First performed in May 1611, The Winter's Tale is a play about reconciliation, atonement, and the healing effects of time. Leontes, a paranoid tyrant, suffers from his own rash behavior and jealous delusions. When his long-lost daughter returns and the statue of his dead wife magically comes back to life, order is restored, the family is reunited, and his atonement is complete. This volume in Bloom's Shakespeare Through the Ages set features criticism on The Winter's Tale from a variety of sources and centuries, making it an invaluable addition to any literature classroom.

In this romantic reconciliation comedy, the sweetly mischievous Helena plots and plans her way to winning the aloof Bertram's hand in marriage. While the lovers are united by the close of the final act, Shakespeare pokes fun at the fantasy, wish fulfillment, and conventions of romantic comedy with the play's ambiguous resolution, which has intrigued scholars, readers, and theatergoers for centuries. This invaluable new study guide to one of Shakespeare's greatest plays contains a selection of the finest criticism through the centuries, plus an introduction by Harold Bloom, an accessible...