All's Well That Ends Well Characters

Helen is the orphaned daughter of a famous doctor. In the play, she cures the king of France's deadly (and disgusting) disease and is rewarded by being allowed to choose any husband she wants. Why...

Prince Not-So-CharmingIf All's Well That Ends Well is Shakespeare's sick twist on the classic fairy tale, then Bertram is Shakespeare's twist on Prince Charming. Sure, he's the man of Helen's dream...

Paroles is Bertram's BFF / wingman / gentleman servant… until a group of guys trick him into revealing that he's a coward and a liar, that is. (We'll explain this in a minute.) Come to think of i...

The countess is Bertram's mother and Helen's guardian (sort of like a foster mother). She's also a widow, but Shakespeare makes it pretty clear that her most important job in this play is being a m...

A Fairy Tale KingFairy tales are chock full of what folklore scholar Donald Haase calls "helper kings." You know the kind. They're powerful and generous and they move the story's plot forward by gi...

Lavatch is the countess's clown (a.k.a. licensed fool), which means he's sort of like a personal comedian. He literally has a license to say whatever he wants without getting into trouble. (Maybe y...

Diana is the young, virginal daughter of the widow. In the play, Bertram tries to seduce her, but she ends up tricking him into sleeping with Helen.If you've read Romeo and Juliet, then you're prob...

Lafeu is a feisty old nobleman in the king of France's court. He's pretty chummy with both the king and the countess of Roussillon. He's a loyal guy and is very generous with Helen, going so far as...

The widow is Diana's mom and boy, is she one tough cookie. She's savvy, gritty, and has a lot of street smarts. Truth be told, she acts more like a business manager than a parent. In the play, she...

Mariana is the play's official nosy neighbor. She doesn't get much stage time in this play. In fact, she only appears in Act 3, Scene 5 but, boy, does she make a big impression. We're talking, of c...

These two brothers are lords in the king of France's court. In the play, they join the Florentine army along with a bunch of other young French noblemen and run off to fight a war in Italy. They're...