Leontes
Leontes is the king of Sicilia. He is responsible for instigating the action of the play. What is most relevant to his character is his constant change of temper. Early in the play he is possessed of an insane jealousy and suspicion towards his wife and his friend.This situation ought immediately to make the audience lose both sympathy and respect for him.
Instead just as quickly as he becomes jealous, so does he repent mightily. He eventually confesses his sins openly, withdraws from the world and gives up all hope of remarriage. He shows a firm determination to change by keeping a tight rein on his passions. It is through the other characters' respect and forgiveness of Leontes, which consequently allows the audience to accept their evaluation of the situation.
However, Shakespeare does not make Leontes pay for his sins. He regains what he has lost. In place of Mamillius he receives Florizel and, with him, the hope of many sons, through his marriage to Perdita and harmony is restored.
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Hermione
As the wife of Leontes, Hermione is a gentle, yet strong feminine character. She disappears from the scene in the third act itself and does not reappear until the last scene. Yet, the charm of her personality is perceived throughout the play. She has the ease of manner, which is born of complete confidence in her husband and in the absoluteness of her innocence.
In the trial scene Hermione speaks to her delusional husband. She first takes his accusations as a joke. Only later does she realize that he is serious. She suggests that evil influence may be the cause of his distemper. She thinks of the comfort of others rather than her own. She comforts her ladies as she is hauled off to prison. Her patience, dignity and virtue underscore the baseness of Leontes' accusations. Hermione defends herself in an extremely interesting way. She does not attempt to deny the charges in a legal manner. In response to Leontes' accusations, she appeals to her previous conduct, the well-known evidence of her blameless life and her way of life.She has complete confidence in her own innocence. Hermione knows that she must have been vindicated by the oracle.
Hermione is generous and never criticizes him for the death of young Mamillius. Once again, Shakespeare is revealing his characters indirectly through what other people express about them. Hermione's resolution, courage and integrity given all toher, yet in some ways she is almost too ideal of a character, with no flaws granted her. In many ways, she is the most memorable character of the play.
Perdita
Perdita is in every way Hermione's flesh and blood. Brought up among peasants, she possesses the gifts of natural virtue rather than those of civilized virtue, possessed by her mother. She displays many virtues;honesty, graciousness, a love of nature, modesty.
Like her mother, Perdita is put on trial, during the debate about nature and art with Polixenes. She is a child of nature who practices natural virtue. She dislikes being "prank'd up" like a goddess.
Fearless as her mother at her trial, she argues courteously, but firmly with Polixenes. She naively proclaims that the same sun that shines on the court also shines on the shepherd's hut yet there is an element of practical truth about her observation. This is a rather bold statement but it indicates the existence of Perdita's royal blood.
Perdita is portrayed as a youthful foil to Hermione. However, she is a less important character. She is more fearful in some respects than Hermione yet she also fears the consequences that may befall Florizel with his love for her. Still, she manages to defend herself when necessary.
Polixenes
Polixenes is the king of Bohemia and a great friend of Leontes. On the whole, he is not a very fully developed character yet he plays an important role earlier in the play on bringing up the theme of friendship.
In the fourth Act, however, he begins to come into his own. He is largely used as a foil to Leontes. His suspicion of his son parallels Leontes' suspicion of Hermione. His anger at his son and his debate with Perdita also parallels the behavior of Leontes.His main function here is to reveal the fact that Perdita would not be considered a suitable mate for Florizel, despite her gifts of natural virtue.
On the whole, Shakespeare uses Polixenes to state many important opinions in the course of the play; on friendship, on nature and art, and on nobility.
Florizel
Florizel is the son of Polixenes, a young prince. He is honest, faithful and above all optimistic. While Perdita is not sure of the progress of their love, Florizel is confident that all will turn out well. He is willing to brave the disapproval of his father in getting married to Perdita.
Florizel believes that he can overcome all obstacles. Consequently, he tells the disguised Polixenes that he has no intention of telling his father about his marriage until it is a fact. In this statement, he shows a flash of royal arrogance as well as selfishishness. As a result, Polixenes' anger is intensified and his reason more clouded than might have been otherwise.
Florizel believes most highly in love and will do anything to marry Perdita. He is a highly resourceful young man who is a practical, courageous, and virtuous lover.
Camillo
Camillo is the wise and an honest counselor. Throughout the play, he is shown to be loyal, trustworthy and honest yet he is morally courageous. Consequently, he deserts Leontes when he cannot follow him in an immoral act. Polixenes appreciates this righteous man and relies greatly on his advice. He is more than willing to take Camillo with him when he returns to Bohemia.
