AS YOU LIKE IT
"As You Like It," a comedic play in five acts by William Shakespeare, was crafted and performed around 1598-1600, later published in the First Folio of 1623. Shakespeare drew inspiration from Thomas Lodge's prose romance "Rosalynde" (1590). The plot traces Rosalind's journey with her cousin Celia, escaping her uncle's persecution to seek refuge and love in the Forest of Arden. The forest introduces them to diverse characters, notably the melancholic Jaques, known for famous lines like "All the world's a stage." Rosalind, disguised as a boy shepherd, encounters Orlando, her love interest. She guides him to woo her, eventually revealing her identity and marrying Orlando in a group wedding at the play's conclusion.
Major Characters
Rosaline is the central character in the play. She is banished by Duke Frederick and goes to the Forest of Arden disguised as a young man, Ganymede.
Celia is Duke Frederick's daughter. She accompanies Rosaline to the forest.
Duke Senior is usurped by his brother, Frederick. He becomes exiled in the Forest of Arden with some of his courts. Frederick later relents, and Duke Senior is restored to his position.
Touchstone is a fool in the Duke's court. He accompanies Rosaline and Celia to the Forest of Arden.
Jaques is a cynical courtier who accompanies Duke Senior to the forest. He is the speaker of the famous 'seven ages of man' speech.
Orlando flees from his wicked older brother, Oliver, who wants to have him killed so that he can have his share of his inheritance. The brothers are finally reconciled when Orlando saves Oliver from a deadly snake and a ravenous lioness.
Jacques de Boys is the brother of Oliver and Orlando.
Dennis is one of Oliver's servants.
Adam is a faithful old servant of the de Boys'. He is fiercely loyal to Orlando.
Charles is Frederick's official wrestler.
Le Bean is a courtier at Frederick's court.
Amiens is an attendant of Lord Senior and a singer.
Summary
Act I
Orlando, the youngest kid of the late Sir Roland de Boys, gets a rough deal from his older bro, Oliver. Bitter and all fired up, Orlando challenges the court wrestler, Charles, to a brawl. When Oliver catches wind of this, he tells Charles to rough up Orlando if possible.
Duke Frederick recently tossed out his bro, Duke Senior, from being the head of the court. But he let Senior's daughter, Rosalind, stick around, and she, along with Celia, the new Duke's daughter, watch the wrestling match. Rosalind falls head over heels for Orlando during the match, where he beats Charles. Rosalind gives Orlando a necklace to wear, and he's totally smitten.
Act II
Shortly after, Orlando gets the heads-up about his bro's evil plan and bolts to the Forest of Arden. Around the same time, and for no good reason, Duke Frederick kicks Rosalind out. She decides to bunk in the Forest of Arden with Celia. They both go undercover: Rosalind as a dude named Ganymede, and Celia as his sister Aliena. Even Touchstone, the court jester, tags along.
Act III
In the Forest of Arden, the tired cousins run into Silvius, a lovesick shepherd. Silvius is in the middle of pouring out his heart to Phoebe, a snarky shepherdess. Ganymede scores a lease for an old shepherd who needs help managing his land. Ganymede and Aliena set up camp in the forest. Nearby, Duke Senior and his exile crew are living the simple life. Their fun is interrupted by Orlando, who's hungry for himself and his servant. The outlaw courtiers welcome the two guys.
Ganymede and Aliena find lovey-dovey notes from Orlando hung up in the forest by Orlando. Ganymede finds Orlando and comes up with a plan to cure him of his love. Orlando will pretend to woo Ganymede like he's Rosalind (even though Ganymede is really... Rosalind). Orlando agrees and shows up every day for his lessons with Ganymede/Rosalind. Meanwhile, the shepherdess Phoebe falls for Ganymede, while Silvius is still chasing after her. And don't forget Touchstone, the court jester, who sweeps country girl Audrey off her feet with his fancy ways. Audrey ditches her young suitor, William, for him.
Act IV
When Duke Frederick hears that Orlando has vanished around the same time as Rosalind and Celia, he orders Oliver to go find his brother. In the forest, Orlando saves Oliver's skin, getting himself hurt in the process. Oliver crosses paths with Ganymede and Aliena and shares the news. Rosalind (as Ganymede) is totally feeling Orlando. Celia (as Aliena) and Oliver quickly fall in love. Rosalind decides it's time to end her game with Orlando and hatch a plan to get everyone hitched.
Act V:
As Ganymede, Rosalind tells Phoebe that they're gonna get hitched, Celia and Oliver will tie the knot, Touchstone will marry Audrey, and Orlando will marry Rosalind. She makes Phoebe promise that if things don't work out, she'll marry Silvius instead.
On the wedding day, with the help of the god Hymen, Rosalind shows up in her regular clothes again. Duke Senior walks her down the aisle to Orlando, while Phoebe says yes to Silvius. Orlando's other bro returns from school with news that Celia's dad, Duke Ferdinand, has turned into a hermit. So, everyone's pretty happy (except maybe Phoebe and Silvius, who have a bit of a mixed deal). The play ends with a big happy dance to celebrate the four weddings.
Themes
Love: As You Like It is all about love. It is the greatest joy and the greatest healer. The play explores filial love, brotherly love, and humanitarian love.
Nature: It is a significant theme in the play. Nature heals, restores, redeems.
Gender: It poses as one of the play's integral themes. While disguised as Ganymede, Rosalind also presents a calculated perception of affection that is "disruptive of [the] social norms" and "independent of conventional gender signs" that dictate women's behavior as irrational.
Usurpation and Injustice: They are significant themes of this play. The new Duke Frederick usurps his older brother Duke Senior. In comparison, Oliver parallels this behavior by treating his younger brother Orlando so ungenerously as to compel him to seek his fortune elsewhere. Both Duke Senior and Orlando take refuge in the forest, where justice is restored "through nature".
Music and Songs: As You Like It is known as a musical comedy because of the number of songs in the play. There are more songs in it than in any other play of Shakespeare.
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