all part 2 Flashcards
(106 cards)
1
Q
The flood
A
jove be liek fuck this and flood the world
2
Q
Lycaon
A
tyrant
bitch don’t know a good when he see one
jove be like set house on fire and turn ass into wolf
3
Q
Deucalion And Pyrrha
A
cute ass couple that are nice to gods
get saved from flood and have to repopulate the earth by throwing rocks behind them
4
Q
Io
A
- young nymph, daughter of the river Inachus
- Jove rapes her and gets turned into a cow
- given as a gift to Juno and put under the watchful eyes of Argus
- is set free by Juno
- gets Mercury to kill Argos, and begs Juno to let her go
- turns back into a human and gives birth to Jupiter’s son, Epaphus
5
Q
Phaethon
A
- son of apollo
- ask to ride the chariot
- flies to low and burns everything
- jove kills him with a lightningbolt
6
Q
Callisto and Arcacs
A
- bitched gets raped by jove disguised as artmis
- tries to hide pregnancy
- gets turned into a bear
- son almost kills the mother
- Jove turns them both into constellations, Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.
7
Q
Aglauros
A
- The greedy sister of Herse
- Minerva goes to Envy
- Envy fills her with so much envy that she cannot bear anyone’s good fortune and happiness that she eventually turns to stone.
8
Q
Europa
A
- king’s daughter
- gets kidnapped by Jove disguised as a bull
9
Q
Cadmus
A
King Agenor’s son. His sister, Europa, was kidnapped by Jupiter and he was sent to go find her. When he can’t find her he asks the oracle of Apollo what he should do and he said to find a female cow and follow it to wherever it stops to rest. Cadmus is instructed to call the region Boeotia. He follows these orders and knows the appropriate thing to do is to offer a sacrifice to Apollo. He sends his men to find fresh spring water but they are all killed by a snake. Cadmus goes to look for his men and finds the snake which he kills. Then Minerva appears and tells him to plow the ground and plant the snake’s teeth. They grow into a giant army of warriors that kill each other until 5 are left. The last five make peace with one another. Ovid says Cadmus ends up having a great life after all that happens with a wife and kids.
10
Q
Diana and Actaron
A
Actaeon, grandson of Cadmus who founded Thebes, was out hunting one day when he got lost. He stumbled upon a grove where the virgin Goddess Diana and her nymphs were bathing. Actaeon accidently saw Diana naked, even though the nymphs tried to hide her body from his view (however, she towered over them, so it was no use). Though it was an accident, Diana was enraged by what happened and turned Actaeon into a stag. Actaeon was deeply saddened and ran away from Diana towards where his men and hounds were. When the hounds noticed Actaeon, they began mercilessly tearing him apart. Oblivious that the stag was actually their leader, Actaeon, turned into a beast, the men cheered the hounds on. In the end, Actaeon is killed by the hounds.
11
Q
Semele
A
lover of jupiter, mother of Bacchus Juno tricks her into asking Jupiter to make love to her with his full power as a god Juno asks Jupiter to grant her an unspecified request and he promises to follow through Jupiter can’t go back on his words and makes love to her with all his power she dies pregnant with Bacchus and Jupiter brings Bacchus to full term in his thigh
12
Q
Teiresias
A
When Jove and Juno fight over the issue of who has more pleasure in sex, man or woman, they ask Teiresias because he is transsexual. He lived life as a man, but after attacking two serpents he was transformed into a woman. When Teiresias goes back to the snakes, he is transformed back into a man. Anyway, Jove believes that women have more pleasure and Juno says that men do. Teiresias takes Jove’s side, with women having more pleasure. Juno is upset with his decision and turns him blind. Because of Juno’s actions, Jove gives Teiresias the power of foresight.
13
Q
Narcissus and Echo
A
blank
14
Q
Pentheus And Bacchus
A
Pentheus mocks the gods and Bacchus is coming to his kingdom and the people in the kingdom are rejoicing. Pentheus thinks Bacchus is ruling Thebes badly and dislikes him. So Pentheus sends out his slaves to capture Acoetes, Bacchus’ companion. They capture him and he tells a tale of when he was out sailing and took aboard a young boy who they thought was a god. It ended up being Bacchus. The men on the crew tricked Bacchus so he killed them all except Acoetes, who then worshipped Bacchus. Pentheus gets mad at the story that wasted time, orders Acoetes to be chained up, but the chains fall off, women chanting and worshipping Bacchus enter and rip Pentheus’ body apart.
15
Q
Arethusa
A
is the goddess of a spring in Sicily. There are two different stories involving Arethusa. (1) While Ceres is frantically looking for Proserpina (See Ceres & Proserpina), Arethusa tells her that she saw Proserpina in the underworld and that Proserpina is now Pluto’s queen.(2) After Ceres settles the situation with Proserpina, Ceres goes back to Arethusa to talk to her. Arethusa tells her the story of why she left Achaea and how she turned into a spring. Originally, Arethusa was a nymph living in the woods of Achaea. She was not interested in men and loved walking through the woods and hunting. After Arethusa went hunting one day, the god Alpheus saw her and fell in love. He chased after her and Arethusa eventually collapsed from exhaustion. Arethusa prayed to Diana to protect her, so Diana turned her into a mist. As Alpheus inspected the mist, Arethusa got so nervous that she started to sweat, which turned her into a puddle. Alpheus transformed himself into a river so he could mingle with Arethusa. Diana split the earth open and the two (both water) trickled down through the cracks and traveled until they ended up in Ortygia. There, Arethusa became a fountain.
