ADAM
Adam
is the old faithful servant of the family of Sir Rowland de Boys. He offers all the savings of his thrifty life and faces all unknown
perils to save the life of his young master Orlando from the clutches
of his cruel brother.
AMIENS
Amiens
is one of the lords attending Duke Senior in the forest of Arden. He
agrees with the Duke when the latter says "sweet are the uses of
adversity". He is not prepared to exchange his life in the
forest with the comfortable life at the court. He is deeply attached
to Duke Senior and, therefore, has willingly accompanied him to the
forest of Arden.
ANDREW
Andrew
is a shepherd lad. He is attracted by Touchstone's courtly manners and wit and Touchstone discovers in him rich honesty. Touchstone
falls in love with Andrew. Their love is a parody of the romantic
love of the hero and the heroine of the play.
CELIACelia is
Duke Frederick’s daughter. When he took power, she became
acquainted with her cousin Rosalind, and they were soon inseparable.
Though she may love him, she does not like her father, particularly
when he wrongs Rosalind; and when he banishes her, she insists on
following along. It is she who has the idea that they run away to the
Forest of Arden to seek Rosalind’s father. She is amused at her
cousin’s falling head over heels for Orlando. She teases Rosalind
mercilessly while still playing along with all her plots. She is
somewhat more given to common sense than Rosalind, coming up with the
idea of disguise, thinking to take their jewels and riches with them
when they flee court, which allows them to buy the cottage where they
stay, and preferring to take a nap to sighing over an absent lover.
She falls in love with Oliver when they meet, and he with her, and
they decide to marry. She is a great favorite of Touchstone’s, whom
she persuades to follow her and Rosalind to the forest.
CHARLES
Charles
is a professional wrestler whom Oliver tells to kill — or at least,
maim — Orlando. Ironically, Orlando wins the match.
CORIN
Corin
is an old shepherd that, despite being in love during his youth, has
outgrown his folly and attained worldly wisdom. He feels badly for
the enamored Silvius and tries to console him. He is a simple-hearted
shepherd who is content with his lot, an innocent rustic with a good
deal of humanity in him. Corin's simple way of looking at life and
things around him make him an intellectually esteemed member of the
play who frequently critiques the complexities of the court.
DENNIS
Dennis
is a servant to Oliver.
DUKE
FREDERICK
Duke Frederick is the villain of this comedy who
banishes his elder brother Duke Senior and eventually also exiles his
brother's daughter, Rosalind, from the ducal palace. Just before the
play ends, he is converted by a religious hermit, and, henceforward,
he chooses to lead a monastic life of peace and simplicity in the
Forest of Arden and relinquishes the crown and lands he had
taken.
DUKE SENIOR
Duke Senior is the elder brother
of Duke Frederick. Having been banished by his usurping brother,
Frederick, Duke Senior now lives in exile in the Forest of Arden with
a number of loyal men, including Amiens and Jaques. His daughter
Rosalind is kept at the court by Duke Frederick as a companion for
his daugher Celia. Duke Senior appears as a contented man who rarely
feels adversity. At the end of the play his kingdom is restored by
Duke Frederick.
JAQUES
Jaques
is a man of the world, a free spirit. In his travels, he has affected
Continental mannerisms of speech and dress, and he believes that his
ideas are terribly profound when actually they are very shallow and
very generalized. Jaques is satirized by almost everyone with whom he
holds "deep discussions." He is a follower of the exiled
duke, Duke Senior.
JAQUES
DE BOYS
Jaques
de Boys is the second son of Sir Rowland de Boys and the brother of
Oliver and Orlando. He only appears at the end of the play when he
brings the news of Duke Frederick's reformation.
LE
BEAU
Le
Beau is a courtier in the Court of Duke Frederick; he commands the
court.
LORD
Servant to Duke Frederick.
OLIVER DE
BOYS
Oliver de Boys is the eldest son of Sir Rowland de Boys and
the heir to his father's estates. In the beginning of the play he
appears as a usurper like Duke Frederick. He ill-treats his younger
brother Orlando, denies him good upbringing and education. He acts
like a villain and even tries to kill Orlando by instigating the
wrestler, Charles. By the end of the play he gets reformed and falls
in love with Celia - which contributes to the happy ending of the
play.
ORLANDO DE BOYS
Orlando is the younger son of the
deceased Sir Rowland de Boys and brother of Oliver. He resents the
harsh treatment he receives at Oliver's hands. He is portrayed as
strong in both body and in his devotion to love. It is these
qualities that make Rosalind fall for him as well. After angering his
brother Oliver and later Duke Frederick, Orlando flees to live in
exile in the Forest of Arden. There, he is accepted into the circle
of the usurped Duke Senior and is eventually married to Duke Senior's
daughter Rosalind.
PHEBE
Phebe is a pastoral girl beloved
of Silvius, but she rejects him, while he suffers from the woes of
love-sickness. Surprisingly, she falls wildly in love with Ganymede
(Rosalind in disguise), yet finally she weds
Silvius.
ROSALIND
Rosalind is the daughter of the exiled
Duke Senior and niece to his usurping brother Duke Frederick. Her
father is banished from the kingdom which breaks her heart. She then
meets Orlando, one of her father's friends' son and falls in love
with him. After angering her uncle, she leaves his court for exile in
the Forest of Arden. Disguised as a shepherd named Ganymede, Rosalind
lives with her sweet and devoted cousin, Celia (who is disguised as
Ganymede's sister, Aliena), and Duke Frederick's fool Touchstone.
Eventually, Rosalind is reunited with her father and married to her
faithful Orlando.
SILVIUS
Silvius
is a young shepherd who represents the romantic lover. He is madly in
love with Phebe, a rural girl who does not return his love.
Throughout the play, Silvius behaves like a love-sick youth, pining
away for Phebe. Phebe treats him in an indifferent manner and
exploits him to acquire the love of Ganymede whom she loves. She
constantly rebukes Silvius, yet he longs for her love. Rosalind feels
sympathy for him. Finally, he marries Phebe with the clever
manipulation of Rosalind.
SIR
MARTEXT
Sir
Martext is a vicar from a nearby village, called to the forest to
marry Touchstone and Andrew which does not happen at that time when
Touchstone is dissuaded at the last moment by Jaques to wait and be
married in a more respectable place such as a church.
TOUCHSTONE
Touchstone is
Duke Frederick’s jester, and so fond of Celia that she is willing
to abandon the court to follow her to the forest, for all that she
does not enjoy rural life. Her folly is based on a solid ground of
common sense, for she will have little to do with the high-flying
phrases of love surrounding her, much preferring to mock poetry and
to woo Andrew.
We did some role
reversals. In our play Audrey is called Andrew and William is called
Willa. Touchstone is a woman who falls in love with Andrew and scares
off Willa from pursuing Andrew.
WILLA
Willa
is a country lass - humble and silly. She comes to profess her love
for Andrew but during her conversation with Touchstone, does not show
the depth of her feelings. She appears to be a coward. When she is
threatened if she does not give up Andrew, she does not challenge
Touchstone, her rival in love. Andrew's request that Willa should go
away shows that the love between Willa and Andrew is superficial.
1ST
PAGE
A servant to the banished Duke Senior.
2ND
PAGE
A servant to the banished Duke Senior.
