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Helena, the orphaned daughter of a famous doctor, loves Bertram, the young Count of Rousillon, who looks down on her humble birth. When she cures the dying…
Helena, the orphaned daughter of a famous doctor, loves Bertram, the young Count of Rousillon, who looks down on her humble birth. When she cures the dying King of France with one of her father's remedies, the king rewards her with the husband of her choice, and she chooses Bertram, who marries her against his will and runs off to the wars in Italy, declaring that he will never be her husband until she wears his ring and carries his child. Helena sets out to meet his conditions.
Context and significance
Written around 1604 or 1605, it is another of Shakespeare's 'problem plays', a fairy-tale plot told with uncomfortable realism, and its title is a proverb. Its only early text is the First Folio of 1623, reproduced here. Compare Measure for Measure, which uses the same 'bed trick'.
About the author
William Shakespeare (1564–1616), born in Stratford-upon-Avon, actor, playwright and shareholder of a London company, wrote about thirty-seven plays and 154 sonnets.