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Leontes, King of Sicilia, is suddenly seized by the jealous conviction that his pregnant wife Hermione has betrayed him with his oldest friend, Polixenes…
Leontes, King of Sicilia, is suddenly seized by the jealous conviction that his pregnant wife Hermione has betrayed him with his oldest friend, Polixenes, King of Bohemia. He imprisons her, orders their newborn daughter abandoned in a wild place, and defies even the oracle of Apollo, with tragic results. Sixteen years later in Bohemia, the lost daughter, Perdita, raised by a shepherd, falls in love with Polixenes' son, and the play moves from tragedy towards a reunion that seems like a miracle.
Context and significance
Written around 1610 or 1611, it is one of Shakespeare's late romances, and it contains his most famous stage direction: 'Exit, pursued by a bear.' Its final scene, in which a statue of Hermione is unveiled, is one of the most moving in all his plays. Compare The Tempest, and see Shakespeare's life.
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.