All’s Well That Ends Well is one of Shakespeare’s problem plays. That is, it is one of those four plays which subvert the expected conventions of the type of play that it represents that it is almost impossible to take it as a straight, conventional example. The comedies of Shakespeare’s time, especially the romantic comedy which All’s Well That Ends Well appears at first glance to be, conventionally include the usual misidentifications, semi-farcical stage business and a happy celebration at the conclusion which includes one or more weddings. Above all, the young lovers are typically considered to be innocent and virginal and it is their innate virtue that helps them to overcome the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune. This is all subverted in All’s Well That Ends Well, especially in the case of the heroine Helena, who appears at times deeply cynical, worldly-wise (or perhaps world-weary) and willing to do whatever is required to obtain her goals. Helena is, in other words, a rather shocking figure, particularly because she is a woman and because she behaves as a type of malcontent would who proves the dynamic force in a tragedy. Consequently, while the play does end apparently with a typically happy celebration, the causes of that joy do not bear much examination.

The plot sees Helena, a young woman who is the daughter of a doctor, dispatched to the court of the King of France, whom she is able to cure of an apparently fatal illness through the application of science. As a reward, she is offered the hand of any man in the kingdom in marriage (what else could a young woman want?) and she opts for Bertram, the son of a countess, with whom she has fallen in love. Bertram is accordingly trapped into what, for him, is a loveless marriage with a low status woman who brings him neither wealth nor status. Unsurprisingly, he escapes as soon as possible after the wedding to try his luck in the fighting taking place overseas and embracing the possibility of being killed as a result. Helena follows him and by a variety of plot reverses, manages both to obtain the ring from his finger and to become impregnated by him – which are the two conditions Bertram has set for accepting her as his wife, since he believed both of the conditions to be impossible. Trapped again, Bertram has no choice but to accept Helena as his wife and, as the play ends, they are set to live happily ever after.

All’s Well That Ends Well begins in an atmosphere of gloom and impending doom as the older generation is either sick or dying, if not already dead. Society looks to the next generation to reinvigorate the community but, as has been shown, they are difficulties to overcome. It is only through the hard work and risk-bearing of individuals that the renewal is possible and, even then, it is compromised by the lack of romance and mutual love. It is possible, therefore, to view this play as a modern work of art and an early representation of the post-religious British society.