Data Type：essay
Author：Lin, Ying-nan
Title：Reminiscent of Devils: The Metamorphoses of Puck in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream [Mojie zhuanshen jingling Pake bianxing ji]
Source：Taipei Theatre Journal [Xiju xuekan]
Place：Taipei
Publisher：School of Theatre, Taipei National University of the Arts [Guoli Taibei yishu daxue xiju xueyuan]
Volume, Number：10
Date：2009
Pages：199-222
Language：Chinese
Abstract：The fairy and the devil have long been closely related in western culture. It has been so either from the definitions of both terms or from interpretations of the art. Puck in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream is an agile, comic fairy, who is capable of assuming various shapes and playing tricks on others. But, in terms of cultural origins, the fairy’s image, in fact, also undergoes drastic metamorphic changes. Through an analysis of the play’s relevant passages and a re-contextualization of Early Modern English culture, the article seeks to re-explore the fairy’s origins from folklore, mythology, and religion; it re-examines, as well, how Shakespeare converted and tamed the devilish image of“puck”to create his own Puck. To elaborate on Puck’s metamorphoses, several related productions and adaptations of A Midsummer Night’s Dream in a range of media and genres will be discussed to further illustrate Puck is reminiscent of devils both in this play and in cultural history
