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Year 8 - English

Analysing Puck's epilogue in Act 5 of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'

'A Midsummer Night's Dream'

Unit Summary

In this unit, pupils read and explore Shakespeare's comedy 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'. They focus on the character Puck and the theme of the supernatural, and analyse their role and importance at different points in the play. Finally, they plan and write an essay about Puck and the supernatural.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to explore the language of Puck's epilogue, linking it to other moments in the play.

Key Notes

  • 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' ends with an epilogue given by the character of Puck.
  • Puck's epilogue breaks the fourth wall and offers to make "amends" for any offence caused by the play.
  • Puck's characterisation in the epilogue could be considered different to his characterisation in the rest of the play.
  • Perceptive analysis can involve making thoughtful connections between different moments in a text.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • epilogue: a speech or piece of writing that comes at the end of a text and makes a comment on what has happened in the story.
  • breaking the fourth wall: when a character in a play speaks directly to the audience, acknowledging the audience exists.
  • foreshadow: a hint or indication of what will happen later in the story.
  • perceptive: thoughtful, noticing small details.
  • methods: the tools a writer uses to create their work; for example, characterisation, setting, language choices, foreshadowing.

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • You should only analyse one quotation per paragraph.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain this English learning goal in two key points.

'A Midsummer Night's Dream' ends with an epilogue given by the character of Puck. Puck's epilogue breaks the fourth wall and offers to make "amends" for any offence caused by the play.

2. Define this language term and use it in a sentence. 'epilogue'

a speech or piece of writing that comes at the end of a text and makes a comment on what has happened in the story.

3. Correct this common English misunderstanding.

Mistake: You should only analyse one quotation per paragraph. Correction: Analysing multiple quotations, and exploring the connections between them, makes for the most powerful analysis.

More Lessons In This Unit

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