Drama has made significant changes throughout its existence and it has helped to shape societies in many ways. Drama began with ancient drama and worked its way up to medieval drama; now has crawled its way up to the modern and contemporary drama and beyond. Today, drama of all structures is enjoyed leisurely and also for educational purposes. Along the way, drama has taken many forms, and the ability to illustrate different issues, classes, joys, and tragedies. Drama has changed even from the Shakespearean age and now has classifications such as romanticism, realism, and naturalism. For example, look at the differences between plays such as A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare and Hedda Gabler by Henrik Ibsen. These two plays portray many differences in context in contrast from then to now and also; at the same time, they show many similarities between the individual characters.
From the Shakespearean age, the play A Midsummer Night's Dream takes on the traditional ways of having the male gender be the dominating and manipulating figure in the story. Egeus, Hermia's father, seems to possess many evils. Evils such as having control over whom his daughter, Hermia, will marry.
"What say you, Hermia? Be advised, fair maid;
To you your father should be as god;
One that composed your beauties, yes and one
To whom you are but as a form in wax
By him imprinted and within his power
To leave the figure or disfigure it.
Demetrius is a worthy gentleman." (267)
Other characters illustrate evils in this play. Characters such as Oberon, applies manipulation techniques, which are performed by his fairy friend, Puck. Oberon's first attempt with the juice is going to be is own 'Queen of the Fairies', Titania.
I'll watch Titania when she is asleep,
And drop the liquor of it in her eyes.
The next thing then she waking looks upon,
Be it on lion, bear, or wolf, or bull,
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