Cymbeline

How does the play explore gender dynamics? How do conceptions of masculinity and/or femininity shape the characters’ experiences, values, and/or arcs?

How does the play present freedom, both personally and politically? How does the idea of freedom relate to the theme of The Nature of British Identity and/or to individual characters?

Cymbeline was written as a piece of live theatre to be experienced rather than a text to be read. How might the play change when experienced onstage versus read on a page? How does Shakespeare use the text to give clues about staging or character portrayals? (Stage directions are generally added by later editors).

What is the significance of religion, magic, and the supernatural in the play? How do these elements add to the plot, atmosphere, and/or thematic exploration?

How does Shakespeare explore responsibility and justice in Cymbeline? How do characters evade or take responsibility for their actions, and what is the wider significance of each choice within the play?

Compare and contrast Cymbeline with another Shakespeare play that deals with similar themes, such as Othello. How are the plays different or similar in their treatment of jealousy and sexuality?

How does Cymbeline present the idea of family? How are familial dynamics depicted, and how do they illustrate some of the play’s key themes and ideas?

How does the play explore the tensions around loyalty and betrayal? How do characters’ ideas about these concepts change—or fail to change—over the course of the play?