Dreams, sex, death: A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a comedy with unexpectedly adult themes. Comedy here is a displacement of illicit, transgressive or excessive sexual desire, ultimately regulated in marriages that we suspect will be less thrilling and less dangerous than the liminal woodland dreams they repress. Perhaps that’s really a bit too much information for children.
Smith, Emma. This Is Shakespeare (p. 97). Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
Smith, Emma. This Is Shakespeare (p. 97). Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
In Adventures of Ideas, Whitehead speaks of the divine as a "Unity of Adventure which includes Eros," describing it as "the living urge towards all possibilities, claiming the goodness of their realization." This Eros pervades human life at both conscious and unconscious levels, with one of its most powerful expressions being sexual desire. Sexual desire, in its various forms, can be beautiful and comforting, as seen in intimate relationships, but it also has a wild, dangerous aspect. It can be fulfilled, unfulfilled, playful, confusing, or even violent—all at once. Sexual desire is an intricate entanglement of emotions, feelings, and actions. We don’t merely encounter sexual desire; we are it. Or, to put it differently, sexual desire is partly constitutive of who and what we are. This pertains to all kinds of sexual desire: asexuality (lack of overt sexual attraction but desire for intimacy, which is itself a kind of sexual desire), heterosexual (attraction to the opposite gender), homosexual (attraction to the same gender), and bisexual or pansexual (attraction to multiple genders). Whether repressed or expressed, comic or tragic, happy or sad, we are sexual beings, and we must strive to understand this dimension of our lives.
Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream can help. It offers an imaginative space to explore these entanglements of desire, particularly in the transformative environment of the wood, where:
The wood becomes a space where reason loosens its grip, and desire runs wild. Shakespeare scholar Emma Smith notes, "the place where reason loosens its grip and the boundaries between the real and the imagined blur." In this environment, passions become heightened, desires misdirected, offering a glimpse into the chaos and unpredictability of eros. Here, Shakespeare invites us to confront both the beauty and turbulence of sexual desire, which Whitehead might describe as an embodiment of the "living urge towards all possibilities."
Smith, a distinguished scholar of Shakespeare at Oxford, emphasizes that the play's darker, erotic undertones are often overshadowed by the more sanitized "schoolroom version." In her words:
"Our schoolroom version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream has neutered a much darker, sexier play: the ‘dream’ of the title is more Dr. Freud than Dr. Seuss, and the vanilla framing device of marriage creates erotic space for a much raunchier and riskier set of options, from bestiality to pederasty, from wife-swapping to sexual masochism. This really isn’t a play for children...Violent, uncontrollable, animal desire is the real dynamic that A Midsummer Night’s Dream lets loose – and then proceeds to try to bundle back up within the regulatory structures of marriage." (This Is Shakespeare, p. 85).
For a process philosopher, particularly a Whiteheadian, this wood can be a metaphor for the way desire operates at unconscious levels. Consider twelve key ideas that might help interpret sexual desire in a Whiteheadian way. With the exception of the first idea, the others are my own amplification and adaptation of Whitehead, not Whitehead himself.
A process philosopher would thus view sexual desire not as something static but as part of the ongoing creative flow of life. The chaotic entanglements of desire, like those in the wood, are part of the dynamic process of becoming, where new possibilities for intimacy and connection constantly emerge, blurring the lines between fantasy and reality.
In this view, A Midsummer Night’s Dream reflects the deeper truth of process thought: reality itself is shaped by the interplay of imaginative possibilities and lived relationships. Desire is fluid, relational, and ever-evolving—part of the cosmic adventure of life.
A Note on Freud
The interpretation of the "wood" in A Midsummer Night's Dream as representing unconscious sexual urges does share some surface-level similarities with Freudian thought, particularly in its focus on unconscious desires and sexual drives. Freud's psychoanalytic theory famously emphasizes the role of repressed sexual instincts and the unconscious in shaping human behavior, and the idea that the "wood" could represent the release of these urges seems to align with his view of hidden, often chaotic desires surfacing in dreams or in less controlled environments.
