“A Midsummer Night's Dream” by William Shakespeare is a play that offers an interesting insight into the conflicting emotions of the human psyche. Throughout the play Shakespeare uses his settings to give us insight into human conflict; rational versus the irrational and more emotional characteristics we encounter. The logical, more rational side would be the palace, with its society and its rules. The emotional side, fun and at the same time wild, is represented by the forest, where human logic is overcome by magical things that make no sense and appear more dreamlike. The setting of the palace is important because it represents the essence of our society; rules created by man and kept in line with the norms of our society. Human beings struggle to suppress their unbridled and irrational tendencies, which even today discourage "civilized" man from carrying out rash and senseless actions. Therefore every action should have a healthy and logical purpose, based on social norms. The main conflict in the play and the propellant why the action is when, Egeus, Hermia's father has chosen Demetrius as the man he wants her to marry. His decision is most likely based on economic, political and social factors he is making a reasonable decision based on Hermia's future in their society. Unfortunately Hermia is in love with a gentleman named Lysander and conversely her father may have made the decision with good intention of trying to maintain the traditional customs of his times and even perhaps taking things like attractiveness into consideration. However, he fails to foresee that his daughter might actually love someone else. .... half of the paper......s, thus dedicating his time to being mischievous. He is the only one to whom Oberon entrusts his plan to inflict the love spell on Titania, and in exchange give him extra work as a bonus; which ends up being a disaster, but at the same time a fun part of the play. Shakespeare wonderfully contrasts the duality of human nature by using two settings with drastically opposite characteristics. It is doubtful whether he actually intended this in his play, but it remains an interesting and well-parallel feature. The people of Athens, struggling to understand the absurd mystical groves, at the same time exhibit some of the same behaviors. Perhaps Shakespeare was trying to remind everyone that there is more to life than logic and reason. Humanity living solely based on our emotional qualities can get us into trouble, but that's actually what creates the thrill of what we call life..