Pericles, Cymbeline, The Winter's Tale and The Tempest: Same Story, Different Versions? A Comparative Analysis of Shakespeare's Romances.

Abstract

Late plays, Last plays, Romances and Tragicomedies are the most commonly used labels adopted by critics to describe and classify Pericles, Cymbeline, The Winter’s Tale and The Tempest. These four plays were written by William Shakespeare between the years 1608-1611. Why are these works usually grouped together? Starting with Edward Dowden, several critics have observed that themes and motifs are repeated throughout each play. All four plays’ storyline follow a 3-steps pattern composed as follows: separation, quests and reunion. The present study aims to investigate if these plays are four different versions of the same story. To answer this question, I will make a comparative analysis of the plays by focusing on their common features. This dissertation is composed of an introductory chapter and three other chapters, each one pertaining to the analysis of one of these three steps. Reference will be also made to other relevant topics such as characters, time, music and magic.