The success of the narrative arc of Sophocles' tragedy Antigone and Shakespeare's comedy A Midsummer Night's Dream rests heavily on the characters' interactions with the natural world. In each piece respectively, the protagonists must define and negotiate elements of nature to achieve their particular goal. The plot of Antigone revolves around the return of Polyneices' body to the natural world through a ritual burial process. Likewise, A Midsummer Night's Dream involves a necessary pastoral escape into nature in order to resolve issues of intertwined and unrequited loves. Because the natural world significantly hinders the protagonists' progress in achieving their goals in both dramas, this conflict is emphasized as the central antagonistic force in both A Midsummer Night's Dream and Antigone. In Shakespeare's classic pastoral play, a conflict between character and environment is brought to the forefront for the main human protagonists. Thus, the natural world is clearly meant to be the central antagonist of A Midsummer Night's Dream. More importantly, human lovers' central goals of establishing romantic connections with specific other characters are ultimately delayed by a very specific natural element. Lysander, one of the lovers, states his main goal in the first scene of the lover in the forest. He tells Hermia that he wants them to become “Two breasts bound by an oath” (II.ii.49). The achievement of this goal is entirely prevented by the interference of a powerful "little Western flower", endowed with the ability to "make a man or woman madly in love/with the next living creature she sees" (II .i.164). -172). Instead of allowing Lysander and Hermia's love to continue undisturbed (and thus achieving Lysander's goal), this natural element directly interferes with Lysander's romantic agenda by causing him to continue lustfully Helena, whom Lysander (after interference from nature) now regards as being "the most worthy servant" (II.ii.116). Likewise, the flower directly interferes with the goal that Hermia has fought hard for since the beginning of the play: to be able to love Lysander, despite being betrothed to Demetrius by her father. This specific element of the natural world proves to be an equally antagonistic force in Demetrius' ability to achieve his goal in the play. Aside from his desire to marry Hermia, Demetrius' central goal in the storyline is arguably to escape Helena's sickening love (II.i.212). He makes this goal clear several times by threatening Helena with "the mercy of wild beasts" and "mischief in the forest" if she continues to pursue him romantically (II.i.228, 237). It is the same Western flower that pushes Demetrius to abandon his clearly established goal and ultimately act in the opposite way. Because a natural element directly causes this suppression and reversal of autonomy in a major character decision, it is clear that nature is also an antagonistic force in Demetrius' individual narrative. Puck, the character who initiates the antagonistic contact between the natural element and the human character, cannot be considered an antagonist due to the suppression of the intentionality of his actions. Before leaving to perform the flower-human interaction, Puck clarifies that he is only performing these actions as Oberon's servant (II.i.268). By saying this, Puck removed himself from the consequences of his interference and transferred the consequences of his actions to the Fairy King. By contributing to the lovers' antagonism, Oberon symbolically becomes part of thenatural world. This integration of character into the fiber of the natural world is supported by Studio Theatre's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Alison Yanota's costume design deliberately dresses the actor who plays Oberon (Stuart McDougall) in a garment composed almost entirely of fragments of wood and earth-toned fabric to convey that Oberon is indeed part of the natural world that vexes the lovers . The opposing force of nature becomes the central antagonist of the play as the lovers are the central protagonists of the story. Among the groups of characters in A Midsummer Night's Dream, the group of lovers must overcome the most vicissitudes to achieve happiness. Thus, their many conflicts make up the majority of the narrative body of the play. Additionally, lovers are arguably the most relatable characters that speak to the human experience. As a result, audiences can identify in a visceral and more tangible way with his story, giving his narrative special significance. Because the natural world directly interferes with the lover's achievement of the character's goals, and no character directly assumes the role of antagonist, nature must be seen as the primary antagonistic force of these characters, and in By virtue of this association, the natural world becomes the central antagonistic force in the entirety of the play. The conflict structure of Sophocles' Antigone legend follows a similar pattern. The natural world is created as a relatively reviled force that takes on the central antagonistic role in the play. Antigone, arguably the protagonist of the text, clearly states her narrative objective in the first act. She intends to “heap a mound of earth on [her] brother” despite King Creon’s express prohibition (Sophocles, 128). This stated purpose is further clarified when supported by historical evidence. In an article on death and the afterlife in ancient Greece, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York states: “Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Ancient literary sources emphasize the need for a proper burial [for one to progress to the afterlife] and refer to the omission of funeral rites as an insult to human dignity (Iliad , 23.71). The deceased's relatives, primarily women, conducted the elaborate burial rituals… (The Met, 1) When this contextual evidence is supported, it is clear that Antigone's central goal is to enable her brother, Polyneices, to progress to the afterlife through proper burial. in the earth. It is the achievement of this goal that is entirely hindered by the interference of the natural world. Nature is explicitly vested with the power to grant Polynices post-mortem happiness in the afterlife, but she repeatedly denies the full completion of this process. After Antigone first buried her brother's body, the sentry, following Creon's orders, "swept away all the earth that covered the body" (137). After this action, Antigone is forced to repeat the entire burial action, resulting in her being caught by the Sentinel and ultimately ending in her punishment and death by King Creon (138). It is through this action that nature prevents the realization of Antigone's central goal and also incites the pressures of a contagious force to confront the protagonist character of the drama. Due to the complexity of a proper burial that nature requires to allow Polyneices to progress to the afterlife, Antigone's goal in the play is never fully realized due to time and specificity that nature requires to carry out this process. There.