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Camillo's marriage to the equally worthy and upright Paulina seems to be a well-earned reward for both of them. Marriage in this play symbolizes harmony as well as order.
Paulina
Paulina is a remarkable character. She is a loyal waiting woman of Hermione.It is she who thinks of various means to bring Leontes to a state of repentance. She defies her husband, Antigonus, who at times seems almost afraid of her, and even dares to argue with her. She thinks of taking the child to Leontes in the hope of softening his hard heart. Though the scheme failed, it clearly reveals the determination in the character of Paulina.
Fearless, she confronts the king fiercely when he is caught in his delusions about Hermione. At the end of the play, her magic brings Hermione back to life.
Antigonus
Husband of Paulina, Antigonus is a decent man who tries ineffectively to bring Leontes back to reason. Under oath to obey his king, he tries to defy Leontes concerning the fate of the innocent infant but he is outwitted by him. Antigonus carries the infant Perdita to the wilds of Bohemia and abandons her. The gods punish him for his part in the unjust act, and he is eaten by a bear. His death by a bear may be considered a kind of judgment on him for having been so willing to suspect Hermione and to follow Leontes' cruel command.
Mamillius
Praised by all at court as a boy of great promise, Mamillius is the charming and beloved heir of the Sicilian throne. He appears in only two scenes of the play, yet his identity is so well established. When he does make an entry, he is seen in a very merry and innocent state.He dies of grief after his father wrongly imprisons his mother.
Autolycus
Formerly in the service of Florizell, Autolycus is now a theif who cons innocent people out of their money yet Autolycus also has a function in the play. He manages to turn the old shepherd and the clown away from their intention of going immediately to the Bohemian king. In this way he helps to ensure the escape of the lovers.
Cleomenes and Dion
Lords in the Sicilian court, Cleomenes and Dion are sent by Leontes to consult the oracle of Apollo.
Summary of Act 1
Scene1
Scene One is a short conversation between Archidamus, a Bohemian courtier, and Camillo, a Sicilian courtier and trusted friend of Leontes. Archidamus praises the generous hospitality he has been treated to in Sicilia.Camillo talks about the friendship between Leontes and Polixenes, King of Bohemia. The two rulers were raised together since boyhood, although now their responsibilities as kings keep them apart. Both courtiers agree that Prince Mamillius of Sicilia shows great promise.
Scene 2
Polixenes proclaims his intent to return home. He has been staying as a guest in the court of Leontes for nine months. Leontes tries, without any success, to convince Polixenes to stay a short while longer. At Leontes' request, Hermione, Leontes' wife, tries to convince Polixenes to stay. She is persuasive, and Polixenes gives in. Hermione is extremely affectionate to Polixenes, treating him with great love because he is her husband's best and oldest friend. Leontes reveals that he is insanely jealous of Polixenes and Hermione. He is convinced that they are secretly committing adultery, although he has no hard evidence on which to base his suspicions. In full view of the others, he asks his young son Mamillius questions loaded with double meanings about whether or not the child is his. When Hermione and Polixenes ask if Leontes is feeling well, he replies that he is only unsettled because Mamillius reminds him of himself in the days of his own childhood. Leontes asks if Polixenes' son back in Bohemia is as dear as Mamillius, and Polixenes speaks of the great love he has for his own boy.
Leontes questions Camillo, who is clearly unaware of the king's suspicions. The king, convinced that Camillo is either stupid or playing dumb, grows irritated. When he finally tells Camillo of what he suspects, the advisor is horrified and does not believe it. Leontes' grows increasingly furious, and Camillo, seeing the king's conviction, seems to give in. At Leontes' expressed desire to see Polixenes dead of poison, he offers to carry out the task. His condition is that Leontes' keep the queen in her present status, and do nothing to stain her honor. The king agrees, and Camillo affirms again that he will poison Polixenes. He is a loyal courtier, but he believes Polixenes and Hermione are innocent. He resolves not to do it. Polixenes enters he asks Camillo about the change in the king's manner, and Camillo initially refuses to give a straightforward answer. When Polixenes continues to entreat Camillo, worried that his safety might be at risk, Camillo tells him the truth. He agrees to help Polixenes, using his authority as Leontes' most trusted advisor to ensure a safe escape for Polixenes and all of his men. Camillo says that he will serve at Polixenes' court, since in helping Polixenes he can no longer stay in Sicilia. Polixenes' ship has been ready for departure for days, and Polixenes assures Camillo that he will remember this service.
