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IV

Although Marina is a political figure primarily in the indirect sense that she is Pericles' heir and Lysimachus' betrothed, she still provides a model of initiative and principled resourcefulness that contrasts with the purposelessness and drift (and, on occasion, the misdirected energy) that characterize her father throughout the play.⁶² Refusing to succumb to the debased life of the brothel, Marina displays an astonishing ability to act affirmatively and make the best of her situation.

Marina's influence on the characters around her is profound. She transforms not only Lysimachus, who leaves the brothel cursing the "damned door-keeper" Boult and "saying his prayers" (IV.vi. 118, 140), but also the common denizens of the brothel, including Boult as he is about to rape her to remove the impediment of her virginity (IV.vi. 152-99). She escapes the brothel and sets up a school with noble pupils, "Who pour their bounty on her"...

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1. Introduction
2. I
3. Ii
4. Iii
5. Iv
6. Copyright