16
Q
Pyramus and Thisbe
A
the couple falls in love but their marriage is forbidden by their parents; kept their love a secret, listened and spoke to each other through the wall between their houses and planted a kiss on the wall every night; decided to sneak out and meet in the tomb of Ninus; Thisbe arrives first but sees a lioness from far away, so she runs off and drops her cloak in the process; the lioness mangles the cloak with her bloody jaws and leaves, so when Pyramus arrives he thinks the lioness has eaten Thisbe; Pyramus thrusts his sword into himself in grief; Thisbe returns and sees him dying, so she positions the sword beneath her breast and falls on it
17
Q
Salmacis and Hermaphroditus
A
blank
18
Q
Perseus and Andromeda
A
Perseus sees Andromeda (daughter of Cepheus, king of Ethiopia) chained to a rock on the beach. She is being offered up as a sacrifice to Poseidon, so that he doesn’t send a monster to destroy the land (Poseidon is angry because Andromeda’s mother said she was more beautiful than the Nereids). Perseus kills the monster and rescues Andromeda, and then marries her. However, Andromeda was already engaged to a man named Phineus. Phineus comes into their wedding feast, and there is a big fight. Phineus is angry at Perseus for stealing his fiancé, but Perseus tells Phineus that he didn’t deserve her anyway because he was the one that ended up rescuing her. Perseus then turns Phineus into stone by using Medusa’s head.
19
Q
Crese and Proserpina
A
Mother and daughter respectively. Pluto falls in love with Proserpina and takes her to the underworld where they are married. Ceres, as the goddess of nature and Earth, refuses to let plants grow and people begin to die. When Proserpina is found, Ceres asks if she had eaten anything in the underworld. If she hadn’t, Proserpina could come back and be with her mother. However, she ate 6 seeds from a pomegranate, so she has to be in the underworld for half the year (fall, winter) and with her mother for the other half (spring, summer).
20
Q
Arethusa
A
In the second tale of Arethusa, she tells the story of the river Alpheus’ passion. Arethusa was a nymph who was on her way back from hunting in the Stymphalian forest when she came upon a stream which she waded into. She strips off her clothes and enters the water when suddenly she hears a murmur come from the bottom which turns out to be Alpheus. She tries to flee but Alpheus pursues her and they embark on a cat and mouse chase over mountains and through fields. He finally chases her down and she prays to the goddess, Diana, who hears her cries for help and hides her in a dense cloud of fine mist. Alpheus tries to find her but he cannot until she starts to leave puddles where her footprints should be. Soon after, Arethusa turns into complete liquid and sinks into the earth’s crust where she was first swept off to Ortygia and then rose up again as a fountain.
21
Q
Arachne
A
She is from the land of Lydia (modern Turkey) and is from a humble background and famous for her knitting. She boasts that she could beat Minerva in a weaving contest. Minerva shows up at Arachne’s house disguised as an old woman and urges Arachne to honor the goddess. Arachne refuses so Minerva reveals her true self and challenges her to a contest. Arachne weaves scenes of Jupiter, Neptune, Apollo, Bacchus and Saturn seducing women. Everyone (Including Minerva) agrees her work is flawless. Arachne hangs herself after Minerva tears her work to shreds. Minerva then turns her into a spider.
22
Q
Niobe
A
is a wealthy woman of Thebes, and the proud mother of fourteen children: seven sons and seven daughters. Because of this, she boasts that she is a greater mother than the goddess Latona, who is the mother of Apollo and Diana, because she only has two children.Angered by Niobe’s words against her, Latona sends her children Apollo and Diana to kill her seven sons. Overwhelmed with grief at the death of his children, Niobe’s husband kills himself. Niobe, however, remains almost indifferent, claiming that it doesn’t matter that half of her children are dead since she still had her sever daughter left. Latona then killed her seven daughters, which made Niobe cry out in grief. Latona then turned Niobe to stone and sent her off to a mountain.
23
Q
Latona
A
A goddess is offended by Niobe who refuses to worship her and apollo and diana (her children) outraged her and her children kill Niobe’s children; seven sons and seven daughters the people now fear her
24
Q
Tereus, Procne, and Philomela
A
Athens was under attacked by barbarians, but Tereus of Thrace came, and helped the lead the Athens to victory. The King of Athens gave his daughter’s (Procne) hand in marriage to Tereus as a gift. Their marriage is ill-fated when Juno, Hymenaeus, nor the Graces attended the wedding. After a few years of their marriage, Procne asks her husband to bring her sister, Philomela, because she misses her. Tereus goes back to Athens to fetch her, and brings her back to Thrace. However, Tereus brings the sister back to a hut in the woods, and rapes her. He also cuts her tongue off, and imprisons her in the hut to prevent her from telling Procne. When Tereus returns him he tells Procne her sister died on the journey. A year later, Philomela weaves a message describing what happened to her, and gets a servant to deliver the message to Procne. Procne saves Philomela, sneaks her into the kingdom, and they devise a plan. They take Itys, Tereus and Procne’s son, and kill him to serve to Tereus during the Bacchus feast. Tereus is enraged, and tries to attack the sisters, but the three are turned into birds.
25
Medea and Jason
blank
26
Medea and Pelias' daughters
Medea mixes a potion that makes people and things younger again. She does this successfully for Aeson the brother of Pelias. Then Pelias’ daughters want her to make the same potion for their father. She boils a pot of water but does not actually make the potion. Then the daughters dump the old man in and he croaks.
27
Cephalus and Procris
Cephalus, touched by grief, tells the story of his wife, Procris, who he describes as very attractive. They were married and Procris’ father, Erectheus, approved of the joining of the two. But, in the second month of their marriage Cephalus was ravished by the goddess, Aurora, against his will. He still greatly loved Procris which makes Aurora very angry and she curses him before letting him return to his wife. When he goes back home, nothing seems to be amiss but Cephalus wants to test how loyal his wife really is. He dresses up as a different man and tries to seduce her which she consents to. Even though Procris exiles herself the couple eventually makes up before their second misunderstanding occurs. One day, when Cephalus is calling to the breeze, it is mistaken that he is actually calling for the nymph named Aurora which makes Procris a tad suspicious. She decides to spy on Cephalus during one of his hunting trips and he mistakes her for prey and accidentally shoots and kills her.
