How Shakespeare shows the different aspects of love in Act 3 scene 2 in a Midsummer Night's Dream.

Puck tells Oberon that he has carried out his request, although it soon becomes apparent that he has treated the wrong couple. When Demetrius lies down to sleep, Puck has a further chance to get things right. Helena soon arrives and is being pestered by Lysander who is declaring his love for her; she now finds Demetrius too is declaring his love for her as well. Hermia returns and is heartbroken to find that Lysander does not love her. She accuses Helena of stealing Lysander’s love. Helena concludes that her former friends have all planned this together to mock her. The men decide to fight a duel over Helena and go off.

The illusion form the love spell caused by Oberon in (Act 3 scene2 line 102-109) makes Lysnadra’s false passion then becomes the centre of the argument. Hermia and Helena's relationship has changed greatly after the intervention of Puck with the love potion. Once best friends, they have become each others enemies, and all for the love of Lysander and Demetrius. Hermia and Helena were best friends when they were at school. "All school-days' friendship, childhood innocence?" (Act 3, Scene 2, Line 201, Helena).To Helena a change Demetrius is a remote possibility, but a change Lysander as well makes both utterly impossible; Hermia whom both have hitherto love, must the instigator of this simultaneous (and simulated) change to heart. Her desperation leads Hermia to appeal to Lysander and Demetrius to threaten him. The spell is not to be shaken; Lysander and Demetrius to treaten him. The spell is not be shaken; Lysander renews his passionate declaration to Helena challenges Demetrius to fight, and tries to cast off Hermia, who is now clinging to him, finally telling her that it is not a joke. This causes a cat fight between Helena and Hermia. Hermia calls Helena a thief, Helena and Hermia quickly enter into a massive argument, accusing each other of stealing their love, "You thief of love. What, have you come by night and stolen my love's heart from him?" (Act 3, Scene 2, Lines 283 - 284, Hermia) and Helena brands Hermia as shameless (in her apparent hypocrisy). This shows us that the illusion of love makes us behave foolishly. This scene was at its climax, when both lovers are again competing for the favour of the one woman, but not the same one. Hermia and Helena both suffer from the double change of affection; one being mocked, as she thinks, the other being deserted twice over. Worse still, each believes the other to be the cause of her unhappiness and attacks her one-time closest friend, Helena for using her height to her advantage, Hermia for being too vixenish. Helena recoils in fear of Hermia and is instantly offered protection by the two men. If Hermia is more passionate over losing her lover, Helena is far the more eloquent in her reproaches to all three for their unkind conspiracy to make fun of her.

There is also a very sinister side to love. Helena and Demetruis show this at the start of the play. “Use me but as your spaniel; spurn me, strike me, neglect me, lose me.” This is an example of unrequited love, also known as obssesional love. The language Helena uses is very persuasive so it trying to convince Demetruis to love her again; however his response is full of hatred towards her.  “Do I not tell you in the plainest truth tell you I do not, nor cannot love you?” The main type of love is romantic love, like the love between Hermia and Lysander. Their bond together is so strong that they vowed to do anything to be together. “If then true lovers have been ever crossed, it stands as an edict in destiny.” The language they use toward each other is poetic and loving, as they talk about cupids, wishes, marriage and other such things. All these were examples of true love. But there is also a false love within the play. After Oberon sees Demetruis and Helena, he decides to play around with some love potion. He makes the wrong couples fall in love. But like most stories there is a happy ending. This includes Helena and Demetruis being married. They fell in love because of the potion, so is it now true love or will they fall out of love?.

 The most famous example of created love was between Titania and Bottom. “O how I love thee! How I dote on thee!” The reason why Oberon put Titania under this spell because she wouldn’t give him a changeling boy; another example of females breaking out of authority. But once Oberon is jealous because his wife is saying, “I love thee!” to another man he changes her back. Bottom did not only fall in love with Titania but has good friendships with the other machenicals. “Bottom! Oh most courageous day! O most happy hour!”

The play is full of love and would be nothing with out it. It also changes people. At the start Hermia was feisty, young girl, who could speak out against the Duke. But after married, they speak when spoken to and not much else. So this play also shows what women went though in Shakespeare’s time. So maybe William Shakespeare was trying to show how women change, how important love, friends and family are. And how it can all go wrong. Towards the end of this scene Oberon hints that harmony will be restored and reality will return with daylight, (Act 3, Scene 2, Line 370-378 Oberon). The language used by Puck is poetic verse and rhyming couplets is first in (Act 1, scene 1, Line 171) such as in “what fools these mortal be!” (Act 3, Scene 2, Line115). The language used by the workmen Bottom is blank verse and prose. Towards the end of this scene harmony is restored Oberon when he reverse the spell, this shows the end of the fun he had with the human world. Towards the end of the story the workmen’s play tragic love story and perform it so badly it becomes a comedy. The harmony is restored and there is a happy ending.