All's Not Well That Ends Forced

Deception is a common theme in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, which is not so surprising given the strong presence of fairies in the play. They cast spells on multiple characters in the story, creating false appearances and feelings. This includes Demetrius, a young Athenian aristocrat who is put under a spell so that he will love a woman whom he does not care for.

This is also seen in Shakespeare's All's Well That Ends Well. In that story, the heroine figure, Helena, tricks the man (Bertram) she loves into a forced marriage situation. At the end of the play, her would-be-lover realizes that he has been bested and reluctantly resents to marriage. 

In both situations, a fabricated marriage is created, and is not truly what the male in the relationship desires. Though both these stories have seemingly happy endings, (for all is well that ends well) the element of deception in the makings of these pairings seems to taint them and the very idea of love. 

This tarnishing of love is interesting in that it seems to echo Shakespeare's own love life. He himself was forced into wedding with his wife. Given this, ideas for the lamentable situations of Demetrius and Bertram might have arisen from his own personal life.