However, the Whiteheadian approach differs significantly in spirit from Freud's in several key ways:
So, while both Whiteheadian and Freudian interpretations might engage with the concept of unconscious desires, the Whiteheadian framework views these desires as part of a larger, dynamic process of cosmic entanglement and evolution, not just personal repression or conflict. Therefore, while some aspects of the analysis may seem "Freudian" in spirit, especially the focus on unconscious desires, the deeper philosophical approach diverges significantly. It is possible that a Whiteheadian approach to the unconscious, while agreeing with all that is said above, is closer to a Jungian approach than a Freudian approach. See the work of Sheri Kling: Whitehead, Jung, and Psycho-Spiritual Wholeness.
- Jay McDaniel
Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream can help. It offers an imaginative space to explore these entanglements of desire, particularly in the transformative environment of the wood, where:
- Lysander and Hermia flee to escape Athenian law, hoping to marry against Hermia’s father’s will, only to find themselves lost in the chaos of the wood.
- Helena desperately chases Demetrius, despite his cruel rejection of her, until the magic of the wood alters his heart.
- Oberon and Titania, the fairy king and queen, quarrel over a changeling child, their discord a reflection of human tensions in love.
- Under the influence of a love potion, Titania falls for Bottom, whose head has been transformed into that of an ass, leading to a surreal entanglement.
- Puck, Oberon’s mischievous servant, uses magic to confuse identities and affections, blurring the line between illusion and reality.
The wood becomes a space where reason loosens its grip, and desire runs wild. Shakespeare scholar Emma Smith notes, "the place where reason loosens its grip and the boundaries between the real and the imagined blur." In this environment, passions become heightened, desires misdirected, offering a glimpse into the chaos and unpredictability of eros. Here, Shakespeare invites us to confront both the beauty and turbulence of sexual desire, which Whitehead might describe as an embodiment of the "living urge towards all possibilities."
Smith, a distinguished scholar of Shakespeare at Oxford, emphasizes that the play's darker, erotic undertones are often overshadowed by the more sanitized "schoolroom version." In her words:
"Our schoolroom version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream has neutered a much darker, sexier play: the ‘dream’ of the title is more Dr. Freud than Dr. Seuss, and the vanilla framing device of marriage creates erotic space for a much raunchier and riskier set of options, from bestiality to pederasty, from wife-swapping to sexual masochism. This really isn’t a play for children...Violent, uncontrollable, animal desire is the real dynamic that A Midsummer Night’s Dream lets loose – and then proceeds to try to bundle back up within the regulatory structures of marriage." (This Is Shakespeare, p. 85).
For a process philosopher, particularly a Whiteheadian, this wood can be a metaphor for the way desire operates at unconscious levels. Consider twelve key ideas that might help interpret sexual desire in a Whiteheadian way. With the exception of the first idea, the others are my own amplification and adaptation of Whitehead, not Whitehead himself.
- Divine Eros: At the heart of the universe is divine Eros, the force pushing toward the realization of all possibilities. This Eros drives both the cosmos and individual lives toward fulfillment, fueling the process of becoming and transformation.
- Sexual Thirst: This Eros includes a sexual dimension—a "thirst" for actualization. Sexual desire is one way this divine urge manifests, drawing individuals toward connection, intimacy, and deeper possibilities in relationships.
- Eros in Human Life: Every moment of human life partakes in this Eros, and sexual desire is an expression of this universal urge, inviting us to shape our lives through connection and transformation.
- Unconscious Memories: We partake in this Eros through unconscious memories of desire, including sexual desire, shaping our present experiences and influencing our behaviors in ways we don’t fully understand. These memories come from our personal past and the collective past, including the history of biological life on earth.
- Entangled Desire: Erotic feelings are entangled, not linear, revealing the complexity of desire as memories, feelings, and experiences merge in ways that may be healthy or unhealthy. The feelings are not "organized" in linear fashion.
- Desire in Dreams: Desire often emerges in dreams, where the unconscious allows chaotic or uncontrollable feelings to surface, reflecting the complexity of our inner lives.
- The Wood as Unconscious Life: The Wood in A Midsummer Night’s Dream symbolizes the entangled desires of unconscious life, a space where societal norms are suspended and Eros reigns free.
