Superficial Love in Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream :: Midsummer Nights Dream Essays

Superficial sock in Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights envisage In the first soliloquy of Shakespeares A Midsummer Nights Dream, Helena talks primarily of a love that contains depth, a love that looks at who a someone is, personality-wise, as opposed to nothing more than their bearing. Helena explains, Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind (1.1.240). In the school culture in which Helena lives, and even in to solar days society, it is difficult for people to look beyond the surfaceer shell and follow a deeper perception. The concept of the perfect person is unceasingly drilled into peoples minds. In Helenas day, this was through expectations taught to children from their parents. Today, this type of expectation comes in the main from the media and entertainment industries. Helena describes love as the admiring of his qualities and as possessing the ability to permute to form and dignity (1.1.238-240). Though this may not be a perfect definition, it is much closer to t he Biblical definition as depict in 1 Corinthians than most common definitions of Helenas day. Because of the strong influence of the shallow culture in which Helena lives, she, too, finds it difficult to keep societys pressure out of her definition of love. One of the first things she points out in her soliloquy is the fact that, Through Athens I am thought as comme il faut as she (1.1.232). She then proceeds to explain how she wishes Demetrius would think she is as elegant as Hermia. If Helena believes so strongly in love approach shot as a result of admiration of ones personality, one must interrogative mood why she loves this man who focuses merely on the appearance of women and pays no escort for who they are as a person. Then, again, the number of men in her day who didnt found their love on such superficial characteristics was probably beauteous low, if not zero. Either way, Helenas perception of love is not perfect, her thoughts are even-tempered influenced by the s urrounding culture. Helenas interpretation of love, as a deep, powerful feeling is virtually unseen in the rest of the play. Rather, the opposite, superficial love, plagues most characters of the play. Theseus, Demetrius, and Lysander constantly offer comments about females. Rather than focusing on who these women are, these comments pertain to the appearance of the women.