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Character Research - Helena

Lily Ertle
LILYERTLE APR 27, 2019 10:50AM

First trimester pregnancy: What to expect

First trimester pregnancy can be overwhelming. Understand the
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Do the pregnancy symptoms impact upon Helena’s mood

swings and ability to make decisions?
Yes. Her change in hormones and emotional stress cause her to be overly ferocious in the
ght scene, as the extreme stress she is under forces her to act out in ways that a normal
person wouldn’t. Also her fatigue and carelessness, causes her to become agitated easily
and be rash and hurtful out of tiredness. Such as in the moon confrontation in Unit 25,
where she dismisses Artemis’s honest and mothering nature as she is tired and wants to
be alone to sleep.
First trimester of pregnancy symptoms/ How will this affect
my performance?
Fatigue: I will have to emphasise Helena’s tiredness through the chase scenes such as Unit
9, 15 and 25. To show her sheer exhaustion this will affect how I run i.e slower and out of
breath. I could also portray a lack of energy at moments such as in Artemis and Helena’s
confrontation in Unit 25. Her desperation to just lie down and sleep and then her
resistance to get up again.

New hormones cause a change in emotions, most common is emotional stress: As Helena
is under enough stress from Demetrius hatred towards her and handling a baby all on her
own, I will have to increase her internal energy at points to truly show her random
outbursts and sudden changes in her attitude due to physical changes as well as the
situation. For instance, her outburst at Lysandra in Unit 15, I can play around with the
dynamics so I can begin frustrated and relatively neutral when I rst see Lysandra
sleeping, but when she wakes up and declares her love for Helena I can increase my fury
and over react to show the true stress she is under.
Why is Helena the only female character guilty of real
disloyalty with her disclosure to Demetrius of the elopement?
I think Helena confessing to Demetrius Lysandra and Hermia’s secret to elope in the
woods that night, portrays her real desperation to please Demetrius and her cunning and
sly nature to do anything to get what she wants in life, no matter who might be hurt along
the way. This is ironic as Demetrius does a similar thing, by just abandoning Helena to get
what he wants, which is her best friend Hermia, so the characters aren’t too dissimilar in
their natures. I also think that Helena is the only female character that is truly unhappy
with her life and is desperate to change it. Lysandra and Hermia, Hippolytia and Theseus
and even Titania are all happy with either being in a romantic relationship or have a sense
of power by being worshipped by their subjects, whereas Helena is all alone with no
power, only countless insecurities and jealousy at the happiness of those around her.  that she and Demetrius once had but now she is left all alone. Helena shows no loyalty to
How does Helena’s relationship with the rest of the lovers
change throughout the play?
Hermia: Hermia and Helena are friends at the beginning of the play, however Helena’s
constant whining and jealousy over Demetrius’s love for Hermia infuriates Hermia and
causes her to give Helena some tough love. Helena then betrays Hermia by telling
Demetrius of Lysandra and Hermia’s plan to elope in the woods, but this does not effect
their relationship as Hermia never nds out it was Helena that told Demetrius. Then
during Unit 23, Helena blames Hermia for playing a cruel joke on her with Lysandra and
Demetrius, which causes Hermia to retaliate in defense and a huge ght breaks out
between the two, causing a strong hatred to arise. However, once the lovers are awoken
after being put to sleep by Puck, the hate the friends once felt has now been diffused and
now that Helena has Demetrius she is overall happier and rekindles their friendship. 
Lysandra: Helena is slightly jealous of Lysandra’s happiness with Hermia, as it is something
Lysandra as she confesses to Demetrius her and Hermia’s plan to elope. Then in Unit 15,
Lysandra awakes under a spell and is madly in love with Helena, infuriating Helena as she
believes she is mocking her and her relatively neutral feelings towards Lysandra turn to
sheer anger and defensiveness. This continues on in Unit 23 but by the time the lovers
awake and Lysandra is no longer under the spell, all is well and Lysandra and Helena have
a new friendship as they both are free to be who they want to be with.
Demetrius: Helena is desperate for Demetrius’s love and affection but Demetrius wants
nothing to do with her and sees her as an irrelevant annoyance. This soon changes as he
is put under the spell by Puck and falls madly in love with Helena, causing Helena’s love
towards Demetrius to turn to hatred as she believes he and the other lovers are only
joking to be cruel to her. When the lovers wake up from their sleep, Demetrius is still
under the spell but Helena in a confused and dream like state believes that his feelings
have truly returned and they rekindle their love once again.
Moon worship rituals

Circle Craft: Full Moon Rituals

by Selena Fox Full Moon time is a wonderful time for doing rituals.
Here are some examples of Full Moon rituals I have created as part of
my practice of the Circle Craft tradition: Greeting the Rising Moon
When possible, do this rite outdoors in a natural setting. As the...
CIRCLE SANCTUARY

Artemis and fertility

“The Ephesian Artemis was a very different version of the deity than the usual goddess of
the hunt; here she was worshipped for fertility. Depictions seem to mirror this, with the
deity either wearing a string of eggs or breasts around her shoulders and chest.”

Artemis’s strong connection with fertility is why she felt so obliged to help Helena come
to terms with her pregnancy, and embrace her feminine strength and nurturing qualities.
Helena character development/ Journey with Artemis
“The Goddess oversaw the rites of passage for young girls up until the time of their rst
pregnancy. These girls were expected to remain chaste until marriage.”

I think this extract of information interestingly resonates with Helena’s situation, as she
does not communicate with or worship Artemis until she is at her most desperate and
alone state, and this is in her rst trimester of pregnancy. She is unmarried and has not
remained chaste, nor has ever worshipped Artemis before, but when she pleads for help
after being so mistreated by Demetrius, Artemis takes her under her wing and guides her
through the struggles she is facing. This gives Helena a new found strength, as she begins
the play immature and brattish, feeling extremely sorry for herself and desperately trying
to get what she wants (Demetrius’s love). Artemis gives her a new perspective , teaching
her to embrace the baby she is carrying and put the child’s needs before her own. 

Artemis (Moon Goddess)

History of worship:

Temples: The Temple of Artemisium in Ephesis was regarded as one of the seven wonders
of the ancient world. It was a blend on Greek and eastern in uences and held an unusual
statue of the Goddess. 

Festivals: The most well known festival was held at Brauronia. Where the people had
angered the Goddess by killing a bear and were punished by a plague. Young girls played
the parts of the bear in an attempt to appease her.

There were many other festivals held throughout ancient Greece dedicated to this
Goddess including the Elaphebolia, Mounikhia and Laphria.
She continues to be an important Goddess to Pagans and Wiccans today.

Artemis the Greek Goddess of the Hunt

Areas of In uence: Artemis is the Greek Goddess of the hunt, nature
and birth. She is also described in Greek mythology as "Goddess of
the night", "Lady of the Beast", "Woodland Goddess" and "Phoebe,"
which translates as the bright one. Several of this Goddesses roles
may appear incompatible in nature.
GODDESS-GUIDE
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