- Danger and Chaos: Unconscious desire has a dangerous side, as entangled passions can lead to chaos or violence. Social structures like marriage often serve to contain these desires.
- Playfulness and Freedom: Yet there is also joy and spontaneity in unconscious life, where eros can liberate and create. Eros is a force of both destruction and creation, blending darkness and light.
- Civilizing Eros: Civilization’s task is to channel eros constructively, fostering growth and creativity rather than repression or chaos.
- Tragic to Comic: Like A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the chaos of desire can be transformed from tragedy into comedy, reflecting life’s ability to harmonize desire through joy and connection.
- Cosmic Harmony: In the consequent nature of God, all stories of desire—fulfilled or unfulfilled—are rewoven into cosmic harmony, where the dark and light aspects of eros are redeemed and integrated. This cosmic harmony may itself be dream-like, or a dream-in-the-making. It, too, includes the space of liminality, the wood.
A process philosopher would thus view sexual desire not as something static but as part of the ongoing creative flow of life. The chaotic entanglements of desire, like those in the wood, are part of the dynamic process of becoming, where new possibilities for intimacy and connection constantly emerge, blurring the lines between fantasy and reality.
In this view, A Midsummer Night’s Dream reflects the deeper truth of process thought: reality itself is shaped by the interplay of imaginative possibilities and lived relationships. Desire is fluid, relational, and ever-evolving—part of the cosmic adventure of life.
A Note on Freud
The interpretation of the "wood" in A Midsummer Night's Dream as representing unconscious sexual urges does share some surface-level similarities with Freudian thought, particularly in its focus on unconscious desires and sexual drives. Freud's psychoanalytic theory famously emphasizes the role of repressed sexual instincts and the unconscious in shaping human behavior, and the idea that the "wood" could represent the release of these urges seems to align with his view of hidden, often chaotic desires surfacing in dreams or in less controlled environments.
However, the Whiteheadian approach differs significantly in spirit from Freud's in several key ways:
- Cosmic Scope vs. Personal Psyche: While Freud is primarily concerned with individual psychological development and the repression of desires within the psyche, Whitehead's framework operates on a much larger, cosmological scale. In Whitehead’s view, each moment of experience is shaped by the entire history of the universe, not just individual psychological history. This collective history includes the desires and experiences of all beings, both human and non-human, organic and inorganic. Freud's theory, in contrast, focuses more on personal developmental stages (like the Oedipal complex) and the conflict between the id, ego, and superego within an individual.
- Relational and Entangled Desires: The Whiteheadian view frames desire as relational and entangled with the experiences of others across time and space. It sees these desires as part of a cosmic web of connections, mixing and morphing in non-linear ways. Freud’s interpretation of desire is more linear and often sees it as repressed or sublimated within individuals. While Freud highlights repression and conflict, Whitehead emphasizes process, flow, and creative advance—desires are not just repressed, but they constantly evolve and reshape within the context of the universe's unfolding.
- Collective vs. Individual Unconscious: Freud’s unconscious is largely an individual construct, focused on repressed thoughts and desires specific to each person’s psychological makeup. While Freud’s later work did touch on the collective elements (e.g., in Totem and Taboo), the unconscious remains deeply tied to personal experiences. Whitehead’s perspective, on the other hand, naturally integrates the collective and cosmic unconscious. The desires we feel are not just ours—they are entangled with the desires of all life forms, and perhaps even the inorganic world. This cosmological dimension sets Whitehead apart from Freud.
- Creative Advance vs. Repression: In Freud's view, much of human experience involves the repression of desires to maintain societal norms and personal stability. Whitehead, by contrast, sees desire as part of the ongoing creative advance into novelty. Desire isn’t something to be repressed but is part of the process of the universe constantly becoming, adapting, and evolving. It’s more fluid and generative in Whitehead’s philosophy, whereas in Freud it is often more about conflict and sublimation.