28
Scylla and Minos
Alcathous, under the rule of Nisus, is under attack by King Minos; Nisus’ daughter, Scylla, falls in love with Minos and betrays her father by taking a purple lock of her father’s hair because apparently that’s where he holds all of his precious power??? Minos is disgusted with Scylla for what she has done, even though it was for him, so he leaves Alcathous alone; when Scylla sees his crew leaving her with nowhere to go, so she dives into the water and reaches the edge of the ship but Nisus (who now has magically turned into an osprey???) flies over and sees her; Nisus dives to attack his daughter and scares her so that she loses her grip and falls; as she falls, she too is turned into a bird (idk where this whole bird thing came from) and is renamed as Ciris, which refers to the clipped lock of hair
29
Daedalus and Icarus
father and son
30
Althaea and Meleager
Althea gave birth to Meleager her son, and it was predicted by the Fates that he would only live as long as a certain piece of wood was kept from being burnt up. One day, Meleager with his two uncles and another woman named Atalanta, is out hunting a large wild boar that Diana had sent as punishment. Atalanta lands the first blow on the animal, but Meleager ends up killing the boar. He gives the skin to her, because he liked her. His uncles get angry about this, because she is a woman, and try to take the boar’s skin from her. Meleager gets angry and kills both his uncles. When Althea hears this, she gets angry, and throws the block of wood into the fire, and it is consumed, and Meleager dies. Althea then kills herself.
31
Baucis and Philemon
are an old married couple in Phrygia. They were the only ones who welcomed disguised Zeus and Hermes (Jupiter and Mercury) into their home. Despite being poor, they were more generous than their neighbors. When Baucis keeps refilling Hermes’ cup but the pitcher remains filled, she realizes that their guests are gods. Zeus and Hermes reveal themselves and tell Baucis and Philemon to leave town because they plan to destroy it and those who refused to be hospitable. Baucis and Philemon leave, climbing a mountain with Zeus and Hermes, not looking back until they are at the top. At the top, they watch as their town is swept away by a flood and that their little cottage was transformed into a temple. They become guardians of the temple and ask that when one of them dies, the other will as well. Following their deaths, the couple is transformed into an intertwining tree.
32
Erysichthon
(ErySICKthon: SICK from hunger) is the king of Thessaly. One day, he chopped down one of Ceres’ sacred trees. Before he chopped it down, he commanded his men to do it, but they refused. As he started chopping it down, one of Erysichthon’s men tried to stop him, so Erysichthon chopped off his head. Erysichthon continued chopping the tree down--as he did so, blood poured out of the tree and a nymph told him he’ll be punished. After he chopped the tree down, Ceres got really angry and decided to punish Erysichthon, so she sent a nymph to Scythia to fetch Famine. Famine infected Erysichthon. Erysichthon ate everything in sight and was eventually forced to sell his daughter for money to buy food. His daughter could shapeshift, though, so she could be sold over and over again as different things. Eventually, Erysichthon got so desperate that he ate himself.
33
Achelous and Hercules
Achelous (river god) and Hercules were competing to marry Deinaira. Hercules said if they got married she would have Jupiter as a father-in-law. Achelous said he was a God and it would be an outrage if Hercules won Deinaira’s hand. Hercules challenged him to a fight. They seemed evenly matched until Hercules got the upper hand. Achelous changed himself into a snake and Hercules choked him then he turned into a bull and Hercules beat him and pulled his horn off.
34
Hercules, Nessus and Deianira
Hercules and Deianira are newlyweds who are traveling to Hercules’s home in Tiryns. Suddenly, they find their path blocked by a swollen river. Nessus, a centaur who guarded the river, offers to help the couple cross the river. However, when Hercules swims across, Nessus makes a move on Deianira and she screams for Hercules to help her. Hercules then shoots Nessus with an arrow that has a tip that is poisoned with the blood of the hydra. Nessus, seeking revenge on Hercules, then gives his blood to Deianira, convincing her that it has the power to be a love potion. Many years later, Deianira learns that while Hercules was away from home, he had taken another bride. In the hopes of winning him back, Deianira pours Nessus’ blood on a cloak and sends it to Hercules. Unfortunately, when Hercules puts on the cloak, he ends up dying.
35
Alcmena
mother of hercules exchanges stories with her daughter-in-law Iole says Juno and Lucina, goddess of childbearing, kept her in labor for seven days and nights the servant girl was later able to help her
36
Byblis and Caunus
Story of a pair of twins. Byblis is in love with her brother Caunus. Byblis writes a note, describing her love her brother, and gets a servant to send it to Caunus. Caunus is enraged and destroys the note. Caunus exiles himself, and finds himself a new city. Byblis goes to search for him, but fails. Her tears from her sadness are too much, and naiads (water nymphs) turn her into a spring.
37
Iphis and Ianthe
blank
38
Orpheus and Eurydice
Eurydice is married to Orpheus and she gets bit by a snake and dies. Orpheus then goes to the underworld and and asks for her back and even offers himself for her. Finally it is agreed that she can return as long as when they are walking out of the underworld Orpheus trusts that she is there and does not look back. Right at the end he looks back at her, she is there but then disappears and goes back into hell.
39
Pygmalion
is the one who observes the women of Venus and is disgusted by the way they live their lives. He decides to make his own perfect woman out of ivory which he fashions to be so life-like that he actually falls in love with the statue itself. He treats the statue as if it were an actual woman and kisses it, constantly wishing that he would actually find the woman who matches his statue. The gods actually end up hearing Pygmalion’s wishes and lusts so they make the statue come alive for him. Together they have a child named Paphos.
40
Myrrha
beautiful daughter of Cinyras; courted by many suitors but is actually (PLOT TWIST) in love with her father; grieving that she can never be with him, she tries to hang herself but the nurse hears her from next door and forces her to tell her what’s wrong; on the feast days of Ceres, all married women are forbidden from staying with their husbands, so in Cinyras’ wife’s absence, the nurse offers Cinyras a young maiden who is “Myrrha’s age” \*wink wink\* and has been overcome with passion for him; Cinyras excitedly accepts and the nurse fetches Myrrha; they have sex in the dark (barf) and right when Myrrha is about to leave in disgust with herself (heck yeah you should be disgusted with yourself you whore!!!), Cinyras turns on the light and sees that it is his own daughter; he brings out his sword to kill her and she flees and prays for neither life or death; her prayer is answered and she is turned into a tree (cool???) but a child (her father’s child, BARF) continues to grow inside of her; Lucina (who aids those in childbirth with charms and other cool stuff) splits the bark open and saves Myrrha and Cinyras’ son (who eventually grows up to be Adonis’ father)
41
Venus and Adonis
blank
42
Atlanta and Hippomenes
Atalanta was a beautiful woman that had the ability to run faster than any other human. The oracle told her that if she ever married, it would seal her doom. So, she made a rule that anyone who wanted to marry her would have to first beat her in a footrace. If they lost, she would have them executed. Many men died this way. Hippmenes loved her, and with Aphrodites help, won the race by throwing golden apples in her path to distract her. He married her, and they were both very happy. However, Hippomenes forgot to thank Aphrodite for her help, and they were both turned into lions.
