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Erin Hulsey
Bach
EH 476
19 November 2010
Role of Disguises in Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale
In William Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale there are many references made to disguises,
especially in the fourth scene of act four, which takes place during the shepherds’ feast. Through
many examples, it is established in the Norton edition of the text that disguises appear to be little
better than useless, as they are unable to conceal one’s natural social rank. Disguises ultimately
fail in concealing one’s identity, since the mannerisms of the character’s natural social class
“peep so fairly [through them]” (Norton 4.4.148), even without the appropriate upbringing, as is
the case with Perdita. While disguises for all the characters reveal their true social rank, they do
so in a very different way for Perdita—she has been donning a disguise of sorts for the past
sixteen years, so the costume meant to elevate her status in fact only adorns her with appropriate
clothing for her social rank. Shakespeare’s use of wordplay, ambiguity, and references to the
theater (suggesting falseness) all contribute to conveying the idea that social class is innate and
disguises are useless in attempting to obscure it. The Folio edition of the text, however, appears
to convey this message to a higher degree, and the changes made in the Norton in fact seem to
undercut a great deal of the original message. The Folio version allows for the potential
empowerment of Perdita, something that the Norton edition undercuts and perhaps even makes
impossible.
There are many blatant references to disguises in the play, and especially in this scene
(4.4), that convey the idea that social rank is innate, trumping any attempt to hide it. At the very
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beginning of the scene, the Norton text informs the reader that both Florizel and Perdita are in
disguise, seemingly dressed up as people from the opposite end of the social ladder for each of
them—Florizel is disguised as a shepherd, and Perdita as “Queen” of the Feast. Perdita does not
appear comfortable with Florizel’s change in dress; she appears to find it unnatural for Florizel to
be dressed in such a lowly state: “I should blush / to see you so attired” (4.4.12-13). Perdita
establishes early on, then, that disguises ill-befit people who are attempting to conceal their
social rank. Later in the same conversation, Perdita expresses concern about the chance that
Polixenes, the king and Florizel’s father, might see them dressed up and what the consequences
might be for them (4.4.18-24). She seems to be assuming that the king will easily be able to see
through their disguises, reiterating the futility of them. Florizel later sees through Camillo’s
disguise once he begins to talk to him in earnest. It seems clear that Camillo has not yet removed
his disguise, since Florizel says “I think, Camillo”—he is not entirely certain that it is his father’s
servant. Even the “simple” people in the scene, such as the Old Shepherd, are able to determine
a person’s true rank, no matter the outfit. When Autolycus has changed clothes with Florizel and
is trying to convince the shepherd that he is a real courtier, Perdita’s dad muses that Autolycus’s
“garments are rich, but he wears them not / handsomely” (4.4.727-28).
The disguise performs the same function for Perdita that it does for everyone else—that
of revealing their true rank—but this is done in a different way for Perdita. Her costume is the
first outfit she has ever adorned that actually matches her true social status, so the “disguise”
reveals her true rank by showing her as she truly is for the first time. The fact that Perdita’s
actions and mannerisms match her royal costume is noticed by several characters, which leads to
quite a few comments throughout the scene that suggest that she may not be of the lowly rank
that she has assumed all her life. Florizel opens the scene by immediately commenting on how
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fitting the costume looks on Perdita, and that she actually looks to him like a real goddess (4.4.15). While everyone watches her fulfill her duties as “Queen of the Feast,” Florizel mentions that
her actions are so distinctive and impressive that they “crown what [she] is doing in the present
deeds, / That all [her] acts are queens” (4.4.145-46). Polixenes is also impressed by her
behavior: “This is the prettiest low-born lass that ever / Ran on the greensward. Nothing she
does or seems / But smacks of something greater than herself, / Too noble for this place”
(4.4.156-59). Camillo later mentions that her mannerism is befitting one of such high status that
he cannot say “`tis pity / She lacks instruction, for she seems a mistress / To most that teach”
(4.4.569-71). She has naturally gained the mannerism and behavior of her true social class, even
without the appropriate upbringing, and it especially shows itself when she is wearing clothing
that matches her true social status.
There are many references to the theater throughout the scene that help to emphasize the
false nature of many of the characters’ outfits—many people in the scene mirror actors,
attempting to portray themselves as people they are not. Perdita ironically states that she would
not want Florizel to only desire to “breed by [her]” if he thought she was something that she is
not; she describes her potentially disguised self as “were I painted” (4.4.101-103), drawing on a
subtle reference to the theater, in which actors conceal their faces in some manner. Autolycus,
himself disguised as a traveling peddler, offers many things for sale, including “masks for faces,
and for noses” (4.4.217); this reiterates the idea that many characters in the scene are attempting
to conceal their true identities. Masks are another allusion to the theater, as some actors might
conceal their faces in this way. Much later in the scene when Florizel and Perdita are making
plans to run away to Sicilia, Florizel voices a concern about not having the proper outfit to play
the part of a convincing prince in Leontes’s court. Camillo reassures him: “It shall be so my
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care / To have you royally appointed as if / The scene you play were mine” (4.4.280-82).
