Twelfth Night

Writer, time and place

Shakespeare, 1601, England

Influences

Barnabe Riche’s “Of Apolonius and Silla, Gl’Ingannati, and plautus

Setting

Kingdom of Illyria

Characters

• Viola/Cesario

• Sebastian

• Countess Olivia

• Duke Orsino

• Sir Toby Belch

• Maria

• Sir Andrew Aguecheeck

• Fabian

• Malvolio

• Feste the fool

Plot

• In a shipwreck, Viola is swept onto the shore of Illyria, where Count and Countess live. She assumes her twin brother sebastian has died in the the wreck and decides to look for work

• Viola disguises herself as a boy named Cesario to work for Duke Orsino

• Viola begins to fall in love with Orsino but he thinks she is a man

• When Orsino orders cesario to send love letters to Olivia, Olivia begins to fall in love with Cesario

• In Olivia’s house Olivia’s uncle Sir Toby, his friend Sir Andrew Aguecheek, gentlewoman Maria, and Feste the clow are annoyed by Malvolio who always tries to ruin their fun, and Maria makes a joke by forging a letter from Olivia to Malvolio telling him to earn her favor he must wear ridiculous clothes and act foolishly

• Sebastian who is alive arrives in Illyria with his friend Antonio who is probably in love with him

• Sebastian and Antonio go to Orsino’s despite them being enemies

• Olivia falls for sebastian, Viola reveals herself to Orsino, and they all marry