43
Midas
King Midas finds Silenus, a friend of Bacchus (Dionysus) and returns him to Bacchus. In return, Bacchus gives him a wish, in which Midas asks to have everything he touches turn to gold. He begins to turn everything into gold like food and drink, but soon realizes it is more of a curse than anything else because he could not eat. Praying to him, Bacchus agrees to take this ability away. Midas then witnesses a contest between Apollo and Pan. Everyone agrees that Apollo won but Midas disagreed, insisting that Pan was better. Upset, Apollo gives him donkey ears. Ashamed of this transformation, Midas keeps his head under wrap, hidden from everyone but his barber. Unable to keep the secret any longer, the barber goes to the meadow and digs a hole, whispering the secret and covering it back up with dirt. Reeds grow from the spot whispering his secret.
44
Peleus and Thetis
is Jupiter’s grandson and Thetis is a sea nymph who can shapeshift. Peleus and Thetis are married and had Achilles together. Here’s the story of how: Jupiter originally had a crush on Thetis, but Proteus foresaw that Thetis would have a son who ends up becoming more powerful than his father. Jupiter didn’t want to be overpowered, so he encouraged his grandson Peleus to marry Thetis. Peleus visits Thetis in her cave and tries to sweet talk her, but she doesn’t give in, so Peleus tries to rape her. However, Thetis is a shapeshifter and keeps changing shapes, so Peleus struggles. Peleus asks Proteus for advice and Proteus tells him to tie Thetis up while she’s sleeping. When she wakes, she’ll shapeshift, but be unable to escape. Peleus takes his advice and Thetis surrenders. Thetis soon becomes pregnant with Achilles.
45
Ceyx and Alcyone
Ceyx is King of Trachin and is mourning. He explains that Daedalion (Ceyx’s brother) had a daughter named Chione. She was raped by Apollo and Mercury and gave birth to twin sons. All the glory went to her head and she claimed she was more beautiful than the goddess Diana. Diana shot an arrow through her tongue and she bled to death. Daedalion jumped off a cliff but Apollo turned him into a hawk. Ceyx decides to visit an oracle for advice. When Alcyone (his wife) finds out she warns him about the dangers of sea-travel. He and his men get caught in a storm at sea and he spends his last breath praying that his body will wash ashore so Alcyone can bury him, then he dies. Alcyone has no idea what happened to her husband so the god of sleep reveals the truth to her in a dream. She goes to the shore and sees a body floating in the water and then both Ceyx and Alcyone are turned into Kingfishers.
46
Achilles and Cycnus
Achilles is the great and honored hero that fought for the Greeks during the Trojan War. In battle, Achilles killed many Trojan soldiers, but was unable to kill Cycnus, the son of Neptune, when they met on the battlefield. When Achilles tries to stab Cycnus with his spear, it barely scratches his armor and leaves him unharmed. Achilles then tries to strike Cycnus with his bare hands, but again he remains uninjured. Enraged and confused, Achilles tries to kill Cycnus again, without success. The reason for this is that Cycnus was protected by Neptune, who transformed him into a white bird when Achilles tried to kill him.
47
Ajax and Ulysses
both compete for Achilles’s armor Ajax argues that he has been very involved in battle and points out his ancestry points out Ulysses left his comrade in battle. ulysses’s armor is in perfect condition and Achilles’s armor is too heavy for him Ulysses argues that merit should determine it if ancestry did matter he said his was better than Ajax’s argues he is smarter and has battle scares to prove his heroics Ulysses receives the armor from the chieftains
48
Hecuba, Polyxena, and Polydorus
Their story takes place when the Greeks are attacking Troy. Hecuba is the Queen of Troy and wife to Priam. Polydorus is their son, and is at Polymester’s but is killed by him because he is carrying gold. Achilles’ ghost commands the Greeks to take and make Polyxena her be a sacrifice. Polyxena willingly lets herself be taken so she is not dying as a slave. While bringing her daughter to the shore to cleanse her body, Hecuba sees her son’s corpse. Hecuba (and other women) meet up with Polymester and kill him in a gory manner. During all this Hecuba is turned into a hound.
49
Acis and Galatea
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50
Scylla, Glaucus, Circe
Scylla was once a beautiful girl. The tale opens with a nymph telling a story about Polyphemus, who used to love Scylla. Then Scylla tells the story of Glaucus once fell in love with her, but he was a merman. He decides to go to Circe for help, who then falls in love with Glaucus. Circe is jealous that Glaucus loves Scylla and poisons her and turns her into the monster that she is in the Odyssey. Circe is in another tale titled Circe Revisited and Circe and Picus. The tale is being told by one of the crew members left behind by Odysseus, his name is Aeneas. He tells of how only one of Odysseus ships got away from the Cyclopes throwing rocks and then how they landed on Circe's island, and Odysseus sent men ahead to check it out, and they were turned into pigs. Then Odysseus came and saved them.
51
Pomona and Vertumnus
Pomona is a wood nymph who is sought after by many men, including the god Vertumnus. Therefore, Vertumnus disguises himself as an old man and tells Pomona the story of Iphis. Iphis was a very down to earth man who was in love with Anaxarete, a girl who was much richer and more noble than he was. Anaxarete does not love Iphis back so he ends up hanging himself and when Anaxarete finds out this, she turns to stone. After he is done telling this tale, Vertumnus reveals his true being to Pomona and tries to take her by force. It turns out that Pomona was highly moved by the story of Iphis and Anaxarete and she allows Vertumnus to have her.
