Winter’s tale Ends (continued)

The statue of Hermione is a symbol of redemption. After the music starts to play, the dramatic effect is heightened by the slow and gradual way in which the near to close statue, transforms into Hermione. After Hermione descends, Leontes speaks with great joy and declares that she is “warm”. Also, he refers to this act of Hermione coming alive to art. This brings in the theme of art and nature which was a much debated topic during the Elizabethan era. It was argued that art is only an attempt to recreate nature and some said that art could be used to create something even more real than nature, in essence saying that, art is nature. Hermione being symbolized as a statue brings in the concept of art and when this object of art comes alive it is nature that is to take the responsibility.

Furthermore, we see that after the increasing build up for the arrival of Hermione, when finally she is amongst the character, Shakespeare adopts a technique which results in the audience to anxiously wait for her to speak. She does not speak immediately and what builds up the drama is that all characters speak except her. Shakespeare makes Polixenes and Camillo comment on her actions as though she herself cannot yet speak. Polixenes says, “She embraces him”.

Thereafter, Paulina extends the drama by preparing Hermione for her daughter, Perdita. It is at this point when Shakespeare includes Hermione’s speech. She expresses her concern for Perdita and how she has been all these years. Eventually Shakespeare speeds up the course of events and begins to gather all the issues of the play and divert them to an end. Hermione is told about her daughter and Leontes gives an ending speech in which he vows to love Hermione forever and he asks Camiilo to marry Paulina. The play comes to an abrupt end with Leontes and Hermione reunited, Florizel and Perdita also united and Camillo and Paulina accepting to be together.