So, while both Whiteheadian and Freudian interpretations might engage with the concept of unconscious desires, the Whiteheadian framework views these desires as part of a larger, dynamic process of cosmic entanglement and evolution, not just personal repression or conflict. Therefore, while some aspects of the analysis may seem "Freudian" in spirit, especially the focus on unconscious desires, the deeper philosophical approach diverges significantly. It is possible that a Whiteheadian approach to the unconscious, while agreeing with all that is said above, is closer to a Jungian approach than a Freudian approach. See the work of Sheri Kling: Whitehead, Jung, and Psycho-Spiritual Wholeness.
- Jay McDaniel
Overview of the Plot
A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare is a comedy that intertwines four main plots involving romantic entanglements, magical interference, and comic misunderstandings. Here's a brief summary:
1. The Love Quadrangle
The play begins in Athens, where Duke Theseus is preparing for his wedding to Hippolyta. Hermia is in love with Lysander, but her father, Egeus, wants her to marry Demetrius, who is also loved by Helena. Hermia and Lysander plan to flee into the forest to escape Athenian law and marry. Helena, desperate to win Demetrius' love, informs him of Hermia's plan, and they all end up in the forest.
2. The Fairies
In the enchanted forest, Oberon, the king of the fairies, is in conflict with his queen, Titania, over a changeling child. To punish Titania, Oberon instructs his mischievous servant, Puck, to use a magical flower's juice to make Titania fall in love with the first creature she sees upon waking. Oberon also orders Puck to use the potion on Demetrius so he will fall in love with Helena.
3. The Mistaken Magic
Puck accidentally applies the potion to Lysander instead of Demetrius, causing Lysander to fall in love with Helena, abandoning Hermia. This creates chaos as both men now pursue Helena, leaving Hermia devastated. Puck eventually corrects his mistake, making Demetrius fall in love with Helena and restoring Lysander's love for Hermia.
4. The Play within the Play
A group of Athenian craftsmen, led by Bottom, is rehearsing a play to perform at Theseus and Hippolyta’s wedding. Puck, for fun, transforms Bottom's head into that of a donkey, and Titania, under the influence of the love potion, falls in love with him. Oberon eventually lifts the spell, and Titania is reunited with Oberon.
Conclusion
By morning, the love potion's effects are undone, and the couples are set right: Lysander with Hermia, Demetrius with Helena. Theseus discovers the lovers and declares that they can marry. The play ends with the craftsmen performing their comical play, and Puck addressing the audience, suggesting that the events of the night were merely a dream.
1. The Love Quadrangle
The play begins in Athens, where Duke Theseus is preparing for his wedding to Hippolyta. Hermia is in love with Lysander, but her father, Egeus, wants her to marry Demetrius, who is also loved by Helena. Hermia and Lysander plan to flee into the forest to escape Athenian law and marry. Helena, desperate to win Demetrius' love, informs him of Hermia's plan, and they all end up in the forest.
2. The Fairies
In the enchanted forest, Oberon, the king of the fairies, is in conflict with his queen, Titania, over a changeling child. To punish Titania, Oberon instructs his mischievous servant, Puck, to use a magical flower's juice to make Titania fall in love with the first creature she sees upon waking. Oberon also orders Puck to use the potion on Demetrius so he will fall in love with Helena.
3. The Mistaken Magic
Puck accidentally applies the potion to Lysander instead of Demetrius, causing Lysander to fall in love with Helena, abandoning Hermia. This creates chaos as both men now pursue Helena, leaving Hermia devastated. Puck eventually corrects his mistake, making Demetrius fall in love with Helena and restoring Lysander's love for Hermia.
4. The Play within the Play
A group of Athenian craftsmen, led by Bottom, is rehearsing a play to perform at Theseus and Hippolyta’s wedding. Puck, for fun, transforms Bottom's head into that of a donkey, and Titania, under the influence of the love potion, falls in love with him. Oberon eventually lifts the spell, and Titania is reunited with Oberon.
Conclusion
By morning, the love potion's effects are undone, and the couples are set right: Lysander with Hermia, Demetrius with Helena. Theseus discovers the lovers and declares that they can marry. The play ends with the craftsmen performing their comical play, and Puck addressing the audience, suggesting that the events of the night were merely a dream.