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All is Well That Ends Well
Full Plot Summary
All is Well That Ends Well
UNDERSTANDING
All's Well That Ends Well by William Shakespeare
Helena saves the king's life. The King gives her permission to marry his son, Bertram. But Bertram runs away from her. He assigns her lists of tasks to validate the marriage. Helena tricks him into impregnating herself. Everything is all right in the end.
SHORT SUMMARY
All's Well That Ends Well by William Shakespeare
Helena heals the King of France. The King grants her permission to marry his son Bertram. Helena is in love with Bertram. But Bertram refuses her to marry. He leaves a list of tasks she must do for their marriage to be accepted. She follows Bertram to Italy. She completes all the tasks given to her. Finally, Bertram accepts her as his wife.
DETAILED SUMMARY
All's Well That Ends Well by William Shakespeare
Act I
In Roussillon, one of the French provinces, the widowed countess bids farewell to her son, Bertram. Bertram is on his way to the court of the French King with his haughty friends Parolles and Lord Lafew. Bertram escapes unnoticed by the continuous attention of Helena, the orphaned daughter of the countess's renowned physician. Helena has grown up in her mother's house and falls in love with Bertram.
Act II
The countess allows Helena to move to the court and try to cure the king's illness. Where many others have failed to cure the King's illness, she has succeeded in the task of curing, and as a reward, the king has asked her to choose a husband from among his wards. (In this situation, who else would she choose but Bertram?) Bertram finds the alliance beneath him. After the wedding ceremony, he escapes and plans to join the war in Italy with his friend Parolles.
Act III
He writes to Helena that he won't approve of their marriage until she can prove that she wears his heirloom ring and bears his baby. Helena returns the province home to Roussillon, but she doesn't give up. Instead, she soon leaves and follows Bertram to Florence, disguising herself as a pilgrim. There, she befriends Diana and her mother, who is a widow. Meanwhile, Bertram forms an obsession with Diana during his time in Italy. The soldiers jokingly trick Parole into proving that he is a coward, while Bertram intends to sleep with Diana.
Act IV
Diana plots to help Helena meet Bertram's impossible marriage requests. Diana insists that the meeting with Bertram must take place in the dark, and a disguised Helena takes Diana's place. During the nighttime, Bertram gives Helena his ring (thinking of her as Diana), and they conceive a child.
Act V
Back at the French court in Roussillon, due to Helena's absence, she is presumed dead. When Bertram returns to France, his mother and Lafew have arranged for Bertram to be married to Lafew's daughter. Bertram gives Lafew a ring as a token of the engagement, given to him during his midnight meeting with Helena in Florence. The King and the others recognise the ring that the King himself provided to Helena at her wedding.
Before the situation can be resolved, Diana arrives at the court with Bertram's ring. She accuses Bertram of seducing her and then abandoning her. Bertram refuses her, but Lafew suspects it is a lie. He withdraws his offer to his daughter. The king orders the imprisonment of Diana, but the imprisonment is halted when the widow brings Helena to witness Diana's story. The king and all his friends recognise and welcome the pregnant Helena. Diana admits that the ring given to her by Bertram came from Helena. They even recognise that Helena is wearing Bertram's ring and is carrying his child.
In this way, Helena completes both her qualifications to accept the marriage. Bertram apologises and accepts her as his wife. The king even allows Diana to choose a husband among his courtiers in return for her troubles, and he promises her a dowry. The play ends as everyone goes together to talk about their stories.
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