Act 2
Scene 1
Hermione sits with her ladies-in-waiting and Mamillius. Leontes enters with Antigonus and various lords. They are telling him about the flight of Camillo and Polixenes, and their news makes Leontes feel certain that his suspicions were correct. He now believes that Camillo was a double agent working for Polixenes. He has Mamillius taken from Hermione, and he cruelly insults Hermione in full view of the lords and Hermione's ladies. He says that she has committed adultery, and Hermione bears his insults with dignity. When he tells her that she is to be put in prison, she insists that her ladies accompany her because she is pregnant and needs their help. The lords cryas she is escorted out, and she tells them that they would have reason to cry if she were guilty. She brings her women with her as she goes to her prison.
Scene 2
Paulina, courtier and wife of Antigonus, tries to see the queen in her cell, but the guard will not let her pass. Instead, the jailer will allow Emilia, one of Hermione's ladies-in-waiting, to come out and speak for the queen. Emilia reveals that Hermione has had her baby, a healthy daughter. Paulina resolves to take the baby to the king, in hopes that the sight of his daughter will restore his senses to him. The jailer has anxieties about releasing the child, but Paulina convinces him that the baby should not be in prison. She also assures him that she will protect him from harm.
Scene 3
Leontes speaks of burning the queen to put his mind at rest. A servant enters, and from their conversation we learn that Prince Mamillius has been sick since his mother's imprisonment. Leontes tells the servant to tend to the boy. Since he cannot harm Camillo and Polixenes, he will satisfy himself by dealing with Hermione. Paulina enters, along with Antigonus, servants, and lords. She fearlessly confronts the king, defending the queen's innocence. She refuses to do anything but praise the queen's character. The king mocks Antigonus for being unable to control his wife, but Paulina brushes these comments aside. She tries to convince the king that the infant is his by pointing out the strong physical resemblance between the monarch and the child, but the king remains unmoved. He keeps telling Antigonus to control his wife better, but Antigonus does not bother trying. Paulina leaves the child, hoping that Leontes will soften and come to his senses. The king orders Antigonus to destroy the child. Leontes accuses Antigonus of instructing his wife to behave as she has, which Antigonus denies, with the lords backing his word. The king refuses to believe them. He asks Antigonus what he would be willing to sacrifice to save the child's life, and Antigonus replies that he would give anything. Leontes asks him to swear to do his bidding, in order to save the life of the child, and Antigonus swears. The king orders Antigonus to take the child and leave it in a wild and remote place, to be saved or killed according to the dictates of chance. If Antigonus does not do so, he and Paulina will both be executed. Antigonus is compelled to obey because he has given his word he goes to it miserably. A servant enters with the news that Dion and Cleomenes have arrived back from the oracle. Leontes announces his attention to have the queen put on trial.
Act 3
Scene 1
Cleomenes and Dion, the courtiers dispatched by Leontes to the oracle at Delphi, speak with wonder about the ceremony they witnessed at the shrine. They hope that the oracle's judgment will help Queen Hermione.
Scene 2
The court is delighted, but Leontes denounces the words of the oracle as false. But then a servant enters, bringing terrible news. Prince Mamillius is dead, killed by anxiety about his mother's fate. Hermione faints, and is helped out of the room by Paulina and several officers. Leontes is now fully penitent, asking the gods' forgiveness and promising to make amends. Paulina reenters and lashes out at the king, condemning his tyranny and jealousy. Hermione is dead. Paulina continues to rebuke the king harshly, but when she sees his grief and penitence she regrets her roughness. Leontes says that he will have queen and prince buried in the same grave, and he will grieve for the rest of his days.
Scene 3
Antigonus, carrying the baby, enters with a mariner. They have set down on the shores of Bohemia, and the sailor is nervous because the sky is threatening. He fears the gods are angry with them because of what they are doing, and he warns Antigonus not to wander too far or too long, because this land is famous for its wild beasts. After the sailor has left, Antigonus tells the baby that he saw Hermione's spirit last night in a dream. The ghost cried and then told him that the child's name is Perdita, because she is lost. Hermione's ghost also informed Antigonus that because of his hand in the child's abandonment, Antigonus will never see his wife again. Antigonus believes that the dream is a sign of Hermione's death. He has either come to believe or forced himself to believe Leontes' suspicions, and so he is abandoning the child in the wilds of Bohemia, the land of her supposed father. He leaves the child with a bundle and a box. He regrets his task, but he feels bound by his oath. Then he suddenly exits, pursued by a bear.
A shepherd wanders, complaining about young people and looking for two lost sheep; instead of finding them, he stumbles onto Perdita. He believes she must be the unwanted offspring of two servants, and he resolves to take care of her. The Shepherd and his son find that the box left with the baby is full of gold, and he now believes that the child is a changeling, a child left by fairies.
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