52
Hippolytus
son of Theseus; his stepmother, Phaedra, was in love with him (what is with all of the incest with parents and kids like really why); banished from the city by his father when he discovers what they’ve done; while riding away on his chariot, he is almost hit by a huge wave but then is attacked by a roaring bull running towards him, so his horses veer to other direction and they hit a tree; technically, Hippolytus dies because he goes to the Underworld, but then is revived by Apollo’s son Aesculapius and given a different appearance and identity (now “Virbius”) by Cynthia; tells the story of Cipus, whom the Etruscan high priest predicted would be king after seeing his horns, but Cipus rejects kingship (this part was confusing, if anyone else wants to clear this up a little I would be eternally grateful)
53
Apotheosis of Julius Caesar
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54
prologue
The Canterbury Tales begin with the narrator stopping at an inn on his way to Canterbury. That night, a group of pilgrims also on their way to Canterbury arrive at the inn. The narrator then describes each person. The host at the inn suggests that to make the journey more pleasant, each member should tell two tales on the journey to Canterbury, and two tales on the journey back. The person who told the best tale would be rewarded with a nice dinner paid by the other members of the party. Everyone in the party agrees to this. The host decides to accompany them to serve as the judge.
55
knight
Tells the first of the stories in the Canterbury Tales. The Knight has five ideals: chivalry, truth, honor, freedom, courtesy and has a long impressive military history, fighting in the crusades. He is kind and gentle in manner, wanting to hear nice lighthearted stories, instead of ones of tragic falls. The Knight also intervenes when the Host and the Pardoner exchange words, wanting to stop the conflict.
56
theseus (chaucer)
is featured in the Knight’s Tale. He is the duke of Athens and married to Hippolyta. After successfully invading Scythia, Theseus returns home with Hippolyta and her sister Emily. On their way, they meet a group of crying women who tell him that Creon refuses to give their husbands a proper burial and ask that Theseus takes vengeance on Creon. Theseus agrees, heads to Thebes, and conquers. Theseus returns the women’s husbands’ bones and captures two prisoners of war, Palamon and Arcite. Theseus locks Palamon and Arcite in a tower. Later, as Palamon and Arcite fight over Emily, Theseus discovers them and breaks up the fight. He wants to have the two men put to death, but he changes his mind and instead asks them to each get 100 knights and fight over Emily in a year. When Arcite dies, Theseus arranges a fancy funeral for him and recommends for Palamon to marry Emily.
57
Hippolyta (Chaucer)
Theseus won her as a wife in battle. Arcite and Palamon duel and Theseus orders them to stop and threatens to put them to death. Hippolyta and her sister Emily beg for mercy and Theseus reconsiders.
58
palamon
a character from the Knight’s Tale. He is a young, rather dramatic knight who is imprisoned with his cousin Arcite in Athens by the duke, Theseus. One day, Palamon wakes to see the beautiful Emily, the sister of Theseus’s late wife, in the courtyard through the window and falls in love with her. Unfortunately, when Arcite sees her, he also falls in love, and the two men begin fighting over her. Arcite is later released from prison and returns in Athens in disguise as a servant to work for Emily. Palamon is not released, but escapes by drugging the jailer and running away. When Palamon sees Arcite, they begin to duel over Emily. However, Theseus arrives and stops the fight, deciding to give each of them one year to assemble 100 men for a jousting tournament. The winner of the tournament will win Emily’s hand in marriage. Emily, not wanting to marry either of them, prays to Goddess Diana for the one who truly loves her to win, Palamon prays to Venus to marry Emily and Arcite prays to Mars to win the joust. In the end, although Arcite wins the joust after wounding Palamon, he is thrown from his horse. In his final moments, Arcite gives Emily to Palamon, claiming he will be a good husband. Palamon marries Emily, and somehow, everything that the three prayed for is fulfilled.
59
arcita
brother to Palamon also imprisoned in the tower in the knight’s tale falls in love with Emily gets out of the tower before Palamon Wins Emily’s hand in the tournament dies because the god creates a earthquake to throw him off his horse
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emily
sister in law to Theseus. Palamon and Arcite are prisoners of Theseus, and both fall in love with Emily. Arcite leaves prison, and works his way up to be a servant for Theseus. He encounters Palamon again, and the two fight. Theseus sets up a battle for Emily’s hand in marriage. The day of the battle Emily prays to Diana asking her if she does not wed, and if she does to the man who loves her most. Arcite wins the battle, but dies. Palamon and Emily then get married.
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physician tale
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appius
A judge in the town that Virginia lives in. She is beautiful and he demands to have her. He then sends Claudius to go capture the girl. In Appias’ court Claudius says that Virginia belongs to him and that Virginius stole her when she was young. Appuis demands her. She chooses to have her father kill her. The father returns the head of his daughter to judge Appias and he charges Virginius with murder. The people rally behind Virginius though once they figure out Appuis was lying. They throw him in jail and exile Claudius.
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claudius
When the judge, Appius, falls madly in love with the beautiful daughter of Virginius, Virginia, he sends for the most famous guard, Claudius, to capture the girl at any cost. While in court, Claudius accuses Virginius of stealing Virginia, whom he claims was a servant girl in his house many years ago and that he is now pretending she is his daughter. Before Virginius has a chance to defend himself, the greedy judge demands that the girl must be brought to the courtroom. When Virginius goes to get his daughter, he tells her she must accept death or be shamed at the hands of Apius and Claudius. She decides that she wants to die a virgin and her father kills her. Claudius is ultimately sentenced to death but pleads mercy and asks for exile instead.