Camillo then proceeds to provide both Florizel and Perdita with “disguises” for their trip; this
disguise for Perdita, at least, is highly ironic—she is disguised, once again, in an outfit that is
unknowingly appropriate for her true social status. Another theater reference comes again from
Perdita, who notes while Camillo is devising a plan for them that she “see[s] the play so lies /
That [she] must bear a part” (4.4.638-39). She once again ironically assumes she will have to
disguise her true self in order to be a princess. In both quotes about plays, Perdita’s “costume,”
is not in fact portraying her as someone else, but rather her true nature, showing the revealing
nature of disguises even within a play.
There are also ambiguous statements and instances of word-play made throughout the
scene that help to enrich the message found in the text. Early in the scene, Perdita tells Florizel
that “[his] praises are too large. But that [his] youth / And the true blood which peeps so fairly
through’t / Do plainly give [him] out an unstained shepherd, / With wisdom [she] might fear… /
[He] wooed [her] the false way” (4.4.146-151). This statement even on the surface is highly
ironic—if she could not tell that he was an honest and true shepherd (which he isn’t), she would
be afraid that he was deceiving her. The phrase “the true blood which peeps so fairly through’t,”
though, gives her declaration another meaning; his “true blood,” or social rank, is peeping
through his disguise, showing him for who he truly is. Another ambiguous statement in the
scene comes from Camillo, who makes the comment while preparing Florizel and Perdita for
their departure that when they arrive in Sicilia, Florizel should “present [him]self and [his] fair
princess, / for so [he] sees she must be, fore Leontes” (4.4.532-35). Camillo sees that Perdita
must be a princess, but the reason behind this discovery is unclear. He could simply be saying
this as she is going to marry the prince of Bohemia soon, making her a princess, but he could
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also have figured out her true identity. He served her mother for many years, and Perdita is said
to look just like her (5.2.33-34), so there is a fair chance that he has figured it out. In this case,
he is sending them to her father for another reason—to reconcile the family. The ambiguous
statements throughout the scene allow for the alternative interpretation that the characters’ true
social ranks reveal themselves in spite of attempts at concealment, reiterating the major theme
running through the scene.
Shakespeare also employs wordplay in this scene to deepen the ambiguity concerning
true identity, especially when it concerns Perdita. One of the main nebulous words in the scene
is “disposition,” from when Perdita comments about change she thinks she has perceived in her
manner and temperament: “Sure this robe of mine / Does change my disposition” (4.4.133-34).
“Disposition” in this instance, however, could actually refer to a number of definitions, some of
which are potentially very significant: “the action of disposing of, putting away, getting rid of,
making over” and “power of disposing of; disposal, control” are two major ones (OED
“disposition” n. 4a, 4b). These alternate definitions could suggest that Perdita, adorned in an
outfit appropriate to her social status, has gained the power to “dispose of” or “make over” her
old identity, and to fully take on her new status as a princess, both as Florizel’s wife and,
unknowingly, her birthright. Another ambiguous word in the scene is “mistress”: her foster
father, the Old Shepherd, encourages her to “present [her]self / That which [she is], mistress
o’th’feast” (Norton 4.4.68-69). While mistress could merely refer to hostess or head female of
the household, it could also refer to a woman in power, especially one “who has the power to
control, use, or dispose of something at will” (OED “mistress” n. 4a)—this would not only give
Perdita unspoken control over everyone else at the feast, which she apparently has, given that she
has captured everyone’s attention, but this definition would also potentially give her control over
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her identity and status, the same way “disposition” could; this idea will become critical when
looking at the Folio version of the text.
While the Norton edition of The Winter’s Tale makes its message concerning the futility
of disguises and the innate and apparent nature of social status clear, this version seems to
actually undercut a good portion and weight of this theme due to changes made to the original
Folio version. Although some changes made to the Folio could arguably be considered
insignificant, such as a colon instead of a period in a particular line, some of the changes made in
this scene are rather weighty. One major variation between the two versions of the text occurs at
the very beginning of the scene; the Norton records Perdita as saying “I should blush / To see
you [Florizel] so attired; swoon, I think, / To show myself a glass” (4.4.12-14). In this version of
the text, it appears that she feels she would be utterly shocked by her own appearance, since she
is wearing an upper class costume. The Folio version, however, is quite different: “I should
blush / To see you so attyr’d: sworne I thinke, / To shew my selfe a glasse” (TLN 1810-12,
emphasis mine). Instead of being surprised by her appearance, she now appears to have
“sworne” to herself that she will look in a mirror and see her appearance; this change
consequently makes the text much more complex and ambiguous. One likely explanation of the
passage using the original word is based on the idea of swearing an oath, which is strongly
associated with truth (OED “sworne” v. 2a). This would make Perdita somehow aware that her
normal appearance is false, and that she must look into a mirror while wearing the queen’s
costume in order to obtain the truth about her appearance and identity. She is a queen of sorts at
the moment, and so looking in a mirror would reveal her natural rank. One detail concerning this
makes the passage even more ambiguous—she could be referring to her rank as a result of her
impending marriage to Florizel, or to her true birth. Either way, this word has the effect of
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giving Perdita a great deal more power than she has in the Norton edition of the text; this actually
correlates well with some of the ambiguous words used in the Norton, such as “disposition” and
“mistress.” Although the same two words are used in both texts, the ambiguous words seem to
potentially give Perdita a lot more power when viewed through the slight but significant
variations in the Folio.
