← All’s Well That Ends Well

All’s Well That Ends Well · Chapters

Chapters explained

Chapter companions for All’s Well That Ends Well by William Shakespeare.

Each chapter has a companion in the reader — open a free preview to see notes beside the text.

  1. Chapter 1

    Act I

    All's Well That Ends Well — Stage Lens: dramatic beats, line helps that follow your scroll, and stage picture. Read to understand, not to collect a closed thesis.

  2. Chapter 2

    Scene I

    Bertram departs for the King's court, leaving behind his mother the Countess, Helena, and Lafeu. The Countess mourns the loss of her son and recalls Helena's father, the renowned physician Gerard de Narbon. Lafeu informs them that the King is ill with a fistula and has abandoned his physicians. After Bertram and Lafeu exit, Helena reveals her deep love for Bertram and laments the social gulf between them. Parolles enters and engages in a witty, bawdy debate about virginity. Left alone, Helena resolves to use her father's medical knowledge to cure the King and thereby win Bertram.

  3. Chapter 3

    Scene II

    The King of France discusses the ongoing war between Florence and Siena, noting that Florence will seek aid but he intends to deny it. He allows his gentlemen to fight on either side. Bertram arrives at court with Lafeu and Parolles. The King reflects on Bertram's father, praising his virtues and lamenting his own declining health. He asks about the physician who attended Bertram's father and expresses a wish to consult him if he were still alive.

  4. Chapter 4

    Scene III

    The Countess questions the Steward about Helena, then confronts Helena about her love for Bertram. Helena confesses her love and reveals her plan to cure the King of France using her father's prescriptions, with the Countess's blessing.

  5. Chapter 5

    Act II

    All's Well That Ends Well — Stage Lens: dramatic beats, line helps that follow your scroll, and stage picture. Read to understand, not to collect a closed thesis.

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  1. Chapter 6Scene I
  2. Chapter 7Scene II
  3. Chapter 8Scene III
  4. Chapter 9Scene IV
  5. Chapter 10Scene V
  6. Chapter 11Act III
  7. Chapter 12Scene I
  8. Chapter 13Scene II
  9. Chapter 14Scene III
  10. Chapter 15Scene IV
  11. Chapter 16Scene V
  12. Chapter 17Scene VI
  13. Chapter 18Scene VII
  14. Chapter 19Act IV
  15. Chapter 20Scene I
  16. Chapter 21Scene II
  17. Chapter 22Scene III
  18. Chapter 23Scene IV
  19. Chapter 24Scene V
  20. Chapter 25Act V
  21. Chapter 26Scene I
  22. Chapter 27Scene II
  23. Chapter 28Endnotes
  24. Chapter 29Endnotes
  25. Chapter 30Endnotes