The fool

Putting the comedy in dramatic comedy
What is the difference between these stock comic characters?

Trickster Fool
In European cultures, he is often A silly or stupid person; a person
a thief or liar, a practical joker who lacks judgment or sense. They
and sometimes clever at are sometimes a person who has
disguise. They delight in the Which of these been tricked or deceived into
chaos and disorder they comic characters
appearing or acting silly or stupid.
manage. do we see in
MSND?

Clown Jester
Often a person who does Makes his living by begging for tips
comical tricks, but is better for his jokes and songs; he is usually
defined by the word ‘buffoon’. attached to a noble household. His
The character is usually clumsy role is to deflate, through wit, the
and unsophisticated. more pretentious attitudes of those
in power.

Putting the comedy into dramatic comedy
Learning Objective
• How does Shakespeare establish the roles of
the Clown and the Trickster in MSND?
• What is each ones impact on the dramatic
comedy?
• How are their functions different?
IMPORTANT: Character as ‘construction’ – not as ‘real’
One of the main errors many students make in their discussion of texts is to present
studies of characters in dramatic comdies as if they are somehow ‘real’, explaining
their characteristics, personality and traits as if they actually exist, and somehow
forgetting that they are a fictional construct. You should think about the way the
dramatist (Shakespeare) constructs the character – using form, structure and
language. It may also be useful to consider their dramatic function in the play.

Robin Goodfellow, the Puck
Exploring characterisation
Our first encounter with the character of Puck is in Act
2 Scene 1 where the Fairy describes his character.
• Read lines 2:1:32-41. Find as many verbs and
adjectives as you can to help describe Puck’s character.
What first impressions are we given of Puck?

On Puck’s entrance, he describes himself to the
audience.
• Read 2:1:42-57. Add to your verb and adjective list.
How does this add to our understanding of Puck’s
character?

The context of his character
His name is Robin and he is a puck, a type of goblin. He is not
a fairy; the fairy in Act 2 Scene 1 certainly recognises him as
different from herself. Before Shakespeare, he was not
classified as a puck either, but as an earth spirit. In folklore he
always carried a broom with him (as he seems to do in Act 5,
when he tells us “I am sent with broom before...”(5:1:379) so
that he could help maids who had behaved well and so
deserved his assistance. He also took great interest in sorting
out love conflicts, as in a fashion he does in MSND.
His last name, Goodfellow, is a propitiatory coinage, given to
him by countryfolk who wished to flatter him into leaving
them alone.
We need to remember that despite an overlay of Christianity,
people in this period were still very superstitious, believing in
the work of fairies and little people.

Lines Action (in own words) Mischief (add the quote Thoughtfulness Note on form
here if it shows mischief) (add the quote here if it of speech
shows thoughtfulness)
2:1:32-58
2:1:175-6 Throughout the play, Puck’s actions reflect his role as a
trickster.
2:2:72-89 •Copy and complete the table looking at his actions
3:1:60-63 over the course of the play. Forms of speech:
3:1:88-93 couplets,
•How do his actions reflect his role as a trickster? Are quatrains (four
3:2:6-34 any of his actions not in fitting with this role? lines of verse),
3:2:38-40 blank verse,
3:2:42 •Some directors have chosen to present the puck as a prose.
dark, malevolent character. What features of
3:2:92-93
Shakespeare’s characterisation support this reading
3:2:100-101 of the puck?
•What is an alternative way of presenting the puck?
3:2:110-115 (support with evidence please)
3:2:118-121

Lines Action (in own words) Mischief (add the quote Thoughtfulness Note on form
here if it shows mischief) (add the quote here if it of speech
shows thoughtfulness)
2:1:32-58
2:1:175-6
2:2:72-89
3:1:60-63
3:1:88-93
3:2:6-34
3:2:38-40
3:2:42
3:2:92-93
3:2:100-101

