A Midsummer Night's Dream is exceptional in that it features more than one story taking place at the same time. Although the quartet of lovers and the fairy world are often the focus of the work, the crude mechanisms and their attempts to produce their own representation take place in a world quite separate from the main plot. In other words, although the rude mechanics are in the same story as the other characters, the rude mechanics (excluding Bottom) don't have direct exposure to the other "main" characters until the end. Among the rudely mechanical, the character Nick Bottom, through his overconfidence, comical incompetence, and lack of self-awareness, is the most pronounced. Furthermore, Bottom, unlike the other crude mechanics, is the only human in the story to have direct contact with both the world of Athens (reality) and the world of fairies (dream). The strange juxtaposition of these two factors, Bottom's ridiculousness and his integral role in bringing the theme of dream versus reality to life, brings the reader to the question of purpose. Why would Shakespeare make such an imbecile character the crux of one of the story's major themes? The key to the meaning of Bottom's role lies in the fact that he, despite being considered an imbecile by all, is able to actively experience the two worlds presented by Shakespeare: dream and reality. Consequently, Shakespeare, through the character of Bottom, alludes to the idea that it is the people often seen as the “idiots” of society who are truly capable of experiencing magic in the world. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay From the moment Bottom is introduced into the show, it's clear that he's a crazy comedian. When Peter Quince, the “director” of the show, assigns roles, Bottom shows his overconfidence by attempting to volunteer for almost every role in the show. Bottom proves himself to be a character who cannot limit himself to his part, or even his job. He jumps from wanting to direct the show, to write it, and to plan it. He is torn about which part to play, all equally compelling. To make matters even worse and funnier, the part Bottom really wants to play, Hercules, isn't even in the play. “My chief humor is for a tyrant,” he confesses to his crude mechanical companions, “rarely could I play Hercles (Hercules), or a part to rend a cat, to divide all” (1.2.28-30). To further emphasize Bottom's stupidity, however, Shakespeare makes it clear that Bottom, while confident in his abilities, is also incompetent. For example, when choosing roles for their play, Bottom states that if she were to play the role of Thisbe, she would deliver her lines in a "monstrous little voice (1.2.50)," an obviously contradictory statement. Furthermore, in describing how he would also do the lion's share of not frightening any of the ladies in the audience, Bottom says ironically, "But I will aggravate my voice so as to roar softly like a sucking dove (1.2.78-80)," Another seemingly contradictory statement. This silly choice of words on Bottom's part only adds to his incompetent portrayal in the play. Perhaps the most pronounced thing about Bottom's character, however, is his lack of self-awareness by the fact that readers discover his comic value by laughing at him rather than with him. This attitude is perhaps clearest in Act 3 of the play in which Snout exclaims: “O Bottom, have you changed?” when Bottom's head is transformed into that of adonkey. However, rather than realizing that his head has been transformed into an ass's head, Bottom simply responds by saying, “I see their knavery: this is to make me an ass to frighten me, if they could. But I won't move", unaware that his head has transformed. As a result, the term ass in relation to Bottom is given a triple meaning: the relation to the character's name is "Bottom", his head is now that of a true donkey and the fact that his intellect is on par with that of a donkey Furthermore, Bottom's name in itself shows the idea that Bottom is not only at the "bottom" of the social ladder, but also at the bottom. of the "skill ladder" in the game. Bottom, however, plays a much more integral role in the comedy rather than simply adding a comedic factor: he unifies the dream with reality with the world of dreams (fairies) than with reality (Athens). Although the fairies also act between the world of humans and the fairy world, as when Puck and Oberon interfere in the quartet's love, the fairies are ultimately separated from the human world. This is demonstrated by the fact that when the lovers wake up they believe that what they experienced in the woods was a dream. For example, when Demetrius wakes up he exclaims, “Last night's events seem small and difficult to see clearly, like distant mountains that look like clouds in the distance (4.1.194-195),” a testament to the distant nature of the fairies' relationship with the human world. On the other hand, Bottom is the only character who has direct interactions with the fairy world. This is seen in his becoming Titania's beloved in Act 3 where Titania wakes up from Bottom and says, “Please sing again, sweet human. I love listening to your voice and I love looking at your body. I know this is the first time I've seen you, but you're so wonderful that I can't help but swear that I love you (3.1.139-143).” Additionally, Bottom interacts with other fairies by being served by Titania's other fairies Mustardseed and Peaslebossom. Through Bottom's direct interactions with the fairies, he unites the world of humans and the world of fairies. While Bottom does indeed have direct contact with both humans and fairies, this is not the only way Bottom combines these two words. The other way Bottom brings the two worlds together is in the nature of his role in society. It is clear that Bottom and the crude mechanisms are literally at the “bottom” of the social scale involved. For example, Puck, who dismisses them as “rough mechanics” and “patches” or fools, also notes that they “work for bread on the Athenian stalls” (3.2.9–10), a clearly condescending view of rough mechanics. In other words, rude mechanics, as the word “rude” suggests, are depicted as a group of incompetent craftsmen who are inferior in almost every aspect (both social status and competence) to everyone else in the work. However, the word “mechanics” points to the fact that it is these very men – working in the background and doing the manual labor of the show – who allow the magic of a show to come to life. Thus, we see another juxtaposition within the very title of “crude mechanics”. This is yet another example of Shakespeare using Bottom, as a crude mechanic, to bring together a man who is seen as a madman and a man who plays the most important theme of the entire play. Keep in mind: this is just an example. Get a custom article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay For most readers, the fact that Shakespeare uses a comic madman, Bottom, to practically embody the play's most important theme (dream versus reality) may mean nothing more than coincidence. After all, Bottom is clearly a character.