Some of the punctuation in the Folio edition also lends itself to viewing Perdita as
possessing more power than is portrayed in the Norton edition. When Florizel is attempting to
cheer Perdita up a little later in the text, he says in the Norton edition to “be merry, gentle”
(4.4.46), suggesting that he wants her to be “merry” and “gentle,” with “gentle” here probably
meaning “courteous and polite” (OED “gentle” adj. 3c). In the Folio edition, however, this
sentence is written in a slightly different way: “Be merry (Gentle)” (TLN 1849). Although this
phrase could mean the exact same thing as the Norton’s version, its increased ambiguity lends
itself to a potential case of wordplay. Florizel could be telling Perdita to be merry, and calling
her Gentle, such as a gentlewoman, or a woman who is “well-born,” “of birth, blood, family”
“honourable, distinguished by descent or position, belonging to the class of gentlemen” (OED
“gentle” adj. 1a, 2a). If Florizel is calling her a person of a higher class, he could be doing it for
a variety of reasons; he plans to marry her soon, and so may see her as a member of the upper
class already, or he could even be joking, since she is a “queen” for the day. Either way, he may
very well be unknowingly calling her an accurate title.
Another potentially significant punctuation variance is when Perdita is talking to
Polixenes about flowers, and her wish to not be “painted.” In the Norton, she says, “no more
than, were I painted, I would wish / This youth should say ‘twere well, and only therefore /
Desire to breed by me” (4.4.101-03). She is comparing herself to an impure or false flower, and
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declares that she would not wish for Florizel to desire her unless she were in her rightful status
and appearance. This is ironic enough, but the Folio makes the passage even more ambiguous:
“No more then were I painted, I would wish / This youth should say ‘twer well: and onely
therefore / Desire to breed by me” (TLN 1914-16). The beginning of this passage lends itself to
an additional interpretation—Perdita, who has “sworne” to look at herself in a “glasse,” might
somehow know at this point that she has up until this point worn clothes ill-befitting her station,
and realizes that, in her queen’s costume, she is no longer painted—her true identity has finally
been revealed to Florizel, even if he does not realize it yet.
A final alteration done to the Folio version that may significantly change the way Perdita
is meant to be viewed is toward the end of the scene, when Florizel and Perdita are preparing for
departure. Perdita notes, in the Norton version, that “[she] sees the play so lies / That she must
bear a part” (4.4.637-38). In this edition, she appears to be saying that “the play is of such a
nature that I must take part in it too in order for it to work;” in the Folio edition, however, she
says it slightly differently: “I see the play so lyes, / That I must beare a part” (TLN 2533-34). In
this rendition, the pause caused by the added comma puts more focus on the word “lyes,”
allowing for a different reading of the passage—“lyes” in this instance could be suggesting
falsehood, a word which up until now has been highly associated with Perdita’s, especially in
regard to her identity. In accordance with all the other variations seen thus far in the text that
establish a distinct possibility that Perdita has some inkling that she is not all that she appears to
be, she could very well be aware that falsehood is associated with her. In this case, she knows
that she is linked to falsehood and disguises to such a degree that she must would naturally
“beare a part” in any play that involved deceit or concealment of any kind.
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Although the Norton edition is relatively thorough in its attempt to convey the message
that disguises are useless in the play and that one’s natural social rank will always end up
revealing itself, it cuts out several important details in the Folio version that makes this argument
much stronger. The Folio version not only suggests the above themes, but even goes so far as to
give Perdita some kind of control over her social status—she may not be consciously aware of
the nature of her true identity, but she does appear, from alternate readings of the Folio text, to
have some idea that she is not all that she appears to be. The Folio version of the text, therefore,
ultimately appears to empower Perdita a great deal more than the edited Norton edition.
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Works Cited
Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2009. Web.
Shakespeare, William. The Winter’s Tale. London, 1623. Internet Shakespeare Editions, U of
Victoria. Web. 18 November 2010.
---. The Winter’s Tale. The Norton Shakespeare: Based on the Oxford Edition. Gen. Ed. Stephen
Greenblatt. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 1997. Print.