner.
It uses the elements of farce which include slapstick humour, extravagant characters, mistaken identities, and improbable plots.

The style of the play involves clever use of word play and puns, typical of Shakespeare’s comedy.
There’s extensive use of figurative language with metaphors and similes which act as a crucial aspect of the play’s comedy.
Shakespeare uses the supernatural element - fairytale creatures and magic, to create a dream-like atmosphere. Hence the characters and their situations tend to be larger than life and unrealistic.

There is a distinct dual setting - Athens representing logic and order and the woods representing chaos and freedom. This contributes to the contrast seen throughout the play.
Shakespeare’s style in the play also includes some sub-plots which intertwine and interact with the main plotline, adding complexity and depth.
There’s a play-within-a-play element, with the character’s performance of ‘Pyramus and Thisbe’, showcasing Shakespeare’s creativity and skill in his style of writing.

The tone is often high-spirited and whimsical, maintaining a light-hearted atmosphere despite instances of slight darkness and severity.
In terms of characterisation, Shakespeare provides every character with a unique voice and style, making them easily distinguishable.

Elements of Elizabethan and Greek traditions are merged in the style of the play, reflecting Shakespeare’s cultural influences.

The play has a poetic tone, employing iambic pentameter, rhymed couplets and blank verse.