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virginius
A rich, amiable knight has one daughter named Virginia who is beautiful beyond compare, gets called to Appius’ court by Claudius (who is actually working for Appius because Appius wants Virginia) and is accused of stealing a servant (Virginia) who rightfully belongs to Claudius; Claudius claims that Virginia is not actually his daughter, with her daughter’s consent, he kills her by cutting her head off to avoid becoming Claudius’ slave and giving herself over to the lustful Appius; hands over Virginia’s head and is then exiled by Appius’ court
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virginia
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66
The miller's tale
The Miller’s Tale is about a carpenter (John), his beautiful wife (Alison), and two students. John rents a room in his house out to one student (Nicholas). When John is away one day, Nicholas convinces Alison to sleep with him. Also, Absolon, a student at the church, is in love with Alison, but she isn’t interested in him. Alison and Nicholas hatch a scheme so they will be able to sleep together. Nicholas convinces John that God is about to send another flood like Noah’s, and that the only way they will survive is by hanging buckets from the attic ceiling, and sleeping in them. When the waters rises, they will cut the ropes and float away. John climbs into his bucket, not realizing that Nicholas and Alison are spending the night in John’s bed. That night, Absolon comes along and begs for a kiss, and she sticks her butt out the window, and he kisses it. Angry, Absolon gets a hot poker and comes back. This time, Nicholas sticks his butt out the window, and Absolon brands him with the poker. Nicholas cries “Water!” to ease the pain, and John thinks this is the flood, and cuts the rope attaching his bucket to the ceiling. He crashes onto the ground and is hurt. Nicholas and Alison tell the townspeople that gather at the racket that he has gone mad, and they mock him.
67
nicolas the gallant
From the Miller’s Tale. He is a young scholar who lodges in John’s house. Soon he and Alison have an affair. He says that the three of them need to sleep on top of the barn in bathtubs, because a new flood is coming. Instead, when John falls asleep, Nicholas and Alison climb out of the bath and spend the night together. He gets poked by Absalom as revenge for Alison sticking her butt out instead of kissing him. This wakes John, who crashes down and wakes the neighbors. Nicholas and Alison convince the neighbors John is crazy, getting away with their affair.
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the carpenter
) is featured in the Miller’s Tale. He is married to Alison, who is much younger than him, and rents a room out to Nicholas. One day, when John goes to town, Alison and Nicholas have an affair. Later, Nicholas and Alison decide that they want to spend the night together, so Nicholas tricks John. Nicholas convinces John that another great flood is coming, and that in order to save themselves, they need to tie tubs to the ceiling and cut the ropes away when the water comes. John climbs into his tub and waits. When Nicholas gets burnt by a hot poker and cries for water, John wakes up and cuts his ropes because he thinks that the flood is coming. He crashes to the floor and everyone thinks he’s crazy.
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alison
She is 18 and married to a carpenter named John. They lived with Nicholas. When John leaves Nicholas and Alison start flirting and eventually she agrees to sleep with him. A clerk also is in love with Alison but she loves Nicholas. He tells her to tell John that he is sick so that they can spend the night together. Nicholas tells John that a flood is coming so they all decide to sleep in bathtubs to survive. After John falls asleep Nicholas and Alison climb down and sleep together again. John tells everyone about the predicted flood but Alison and Nicholas play dumb and pretend he’s gone mad.
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absalon
a character from the Miller’s Tale. A fussy man of the church who is in love with the young and beautiful Alison, the wife of the Carpenter. Absalon confesses his love for Alison by serenading her outside her bedroom window, but she just finds him annoying. One night, as Alison is having an affair with her lover, Nicholas, Absalon comes to her window and asks for a kiss. As a joke, Alison sticks her butt out the window and tricks Absalon into kissing it and laughs. Enraged, Absalon goes to get a hot poker and returns to the window, promising to give her a golden ring in exchange for another kiss. This time, Nicholas sticks his butt out the window, and he is burned with Absalon’s poker. Needless to say, Absalon does not get Alison.
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reeve
is like a steward of a manor steals from his master but makes sure the other servants don’t steal from the master
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simpkin
A bellicose miller who steals corn from the Cambridge College. He has a wife, and a daughter. John and Alan try to catch Simpkin’s act, but he lets their horse loose causing them to get distracted. He allows the two students to stay in his home for the night. After confusion during the night the Alan and John slept with the miller’s wife and daughter. Simpkin finds out Alan slept with his daughter and attacks him. His wife tries to help, but hits her husband over the head after mistaking him for Alan. The two students then proceed to gang up on Simpkin and run off with the cake (made from their corn).
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pardoner's tale
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death
The three friends mentioned below decide that they are going to kill death. Literally just read the one below this.
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"three friends"
In The Pardoner’s Tale, three friends start off the tale sitting in an inn drinking far more than they should and swearing things that they should not be swearing. When they pass by a coffin, they ask who has died and a servant informs that the man who died was a friend of his who was stabbed in the back by a thief named Death. The three friends who are fearless decide that Death may be in the next town and that they are going to try and slay him. On the way there, they meet an old man who tells them he must meet someone who is willing to exchange youth for old age. He says that not even Death will take his life so the three friends immediately ask him if he knows where Death can be found. He directs them to a tree where they find gold which they decide to keep. They decide to wait till night to actually take the money and draw straws to see which one of them will have to go into the town to get wine and food. The youngest of the three friends draws the shortest straw, and when he leaves, the other two decide to make a plan to kill him when he returns and split his share of the money. The youngest, however, also wants the money to himself so he buys poison and puts it in the wine he is bringing back for the two others. When he returns they stab him and then drink the wine so ironically enough all three of the friends end up finding Death.
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John
Wife of Bath’s fifth husband; a scholar who is younger than any of her past husbands; met her while her fourth husband is away; catches Wife of Bath’s eye again while he is carrying her fourth husband’s casket at his funeral (damn she bounces back fast); they get married and he becomes an abusive husband, which the Wife of Bath is not used to; has a “book of wicked wives” that he reads to Alice until she rips out three pages and he hits her on the side of her head (causing her to go deaf in that ear); apologizes and promises to be a good husband if she is a good wife; he burns the book
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Alan
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78
Shipman
About a rich merchant with a beautiful wife. A monk, sir John, is very close friends with the merchant. One day, while visiting, the wife tells sir John that she is neglected, and he agrees to lend her 100 francs, so she can buy clothes. He then confesses his love to her, and they kiss. Later that night, Sir John asks the merchant for 100 francs, so he can buy cattle, and the merchant gives him the money. The next day, the merchant leaves on a trip, and Sir John returns to their house with the money, gives it to the wife, and they sleep with each other. Sometime later, the merchant stops by sir John’s abbey, and the monk tells him he repaid the 100 francs to the merchant’s wife. When the merchant gets home, he chides his wife for not telling him, and she tells him she used it to buy clothes, and she will sleep with him to make up for it. The end.
