Shakespeare/A Midsummer Night’s Dream Name______Background/Notes Date______Per._____ Literature Book pgs. 1186-1194

1. Write the dates of Shakespeare's birth and death. ______

2. In what town and country was Shakespeare born? ______

3. Name the monarchs who reigned in Shakespeare's country during his lifetime.

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4. Who was Shakespeare's wife? (HINT: Mrs. Shakespeare is not acceptable) ______

5. With what theater was Shakespeare most intimately connected? (HINT: It was rebuilt in the late 1990's on the River Thames) ______

6. Approximately how many people could the original seat? ______

7. What/Who is a "groundling"? ______

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8. Explain how the seating worked. Who sat where? ______

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9. What was the name of Shakespeare's acting company? ______

10. Identify and explain the section, “Shakespeare’s Legacy.” ______

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11. In what verse form did Shakespeare write his plays, and explain just how this verse works.

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Define #11. ______

12. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream, who speaks in verse and who speaks in prose? Why the distinction? ______

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12. Label the literary plot triangle. 3.

2. 4.

1. 5. Define the following terms: allusion antagonist aside comic relief dramatic irony epilogue fantasy foreshadow illusion imagery irony metaphor motif paradox parallel parody pathetic fallacy personification play within a play protagonist pun simile soliloquy verse drama

Introduction:

*Comic Threat: Within Shakespearean comedy, the play opens paradoxically with a threat to order, happiness, or even life. Theseus’ decision to allow Hermia four days to obey her father and marry Demetrius or else be relegated to a convent poses a serious threat and hints at the time structure of the play, which will culminate on Theseus’ wedding.