The Winter's Tale Essay Questions

Why is The Winter's Tale considered a romance play?

The Winter's Tale was originally described as a comedy when it appeared in the 1623 Shakespeare Folio. However, since then, it has been widely read as one of Shakespeare's late romances. This is due largely to the play's genre bending and the fact that it contains both tragic and comic elements: it begins with rather serious conflict but that conflict is resolved by the end of the play. In general, romances feature problems in the first half and solutions, resolutions, and reunions in the second half. The Winter's Tale is a perfect example of this genre structure.

The Winter's Tale can be divided into two distinct halves. What are they?

The first "half" of The Winter's Tale can be considered its first three acts, in which Leontes imprisons Hermione and abandons his newborn daughter only to experience the deaths of his wife and son. A personified Time introduces the second half of the play with a sixteen-year time jump, after which audiences learn that Perdita is alive and well, having been raised by a shepherd who found her in Bohemia. These two halves of the play offer starkly different tones, in keeping with the romance genre that makes use of both tragic and comic elements.

Who is the protagonist of The Winter's Tale?

The Winter's Tale does not feature a singular protagonist over the course of the play. Initially, Hermione is a primary protagonist as she is loyal to Leontes despite his accusations against her. When she grows up, Perdita is also a protagonist as she finds love with Florizel despite her believing that she is the daughter of a lowly shepherd. Finally, Leontes starts off as the play's antagonist, but in the last two acts becomes a protagonist himself after he repents for the wrongs he has done. The fact that there is not true protagonist or antagonist in the play is a testament to its mixture of tragic and comic conventions.

Is Hermione alive throughout the entire play, or she brought back to life through Paulina's magic?

At the end of the play, all of the characters travel to Paulina's house, where she reveals a surprisingly lifelike statue of Hermione. Characters even comment on how the statue seems to have accounted for the way Hermione may have aged over the last sixteen years. Suddenly, the statue turns into Hermione herself, very much alive. Most critics agree that there is no real answer to the question of whether Hermione actually died or if Paulina simply hid her away for almost two decades. Instead, the statue of Hermione coming to life serves a more symbolic purpose in the play, representing the redemption of Leontes and the reunion of his family (except, of course, for Mamillius).

How are Sicily and Bohemia contrasted throughout the play?

The first three acts of the play are set in Sicily during the winter months, and are therefore characterized by darkness, age, and decay. The last two acts of the play are largely set in Bohemia during the spring and summer and follow the characters of Florizel and Perdita closely. Bohemia therefore becomes a site of youth, renewal, and rebirth. The two settings represent the two dominant moods of the play – ominous and celebratory – as well as the genres of tragedy and comedy that Shakespeare brings together.