All's Well That Ends Well is a play written by William Shakespeare. It appeared in a book called the First Folio in 1623, where it is grouped with comedies. Scholars disagree about when it was written, with possible dates between 1598 and 1608.
The play is one of Shakespeare's "problem plays," which are stories that present difficult moral questions without simple answers.
Synopsis
Helena is a servant of a French-Spanish countess and the daughter of a doctor who recently died. She loves Bertram, the countess’s son, but he does not care for her. Bertram travels to Paris to serve the sick King of France. Helena follows him, claiming she wants to help the king as a healer. The king is doubtful but agrees to let her try. Helena promises that if the king dies, she will be punished, but if he lives, she may choose a husband from the court.
The king recovers, and Helena chooses Bertram as her husband. However, Bertram refuses to marry her because she is poor and of low status. The king forces Bertram to marry Helena, but after the wedding, Bertram leaves for war in Italy without saying goodbye. He tells Helena he will only marry her if she has his child and brings him his family ring. Helena returns to the countess, who is upset by Bertram’s actions and claims Helena as her own child to protect her.
In Italy, Bertram becomes a respected soldier and falls in love with Diana, the daughter of a poor noble family. Helena travels to Italy, becomes friends with Diana, and arranges to sleep with Bertram in Diana’s place. Diana trades Helena’s ring for Bertram’s ring, allowing Helena to complete their marriage without Bertram’s knowledge.
Helena pretends to die. Bertram believes he is free of her and tries to marry another woman. However, Diana appears and stops the marriage. Helena reveals the ring trade, explaining she has met Bertram’s conditions. Bertram is impressed by her actions and finally loves her. The story ends with their happiness.
A subplot involves Parolles, a dishonest friend of Bertram. Helena, the countess, her servant Lavatch, and two lords know Parolles is a coward and a liar, but Bertram still takes him to war. The two lords trick Parolles into entering enemy territory to retrieve a lost drum. While he is there, they pretend to be enemies, capture him, blindfold him, and force him to betray Bertram and give up a letter that reveals Bertram’s bad behavior. Bertram watches this and learns the truth about Parolles.
Analysis and criticism
There is no proof that All's Well That Ends Well was widely liked during Shakespeare's time. It has remained one of his less well-known plays, partly because it mixes unusual elements, such as fairy tale ideas, unusual gender roles, and realistic, skeptical views. Helena’s love for Bertram, who seems difficult to love, is hard to explain in writing. However, in performances, this can be made clearer by casting an actor who looks very attractive and by showing a possible relationship between Bertram and Parolles, a character who is overly concerned with fashion. A line from the play says, “A filthy officer he is in those suggestions for the young earl” (Act III, scene 5). This interpretation also helps explain a moment in the final scene when Bertram suddenly changes from hatred to love in one line. This is a challenge for actors who focus on realistic character development. Some interpretations focus on the word “if” in Bertram’s promise: “If she, my liege, can make me know this clearly, I'll love her dearly, ever, ever dearly.” This suggests Bertram’s feelings never truly changed. In a 2009 production by London’s National Theatre, Bertram seemed to make his promise normally but ended the play holding hands with Helena, looking at the audience with a confused expression, as if he gave in only to avoid embarrassment in front of the king.
In a 2018 production directed by Caroline Byrne at London’s Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, Bertram’s reconciliation with Helena was shown by having him fulfill his promise to marry her only after she gives birth to his child. Helena also brings their infant child to their final meeting with the king.
Many critics believe the ending, where Bertram suddenly changes his feelings, is a weakness. Some suggest the ending was meant to be sudden and magical, matching the play’s theme of a clever woman winning an unwilling, higher-born husband. Others think Bertram is not meant to be unkind but rather a young man learning lessons about values. Andrew Hadfield of the University of Sussex argues that audiences at the time might have seen Bertram’s forced marriage as a metaphor for the new rule (1606) requiring Catholics to swear an oath of loyalty to Protestant King James.
One admired character is the Countess of Roussillon, whom Shaw called “the most beautiful old woman’s part ever written.” Modern productions often feature experienced actresses, such as Judi Dench and Peggy Ashcroft. In a 1982 production, Peggy Ashcroft gave a performance described as “entrancing… full of wisdom and compassion.” In the BBC’s Shakespeare series, the role was played by Celia Johnson, who was dressed and posed like a painting by Rembrandt.
Some modern editors believe a line may be missing between Helena’s brief defense of her virginity and her long list of romantic terms for Bertram. Scholars have debated the play’s date and authorship. Laurie Maguire and Emma Smith argue the play may have been co-written with Thomas Middleton and dates to 1606–1607. The play has also been described as having a “Catholic aesthetic” and shows the lives of Catholics in England around the time of the Gunpowder Plot.
Performance history
No records of early performances of All's Well That Ends Well have been found. In 1741, the play was performed at Goodman's Fields, later moving to Drury Lane. Rehearsals at Drury Lane began in October 1741, but William Milward, who played the king, became ill, and the opening was delayed until January 22. Peg Woffington, who played Helena, fainted on the first night, and her lines were read by someone else. Milward fell ill again on February 2 and died on February 6. These events, along with unconfirmed stories of other actors becoming ill during the play’s run, gave the play a reputation for being "unlucky," similar to Macbeth. This reputation may have limited the number of times the play was performed again.
Henry Woodward (1714–1777) helped make the character of Parolles famous during the time of David Garrick. The play was performed only occasionally in the following decades, including an operatic version at Covent Garden in 1832.
The play includes elements from romantic stories and risqué tales. It depends on traditional ideas about gender roles, as shown by Bertram and challenged by Helena. As society’s views on gender roles changed, Victorian critics focused on Helena’s character, describing her as predatory, immodest, and either "despicable" or overly passive. Ellen Terry, a friend of George Bernard Shaw, had conflicting opinions about Helena. Shaw admired Helena, comparing her to strong female characters like Nora in Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House. The editor of the Arden Shakespeare volume described 19th-century reactions to the play as shock and confusion over the "revolting idea" behind its plot.
In 1896, Frederick S. Boas created the term "problem play" to describe plays that were unpopular or controversial. He grouped All’s Well That Ends Well with Hamlet, Troilus and Cressida, and Measure for Measure.