A Midsummer Night’s Dream vs Richard III: Compare & Contrast

The two plays, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Richard III were written by Shakespeare during the medieval ages of the 1590s. The play, A Midsummer Night’s dream, has normal characters who are human beings and supernatural characters that are fairies. On the other hand, the play, Richard III has human beings characters, but there is also a scene, whereby supernatural beings such as ghosts are mentioned. This paper compares and contrasts the characters of Oberon and Richard, from the plays A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Richard III respectively.

In the play, A Midsummer Night’s dream, Oberon is a supernatural king of fairies. He has the intention of owning Titania’s changeling boy, he says “I do but beg a little changeling boy”. In the play, Titania is the fairy queen, she denies Oberon the changeling boy. Oberon is determined to maneuver his ways with the objective of taking the changeling boy. In comparison, the play, Richard III has the character of Richard. Richard has the intention of taking the throne after his brother’s reign, he states “I am a villain…I dislike today’s pleasures”. However, he comes to the realization that he does not have a clear chance of ascending to the throne. Richard compares to Oberon in that they are determined to maneuver their ways with the objective of attaining what they want. Oberon and Richard, plan on how they will maneuver and attain their goals. The two characters are similar also in that they recruit individuals whom they will use to help them accomplish their goals. Oberon uses Puck, in the play he calls puck “my gentle Puck, come hither, Thou rememberst”. On Richard’s side, he seeks help from Buckingham who happens to be his cousin; Buckingham calls him “my gracious sovereign”. The two characters, Oberon and Richard, have a major similarity since they are schemers who want to achieve their goals at whatever cost, Richard lies when he says “…I will deliver you…lie for you”. The plays also show that the two characters comparative in that they both achieve their goals in the long run (Shakespeare 180).

There are also issues, which show contrasts between the characters of Oberon and Richard. Oberon is a supernatural being, the king of fairies, while Richard is a human being, King Richard III. The other contrast between the characters of Oberon and Richard is the fact that Oberon maneuvers through his magical powers, while Richard maneuvers through Machiavellian tactics and cruelty. Oberon and Richard also differ when looking at the outcome of their endeavors. At the end of the play, Oberon makes his victims think that all the events that happened were only dreams, and as a result, afterward, the characters live happily. However, Richard, in the play is different from Oberon in that, in the end, he instills dissent and fear in his victims by killing, this makes his victims vengeful and ultimately it leads to his misery and death. In the end, Richard states “…I have set my life upon a cast…I stand the hazard of the die” (Shakespeare 204).

Conclusion

A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Richard III plays written by William Shakespeare have similarities and differences. In particular, the characters, Oberon the king of fairies, and Richard, who later becomes King Richard III, have similarities and differences. Oberon and Richard, have a major comparison in that they formulate ways to maneuver and attain their goals. However, they have a major contrast in that Oberon is a supernatural being while Richard is a human being.

Works Cited:

Shakespeare W. The plays: of William Shakespeare, in eight volumes, with the corrections and illustrations of various commentators; to which are added notes by Sam. Johnson, Volume 8. London: Printed for J. and R. Tonson, 1765. Print