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merchant (shipman's tale)
- a simple man whose wife does not love him. She enjoys buying expensive things and tricks the monk into giving her money in exchange for sleeping with him. However, the monk gets this money from the merchant, and when the merchant asks for his money back, the monk insists he gave it to his wife. When the merchant asks his wife, the wife says she spent it thinking it was okay and to make up for it, she sleeps with him. The merchant is easily duped and convinced.
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merchant's wife
is a terrible wife who inspires the merchant to tell his story about a deceitful woman named May. The merchant is miserable and claims that it’s because of his wife. The merchant’s wife gives the merchant a negative impression of women.
81
sir john the monk
is invited to spend a few days in the merchant’s home. He talks with the merchant’s wife who asks him for money to buy clothes. He kisses her and professes his love for her. He asks the merchant for money to buy cattle and gives it to the wife in exchange for her spending the night in bed with him. He returns to find his wife in grief.
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squire
After the merchant’s tale concludes, the guests ask the squire to tell a tale about love since he knows so much about it. He begins to tell the story of a king named Cambuskan who has two sons and a beautiful daughter, Canace. Cambuskan throws a great party in celebration of having ruled the kingdom for 20 years. A Knight of Araby shows up to the party and presents gifts to Cambuskan from his king. Among these gifts was a magical ring, which he gives to Canace, that gives her the power to talk to any living creature. One day, Canace hears a lady flacon crying in grief after being abandoned by the love of her life. Weak form flying all over the world, the falcon suddenly faints and Canace catches her and nurses her back to health. Though the squire has many other stories, possibly involving the other gifts from the knight, he is interrupted by the Franklin as he begins his tale.
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canace
daughter of Cambushkan youngest among her two older bothers her father gives her the ring he received from a knight the ring grants the power to speak the language of any living thingshe hears a lady falcon crying one morning and learns that she had been wooed and abandoned by a young falcon she helps nurse the lady falcon back to health
84
wife of bath tale
: the tale that the Wife of Bath tells us is about a lustrous knight who forces a girl to sleep with him. This enrages King Arthur’s people, and they demand for his death. The Queen intervenes, and allows him to live for one year to find what women truly desire. The knight meets an old lady, who is the only one willing to help him out, but only if the knight agrees to marry her. On their wedding night, the old woman asks the knight if he would rather have a beautiful and unfaithful wife or an ugly and faithful wife. The knight says the choice is hers, so the old woman rewards him by turning into a beautiful woman who will also be faithful. The two live happily together. Goes by Alice. She is a woman who has had multiple marriages. In her prologue we learn the she has been married five times, and that she has had control in the relationship each time. She believes the only way for a relationship to be successful is if the woman is in control.
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knight/queen
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merchant (merchant's tale)
opens with his prologue complaining about marriage. Says its the worst thing ever and tells people not to get married. Then he starts his tale about a knight and his marriage/love.
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January
January is a wealthy, elderly knight who decides he wants to get married. He wishes to do so because he wants to fulfill the deed of man and woman uniting and he wants to have a son that can inherit his belongings. January’s two friends are really of no help to him as one of them warns him of the unfaithfulness of women and the other says that choosing a wife is a decision that only January himself can make. After careful thought, January chooses a beautiful, young girl named May. One of January’s attendants named Damian falls madly in love with May and through notes she tells him that she is also in love with him. When January suddenly goes blind, he asks that May always be by his side and she uses this to try and trick him. She pretends that she has extreme lust for a pear at the top of the tree when really she just wants January’s help in getting into the tree where Damian is waiting. Suddenly, with the interference of the gods, January’s sight is restored and he is outraged that his wife is having intercourse with Damian. In a twist of events, May is able to convince January that when you first get your sight back you see things that aren’t really true and because he loves her so much he believes her.
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Placebo
one of the knight’s close friends; supports knight in whatever decision he makes, whether it is to marry or not marry;
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Justinius
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90
May and Damian
The merchant hates his wife, and after 2 months of marriage, is in agony. A wealthy, elderly knight (January) decides to marry, and marries a beautiful girl named May. One of his attendants, Damian, is also in love with May, so much so that he becomes physically ill. January feels bad for him, and sends his wife and other women to comfort him, and Damian slips May a note, where he expresses his love for her, and she says she loves him back. Then January is blinded, and he says May must remain with him at all times, she can go nowhere unless she holds his hand. However, May gives Damian a copy of the key to January’s secret garden, and he hides in a tree. Meanwhile, the gods Pluto and his wife Proserpina, discuss the situation and decide to take action. Pluto will give January his sight back because he says women are deceitful, and Proserpina says she will give May an excuse, because men are lecherous. May then goes into the garden with January, and says she wants a pear. She stands on his back, has sex with Damian, who is in the tree, while standing on January’s back. Miraculously, January’s sight is restored, and he sees what is going on, and flips out. However, May tells him that when you first get your sight back, you see strange things, and he forgives her.
91
Franklin
a gentry landowner, apart of the nobility. He is generously hospitable, always sharing food and making room for his guests. Known as “Saint Julian” in his area (the patron of hospitality). He tells the story of Arveragus who goes away on a trip and his wife, Dorigen and Aurelius have an affair.
92
Dorigen
is featured in the Franklin’s Tale. She marries the knight Arveragus. Shortly after their wedding, Arveragus goes to England for 2 years and Dorigen is very upset and constantly worries about her husband. One day, Dorigen agrees to go to a dance and meets Aurelius, who has secretly been in love with Dorigen for 2 years. Dorigen jokingly says that she’ll marry him if he can remove all the rocks from the coast. 2 years later, Aurelius’ brother tells him about a magician. Aurelius goes to the magician and promises to pay him 1,000 pounds if he can remove the rocks from the coast. The magician does and Dorigen, horrified, tells her husband and her husband tells her she should keep her promise. Dorigen tries to give herself to Aurelius, but Aurelius gives Dorigen back to Arveragus after seeing how noble he is.
