TLT- Grade 9 INTRODUCTION TO MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM

by William Shakespeare

 William Shakespeare lived in the Elizabethan Era

 The Elizabethan Era is the period in English history from 1558 –1603
when Queen Elizabeth 1 was in charge of England.
 ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ is an Elizabethan play because it was
written in 1595.

 Shakespeare mainly wrote in the Elizabethan era.

 Shakespeare wrote some plays after Elizabeth 1 died. These were written
in a different era.
 His entertaining, suspenseful, tragic and exciting plays are read, studied and enjoyed for
over 400 years while Shakespeare is praised for his original and imaginative stories and
characters.

 Shakespeare studied ancient Greek and Romans, who existed over 2500 years ago,
especially the myths and history at school.

 The most entertaining comedy, A Midsummer Night’s Dream is set in ancient Athens

 Ancient Athens was cultural and ordered but could also be harsh and severe with a
patriarchal society.

 Women were generally not educated and were expected to be subservient and obey men.

 Society was very ordered and structured while there were very harsh punishments for
people who broke the rules.

 For example, they put some criminals in a bronze statue of a bull and lit a fire underneath
the statue so that the person burned to death!
 Shakespeare’s plays are based on real events that occurred in
ancient Greece and Rome and about myths from Greece and
Rome.
 It was known all around the world for its wealth and grand
buildings where ‘Athenians’resided.
 His play ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ is set in one of the
most famous ancient Greek cities called Athens.
 In the play, we will be able to see how Shakespeare presents Athenians and their culture.
Elizabethan Era
 Groundlings were poor people who visited the Globe Theatre to watch the play in the
early 17th century and were too poor to pay to be able to sit on one of the three levels of
the theatre.

 By paying one penny, they could stand in ‘the pit’, also called ‘the yard’, just below the
stage to watch the play.
 The pit did not have a roof which meant that the groundlings would get wet if it rained
during a play.

 Standing in the pit was uncomfortable, and people were usually packed in tightly.
 The groundlings were commoners who were also referred to as ‘stinkards’ or ‘penny-
stinkers’.
 Groundlings would have horrible jobs, including shifting waste across the city

 The poor enjoyed bear baiting, gambling and the theatre for entertainment

 There was a marked difference between the rich and poor in Elizabethan England

 Conditions were unsanitary in large towns and cities

 The roles of the Rude Mechanicals are based on the commoners of the Elizabethan era