A Midsummer Night's Dream in modern English, scene by scene

About this translation

Every scene of A Midsummer Night's Dream is set out twice: William Shakespeare’s words on one side, and on the other a plain modern English rendering of the same lines, in the same order. It is a way to read the original, not a replacement for it — the rendering says what the text says, and the text is the thing you quote.

Line numbers count the verse lines of each scene in the public-domain Project Gutenberg edition these pages are set from, so they may not match the numbering in a printed edition.

1. Act 1, Scene 1 — Athens. A room in the Palace of TheseusNow, lovely Hippolyta, the hour of our wedding is coming on quickly; four happy days…
2. Act 1, Scene 2 — The Same. A Room in a CottageIs our whole company here?

1. Act 2, Scene 1 — A wood near AthensWell, spirit! Where are you wandering?
2. Act 2, Scene 2 — Another part of the woodCome, now a dance in a ring and a fairy song; then be gone for a third of a minute. Some…

1. Act 3, Scene 1 — The Wood.Are we all here?
2. Act 3, Scene 2 — Another part of the woodI wonder whether Titania has woken up; and then, what it was that came before her eyes…

1. Act 4, Scene 1 — The WoodCome, sit yourself down on this flowery bed, while I stroke your lovely cheeks, and stick…
2. Act 4, Scene 2 — Athens. A Room in Quince’s HouseHave you sent someone to Bottom's house? Has he come home yet?

1. Act 5, Scene 1 — Athens. An Apartment in the Palace of TheseusIt's strange, my Theseus, what these lovers talk about.