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Arveragus
He is a knight. He marries a young maiden, Dorigen. After the wedding he goes to England and is gone for 2 years. After finding out Dorigen promised to marry Aurelius if he removes all the rocks from the coast, he tells Dorigen that she must keep his promise.
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Aurelius
a character from the Franklin’s Tale. Aurelius is a young, wealthy and very handsome man who is in love with Dorigen, the beautiful young wife of a wealthy knight named Arveragus. When Arveragus has to leave for England for a few years, Dorigen weeps as she grieves over his absence. She often goes to the shore to look out at the rocks, worried that Arveragus won’t get home safely. Aurelius confesses his love for Dorigen, who promises her love in return if he removes all of the rocks from the coast. Convinced that Dorigen’s request is impossible, Aurelius returns home and falls ill. His brother then tells him of a student who is also a practiced magician and Aurelius goes to see him. The magician agrees to remove the rocks in exchange for 1,000 pounds. When Dorigen, who only made her promise to Aurelius because she never thought it was possible, finds out what Aurelius had done, she weeps and contemplates suicide. When Arveragus returns, she is forced to tell him what happened, and he tells her to go to Aurelius so that she can fulfill her promise. However, when Aurelius sees what Arveragus has done, he sends Dorigen back to her husband. When Aurelius goes to pay back his debt, he realizes he doesn’t have enough money (only about half). Fortunately for him, after hearing what Aurelius did, the magician forgives Aurelius’s debt.
95
theseus
the Duke engaged to the Amazonian Hippolyta throughout the playIs set to have a wedding by the end of the playIs approached by Ergos, Hermia’s father, because he wants her to marry Demetrius instead of LysanderGives Hermia 3 choicesmarry Demetriusbecome a nunface death
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hippolyta
An Amazon Queen who marries Theseus. She is not happy about having to marry Theseus because Amazons aren’t supposed to marry. After hearing the tales of what happened in the forest, Hippolyta is not doubtful of the story, unlike Theseus.
97
egeus
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98
hermia
She is one of the main characters in the story. In the beginning both of the men. Lysander and Demetrius, but she only likes Lysander. In the middle of the play, both men fall for Helena. In the end Hermia ends up with Lysander after all the love juice mess up is figured out. Her father is Egeus, who will not allow her to marry Lysander. Because of this they snwho will not allow her to marry Lysander. Because of this, they sneak into the woods and the love potion fiasco goes down.
99
lysander
is a young Athenian man who is in love with Hermia. He is stuck in a sticky situation because he cannot marry Hermia since her father, Egeus, will only allow her to marry another Athenian man, Demetrius, whom he feels is more worthy of his daughter’s hand in marriage. Hermia and Lysander decide to sneak off into the woods together but they become victims of Puck’s messed up magic when he mistakes Lysander for Demetrius and accidentally makes him fall in love with Helena. In the end, everything ends up how it should be and Lysander ends up marrying Hermia.
100
helena
- falls in love with Demetrius; Demetrius takes her virginity and dumps her (what an asshole) , and then he wants Hermia instead; Helena is relentless and follows Demetrius around and into the woods, still hoping to win him back; Demetrius gets the love potion and falls in love with Helena (but she thinks she’s being tricked by him, Lysander, and Hermia); in the end Demetrius and Helena end up together again.
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demetrius
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102
titania
Queen of the fairies, wife of Oberon, powerful, and is raising a little boy. She fights with her husband a lot, and is sassy and self centered. She is afraid that the natural order of things will be upset by her and her husband’s quarrels, but is still unwilling to compromise. She also falls in love with Bottom, because of a spell set by her husband. However, even after the spell is released, she doesn’t really care that she was in love with another man.
103
oberon
The king of all the fairies, married to Titania. Oberon wants to raise a changeling child as a servant but Titania disagrees because it is her child with one of her mortal followers. Their arguments affect the weather. He tricks Titania into loving Bottom and it is not until it affects all the other characters that he feels ashamed for doing so, and reverses the spell.
104
puck/robin goodfellow
is a mischievous elf who serves Oberon. Oberon sends him to get a magical flower with juice that can make the person anointed fall in love with whatever they first see. After Oberon sees Demetrius acting cruel to Helena, he orders Puck to anoint Demetrius and make him fall in love with Helena. Puck mistakenly anoints Lysander so that Lysander falls in love with Helena. Puck also transforms Bottom’s head into that of a donkey. Puck later mends his mistake by leading Lysander and Demetrius in opposite directions. They fall asleep and Puck makes them love who they originally loved. At the end of the play, Puck urges the audience to see the play as a dream.
105
rude mechanicals
A group of skilled laborers from Athens who put on a play for Theseus and Hippolyta. Peter Quince (carpenter) is the leader of the group and assigns parts and directs the play. Snug (carpenter who makes doors, window frames and cabinets) is “slow of study” and plays the part of the lion. Nick Bottom is egotistical and is given the lead role in the play (Pyramus). Francis Flute (bellows mender) plays Thisbe. Tom Snout (tinker) is cast as Pyramus’ father, but due to lack of funds to build the set for the play, he ends up playing the part of the wall. Robin Starveling (tailor) is originally supposed to play the part of the Thisbe’s mother but ends up playing the part of “moonshine” because the rude mechanicals don’t know if there is a window in the room they will be performing in.
106
bottom
Nick Bottom, a weaver, is a loud and charismatic member of the acting troupe called the Rude Mechanicals in Athens, Greece. The troupe plans to put on the play “Pyramus and Thisbe” for the wedding of Theseus and Hippolyta and Bottom is cast as the lead: Pyramus. However, as they rehearse in the forest, things go awry when the fairy Puck turns Bottom into a donkey. When the rest of the Mechanicals see him, they run away in fear. Bottom, unaware of his transformation, believes they are playing a trick on him and begins to sing loudly. Meanwhile, the fairy queen Titania, whose husband Oberon put the juice of a flower in her eyes while she was asleep to make her fall in love with the first creature she sees, is woken up by Bottom and falls in love with him. Eventually, Oberon feels bad for his wife and lifts the spell, causing Titania to recoil from Bottom in disgust. Later, Bottom plays Pyramus in the play at the wedding, which ends up being a comedy despite its tragic intent.
