Book
All’s Well That Ends Well
First published 1623
Helena, the orphaned daughter of a physician, loves Bertram, the young Count of Roussillon, but he considers her beneath him. After curing the King of France, Helena claims Bertram as her husband. He flees to war in Italy and declares that he will accept the marriage only if she obtains his ancestral ring and bears his child, conditions he believes impossible.
The play follows Helena’s pursuit from the French court to Florence, where a carefully arranged bed trick turns Bertram’s own seduction into the means of fulfilling his challenge. Its uneasy ending combines romantic comedy with questions about rank, consent, reputation and whether a forced reconciliation can truly repair a damaged marriage.
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