All's Well That Ends Well

Alls Well That Ends Well is a play written by William Shakespeare believed to have been written between 1604 and 1605. The play is a comedy with elements of romance and is considered one of Shakespeares problem plays due to its complex characters and ambiguous themes. The play follows the story of Helena a young woman who is in love with Bertram the son of a nobleman. Bertram however is not interested in her and leaves to join the army. Helena decides to follow him and through her intelligence and medical skills manages to cure the king of France of an illness. In return the king offers her the chance to choose any man in the kingdom as her husband and she chooses Bertram. Bertram however is not happy about the match and refuses to consummate the marriage instead running off to fight in Italy. Helena follows him and with the help of a trick played by the king manages to win Bertrams love and finally consummate their marriage. The play explores themes of love loyalty honor and deception as well as the idea that alls well that ends well even if the means to that end are questionable. It has been both praised and criticized for its ambiguous message with some seeing it as a celebration of womens intelligence and agency while others see it as condoning manipulative behavior in the pursuit of love.