Day1《仲夏夜之梦》原文朗读（外教美音）-Part1

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

【LEXILE: 900L-1000L】【WORD COUNT: 608】

Day 1

Once in the city of Athens, fathers were empowered to by the law to compel their daughters to marry whomever they had chosen. If their daughters disobeyed them, they could be put into execution. As fathers normally didn’t wish the death of their daughters, they rarely or never resorted to the law.

However, an old man called Egeus came to Theseus, the reigning duke of Athens, and accused his daughter of disobeying him. He had commanded his daughter Hermia to marry Demetrius, a young man of noble family. Yet his daughter refused, because she was in love with another young man named Lysander.

Moreover, Hermia pleaded that Demetrius had loved her best friend Helena, and Helene returned his love with passion. Theseus, though a wonderful and merciful prince, couldn’t defy the law. Therefore, he granted Hermia four days to consider the marriage; if she still refused it, she would be sentenced to death.

Hermia went straight to her lover Lysander after leaving her father. She revealed that she must give him up and marry Demetrius, or lose her life in four days. Lysander was anguished to learn about the sad news, but he came up with an idea.

He had an aunt who lived outside Athens, a place where the law was invalid. Thinking about this, he proposed that they could elope to his aunt’s house where he could marry her. Lysander also asked Hermia to come out of her house by stealth and meet him in the wood out of the city.

Hermia joyously accepted the arrangement and told the secret to her bosom friend -- Helena. Nevertheless, it was not expected that Helena betrayed her friend and gave away the secret to Demetrius. All she hoped was to follow her faithless lover into the wood.

The wood was the favorite place of Fairies. Oberon the king and Titania the queen liked reveling in their midnight parties with their tiny train of followers. But there happened an unhappy disagreement between them, for the queen refused to give the king a little changeling boy as his page. They quarreled so fiercely that their fairy followers hid themselves in acorn-cups.

On the night when the lovers were supposed to meet in the wood, Titania and Oberon ran into each other.

“What, jealous Oberon, is it you?” said the queen with contempt.

“Wait, reckless fairy. Am I not thy lord? Why did you offend me? Give me your changeling boy.” said the king arrogantly.

“Set your heart at rest. Your whole kingdom is not worthy of my boy.” claimed the queen. Then she left.

The king swore,“Well, I will torment you for this insult before dawn.”

Oberon called in Puck, his favorite adviser, for help.“Come here, Puck! Genius of pranks.” said Oberon,“fetch me the purple flower‘Lore in Idleness’. It’s a magical flower, for as I drop the juice of it on the eyelids of my queen during her sleep, she will love the first thing she sees when she waked up. She may fall in love with a lion, a monkey or an ape. What I can do before using the antidote is to let her give me the changeling boy.” 

Puck, a mischievous and sly sprite, loved mischief to his heart. He used to pull the villagers’ leg, sometimes skimming the milk, sometimes spoiling the butter, sometimes making poor old woman topple down.

It was quite obvious that Puck was rapturous to pursue his mission. While waiting, Oberon the king saw Demetrius and Helena enter the wood. Demetrius told her off for following her, and Helena reminded him of his former love and faith to her.