3:2:110-115
3:2:118-121

The Trickster I am that merry wanderer of the night.
I jest to Oberon, and make him smile,
When I a fat and bean-fed horse beguile,
...you are that shrewd and knavish sprite Neighing in likeness of a filly foal;
Call'd Robin Goodfellow. Are not you he And sometime lurk I in a gossip's bowl
That frights the maidens of the villagery, In very likeness of a roasted crab,
Skim milk, and sometimes labor in the quern, And, when she drinks, against her lips I bob,
And bootless make the breathless housewife churn, And on her withered dewlap pour the ale.
And sometime make the drink to bear no barm, The wisest aunt, telling the saddest tale,
Mislead night-wanderers, laughing at their harm? Sometime for three-foot stool mistaketh me;
(2:1:32-38) Then slip I from her bum, down topples she,
And ‘tailor’ cries, and falls into a cough;
And then the whole quire hold their hips and laugh...
(2:1:42-58)
Enter Robin [Goodfellow (Puck)]
(3:1:60) Captain of our fairy band, [Re-enter Puck, and Bottom with an ass's head]
Helena is here at hand, (3:1:95)
This is he, my master said, And the youth, mistook by me
Despised the Athenian maid; Pleading for a lover's fee; Then will two at once woo one.
And here the maiden, sleeping sound, Shall we their fond pageant see? That must needs be sport alone;
On the dank and dirty ground. Lord, what fools these mortals be! And those things do best please me
Pretty soul! she durst not lie (3:2:110-115)
That befall preposterously.
Near this lack-love, this kill-courtesy.
(3:2:118)
Churl, upon thy eyes I throw I go, I go; look how I go,
All the power this charm doth owe: Swifter than arrow from the Tartar's bow.
When thou wakest let love forbid (3:2:101) I'll put a girdle round about the earth
Sleep his seat on thy eyelid. In forty minutes
(2:2:72-82) My mistress with a monster is in love (2:1:175)
(3:2:30)
And those
I took him sleeping,—that is finish'd too,—
Then fate o'er-rules, that, one man holding troth, And the Athenian woman by his side;(40) things please
A million fail, confounding oath on oath. That, when he waked, of force she must be eyed me best
(3:2:91-92) (3:2:39-41)
This is the woman, but not this the man. That happen
(43) ridiculously.

The Trickster I am that merry wanderer of the night.
I jest to Oberon, and make him smile,
When I a fat and bean-fed horse beguile,
Rhyming
...you are that shrewd and knavish sprite Neighing in likeness of a filly foal; Couplets
Call'd Robin Goodfellow. Are not you he And sometime lurk I in a gossip's bowl Stage
That frights the maidens of the villagery, In very likeness of a roasted crab,
Skim milk, and sometimes labor in the quern, And, when she drinks, against her lips I bob, Directions
And bootless make the breathless housewife churn, And on her withered dewlap pour the ale. Blank
And sometime make the drink to bear no barm, The wisest aunt, telling the saddest tale,
Mislead night-wanderers, laughing at their harm? Sometime for three-foot stool mistaketh me; Verse
(2:1:32-38) Then slip I from her bum, down topples she,
And ‘tailor’ cries, and falls into a cough;
And then the whole quire hold their hips and laugh...
(2:1:42-58)
Enter Robin [Goodfellow (Puck)]
(3:1:60) Captain of our fairy band, [Re-enter Puck, and Bottom with an ass's head]
Helena is here at hand, (3:1:95)
This is he, my master said, And the youth, mistook by me
Despised the Athenian maid; Pleading for a lover's fee; Then will two at once woo one.
And here the maiden, sleeping sound, Shall we their fond pageant see? That must needs be sport alone;
On the dank and dirty ground. Lord, what fools these mortals be! And those things do best please me
Pretty soul! she durst not lie (3:2:110-115) That befall preposterously.
Near this lack-love, this kill-courtesy. (3:2:118)
Churl, upon thy eyes I throw I go, I go; look how I go,
All the power this charm doth owe: Swifter than arrow from the Tartar's bow.
When thou wakest let love forbid (3:2:101) I'll put a girdle round about the earth
Sleep his seat on thy eyelid. In forty minutes
(2:2:72-82) My mistress with a monster is in love (2:1:175)
(3:2:30)

