In the tragedy Hamlet and the comedy A Midsummer Night's Dream, Shakespeare presents two plays that are very different in context but quite similar in foundation . Both works examine reality through narrative structure. In Hamlet, reality is constantly questioned due to the pervasive tension of doubt in the narrative. In A Midsummer Night's Dream, reality is clouded by the prevalence of dreams used to explain magical events. Doubt disrupts the narrative structure of reality, leaving events inexplicable, allowing us to question what we consider reality. Dreams, as part of the fantasy world, exist separate from reality. When inserted into the narrative, dreams function similarly to doubt by interrupting reality. Both works question reality by obscuring the boundaries between realism and fantasy, reality and theatricality. Consequently, if the play is a representation of real life, then Shakespeare also questions real life. This is represented at the end of both plays through Shakespeare's involvement of the audience in the structure of the narratives. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay In the final act of Hamlet, Hamlet disrupts the narrative by addressing not only the other characters in the scene, but also the audience. Determined to die, he says: You who look pale and tremble at this occasion, who are but mute or spectator of this act, if only I had time - for this cruel sergeant, Death, is severe in his arrest - oh, I could tell you -But never mind. Horatio, I am dead, you live. Tell me and my cause right To the dissatisfied (Hamlet 5.2.332-339). Hamlet urges Horatio to tell his story: "Horatio, I am dead, you live. Tell me and my cause right." Here Horace becomes the playwright. However, just one interpreter of his story is not enough for Hamlet. In textual notation, “silent or audience” is defined to mean “silent spectators” (Hamlet 1233). Accordingly, "Tell me and my just cause" is not only directed at Horace, but also at the audience. Up to this point, in his many soliloquies, Hamlet has not once spoken to anyone other than himself. This is the first time he has acknowledged or directly addressed the audience. He asks them to testify, to make sure his story is told correctly. This makes sense because no one else in the play is more aware of the sequence of events than the audience since they are the only ones who have heard Hamlet's soliloquies. Thus, the only accurate representation of Hamlet's story must come from the audience members themselves. Shakespeare also comments on the relationship between theatricality and reality by directly involving the audience in the interpretation of uncertain events. Hamlet's conscious awareness of the audience has further implications. Prior to this point, Hamlet has based his actions on his knowledge of the events and circumstances as they have been revealed to him throughout the play. If he were completely comfortable with what he based his actions on, he would not have addressed the audience in this speech. Hamlet knows that Horatio doesn't know everything he does (because he hasn't listened to Hamlet's soliloquies), which is why he asks the audience to make sure Horatio's portrayal is accurate. Since he involves them both in the act, this suggests that he too remains uncertain about everything that happened and doubts that only one party can accurately represent it. As his death approaches, Hamlet appears insecure and distrustful of thereality, questioning his individual interpretation. This manifests itself in the contradictions he makes in his speeches. Hamlet says he could tell us what happened: “Oh, I could tell thee – But let it be,” suggesting that he is certain of all events (Hamlet 5.2.337-338). Then, only a few moments later, he says: "The things that are so unknown, I must leave behind!" suggesting that he has accepted the fact that he cannot and will not know all things (Hamlet 5.2.345). Hamlet's ending is inconclusive, largely due to Hamlet's contradictory nature and the play's investment in doubt and uncertainty. Furthermore, designating Horatio as playwright calls into question the validity of the entire play simply because it suggests that Hamlet is the play written by Horatio. Hamlet's reliance on the audience to ensure accuracy in Horatio's portrayal of events further blurs the lines between reality and theatricality. The audience's involvement at the end of Hamlet is similar to the role of the audience in A Midsummer Night's Dream. In the play the confusion lies in the fact that the various characters only know what they have been directly involved in, and even these cases are questionable due to the magical qualities of the forest. Just like in Hamlet, the audience is the only witness to all events. Dreams are a major theme in A Midsummer Night's Dream. The forest functions as a dream world, a place where the impossible often happens. Events in the forest happen without explanation, just as dreams seem to happen at first glance. The characters in the play use the idea of ​​dreams to explain the bizarre events they have found themselves in. Bottom justifies his confusion regarding his experiences in the forest by saying: I had a very rare vision. I had a dream, beyond human ingenuity to say what dream it was. Man is but a donkey if he goes around explaining this dream. It seemed to me that... there is no man who can say what. I thought I was, and I thought I did - but the man is nothing but a [patched-up] fool, if he will offer to say what I thought I had... I'll make Peter Quince write a ballad about this dream. It will be called "Bottom's Dream", because it has no bottom... (Midsummer 4.1.204-216). Bottom tries to understand everything he has experienced, but quickly abandons this goal, stating, "Man is nothing but an ass" if he attempts to explain his dream. Because he cannot understand or describe what has happened to him, Bottom suggests that it was all simply a dream, the "rare vision" of his unconscious. Like Hamlet, Bottom is contradictory in his actions and words. He contradicts himself by first saying that his dream is incomprehensible, and then by declaring that he will have Peter Quince write a ballad about it. How will Quince write a poem about a dream that no one could understand, not even the dreamer, because it has "no bottom"? The nature of dreams is an important part of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Dreams interrupt reality because they take control away from the individual by wandering around the unconscious mind. They interrupt time, allowing what seems impossible to happen. Sigmund Freud believed that dreams were traumatic experiences because they dislocate our mind. He wrote that psychoanalysis is similar to the action of a play. “The action of the play consists in nothing other than the process of revelation, with cunning delays and ever-increasing excitement…” (Freud 920). As a playwright, Shakespeare was heavily committed to producing "cunning delays" within his plays. In both Hamlet and A Midsummer Night's Dream, the action of the play is interrupted by doubt and dreams, causing the characters to become involved in theatricality. It becomes increasingly difficult to distinguish between, 1997. 1183-1245.