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Hermia and Helena have the same goal: to find true love. However, their personalities are extremely different. In the play, Helena showed desperation, and lacked self confidence.
Hermia and Helena have the same goal: to find true love. However, their personalities are extremely different. In the play, Helena showed desperation, and lacked self confidence.
Hermia and Helena have the same goal: to find true love. However, their personalities are extremely different. In the play, Helena showed desperation, and lacked self confidence.
#19: Similarities and Differences Between Hermia and Helena
Girls, love, and drama. Somehow, these 3 words always have a way of finding each other, causing major destruction. This time, these 3 words have found their way into Shakespeares play, A Midsummers Night Dream. The play contains two important characters; Hermia and Helena, who both have the same goal: to find true love. However, their personalities are extremely different.
From the beginning of the play, it was evident that Helena lacked the confidence Hermia carries with her. Hermia was very self-assertive, and confident in herself. In the very first scene, Hermias boldness was shown, when her father Egeus, stated that Demetrius was a very worthy gentleman. Hermia replied, So is Lysander. (1.1.53-54) Afterwards, Hermia acknowledged her boldness, and even apologized to Egeus, her father for it! Hermia was also extremely bold in standing up for what she believed in. While wandering in the woods, Lysander and Hermia became exhausted, and decided that they should rest. Lysander expressed his willingness to sleep next to Hermia, but she retorted, saying: Lie further off yet, do not lie so near. (2.2.45) Hermias willingness to stand up for what she believed was right (not sleeping next to Lysander) exhibited her boldness and self assertion. However, if Helena was in the same situation, she probably would have been so desperate for love she would threaten her virtue. In the play, Helena played a woman constantly being rejected by the man she loves. If she were given the opportunity to get anywhere near him, chances are she would take it.
Throughout the play, Helena showed desperation, and lacked self confidence. Her acts of desperation were results of being continuously rejected by the man she loved most, Demetrius. Her desperation was shown in the very first scene of the play: Call me fair? that fair again unsay. Demetrius loves your fair: O happy fair!... (1.1.189) Unlike Hermia, Helena was willing to go to extreme lengths to get the attention of the man she loved, even stating that she was his spaniel. In addition, Helenas actions showed how she believed that she was unloveable by people When Demetrius and Lysander magically fell in love with Helena, she was under the impression that their love for her was just a cruel joke being played on her, showing how unconfident she was. Helenas physical traits are also polar opposites of Hermias. Helena is tall with long legs, whereas Hermia is shorter than her.
Despite the differences between Hermia and Helena, they contain similar traits. Both Hermia and Helena are on a quest to discover true love, one way or another. They are both extremely persistent and stubborn, and are willing to go to extreme lengths to be with the man they love.