I took him sleeping,—that is finish'd too,—
Then fate o'er-rules, that, one man holding troth, And the Athenian woman by his side;(40)
A million fail, confounding oath on oath. That, when he waked, of force she must be eyed
(3:2:91-92) (3:2:39-41)
This is the woman, but not this the man.
(43)

With one exception (the fairy in Act 2 Scene 1),
Puck speaks only to Oberon and the audience.
• What is the effect of this? Look at his final
speech to support your views. Think about how
this final speech might be staged.
• How does Shakespeare use verse in Puck’s
speeches? What might this suggest about his
character?
He seems almost to exist outside of the rest of the drama, unconstrained by
the actions and expectations of others. To some extent, the puck is our
representative, carrying out the mischief we hope to enjoy, commenting on it
and addressing us directly at the end.
He is free to use a wide range of verse forms, couplets of various lengths and
quatrains as well as blank verse, and he employs a wide range of tones.

Exeunt [all but Puck]
PUCK: If we shadows have offended,
Think but this, and all is mended,
That you have but slumber'd here
While these visions did appear.
And this weak and idle theme,
No more yielding but a dream,
Gentles, do not reprehend.
If you pardon, we will mend.
And, as I am an honest Puck,
If we have unearned luck
Now to scape the serpent's tongue,
We will make amends ere long;
Else the Puck a liar call.
So, good night unto you all.
Give me your hands, if we be friends,
And Robin shall restore amends.
(5:1:417-434)


• How does Robin’s character change over the
course of the action of the play? Why might
this be?

Unlike Bottom, who aspires to play the hero, the love
interest and the lion, the puck can actually become a foal, a
crab, a stool, a horse, a dog, a hog, a bear and even a fire
but he seems unaffected by his experiences and always
remains the himself. Where the marriages change the
mortals who undertake them as a pivotal part of their
journey through life to death, the spirits are immortal,
immaterial and incapable of development.

A Trickster?
Trickster: In European cultures, he is often a thief or liar, a
practical joker and sometimes clever at disguise. They delight in
the chaos and disorder they manage.
•To what extent does Shakespeare draw on the conventions of
the Trickster character in writing Robin Goodfellow? (Support
your answer please)
Puck could be described as a trickster figure. He is
unpredictable, somewhat manic, and delights in the chaos
and disorder he manages. He loves making mischief in the
mortals’ world.
The relationship between Oberon and Puck has some
similarities to the relationships between other
Shakespearian created kings and their fools, but Puck is no
ordinary fool. Whereas other fools debate and test their
masters, Puck does what he is asked.

Putting the comedy into dramatic comedy
• What is Robin Goodfellow’s function in this
dramatic comedy? Which elements of
dramatic comedy does his character bring to
the play?
Puck has multiple functions within the comedy. On one level he is a manifestation of
the evil malevolence of Oberon (representing a dark strand of the comedy) and he
can sometimes make audiences feel uncomfortable. On another level he is playful –
exhibiting the kind of bad behaviour we sometimes admire in others. He is enjoyed
by the audience as one who brings fun, which he does without offending our
conscience and our sense of identification with the victims.
Puck is the instigator of mischief that leads to the disorder we expect to see in a
dramatic comedy. He is a symbol of the Green World – a world of freedom, but also
a world of confusion. He comments on the foolishness of human behaviour: “Lord,
what fools these mortals be!” (3:2:115) and makes the situations more absurd for
the Lovers and the Mechanicals, reflecting the idea that dramatic comedy highlights
that the order of the world is a veneer that can easily be removed.

Putting the comedy in dramatic comedy
Learning Objective
• How does Shakespeare establish the roles of
the Clown and the Trickster in MSND?
• What is each ones impact on the dramatic
comedy?
• How are their functions different?
Next lesson:
Nick Bottom – to what
extend does Shakespeare
present him as a Clown?

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TASK: Nick Bottom

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Task: Nick Bottom
Scenes:
• Act 1 Scene 2
• Act 3 Scene 1, lines 1-120
• Act 3 Scene 1, lines 125-end of scene
• Act 4 Scene 1, lines 1-45
• Act 4 Scene 1, lines 204-end of scene and Act
4 Scene 2

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I also require a
side answering
this question for
Thursday

The fool

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The fool