The Winter's Tale (Vol. 36) - Structure
STRUCTURE
Alastair Fowler (essay date 1978)
SOURCE: "Leontes' Contrition and the Repair of Nature," in Essays and Studies, Vol. 31, 1978, pp. 36-64.
[In the following essay, Fowler discusses the allegorical relations in The Winter's Tale, maintaining that the pastoral scenes symbolically reveal Leontes ' transition from sin to repentance.]
The Winter's Tale and Measure for Measure fall each into distinct sections written in different fictive modes. In Measure for Measure, the early, potentially tragic scenes of naturalism have been contrasted with the subsequent allegorical black comedy, which is supposed to show a 'falling off'. In The Winter's Tale, the contrast between the first three acts (again largely naturalistic) and the pastoral-comical continuation is too sharp, and the writing too good, to seem anything but intentional. Still, the marvels and unconvincing deaths have been regretted....
[The entire page is 30145 words long]
Join eNotes
Over 3,500 study guides, question and answer forums, literature criticism, reference content, and much more!
Navigate
