Imogen/“Fidele”

Imogen is one of the play’s protagonists and has a complex journey. Her virtue and loyalty are her defining characteristics, as expressed through the <a data-internal-link data-link-type="Literary Device" href="https://www.supersummary.com/pseudonym/">pseudonym</a> for her masculine disguise, “Fidele,” meaning faithful or loyal. She embodies the feminine, love-related element of <a data-internal-link data-link-type="Themes" href="https://www.supersummary.com/cymbeline/themes/#751909">The Complexities of Honor in Love and War</a>. However, Imogen is a complex character who has different sides to her personality. She often speaks boldly: She is not afraid to be dismissive toward Cloten when he persists in harassing her, and she is fiercely indignant about Posthumus’s accusations, deploying <a href="https://www.supersummary.com/sarcasm/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><a data-internal-link data-link-type="Literary Device" href="https://www.supersummary.com/sarcasm/">sarcasm</a></a> and <a href="https://www.supersummary.com/rhetorical-question-in-literature-definition-examples/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">rhetorical questions</a> to defend herself. She is often unafraid to speak her mind directly, leading to moments of humor. For example, she tells Cloten that Posthumus’s clothes alone are better than him, and she bluntly disabuses Lucius of the idea that she will prioritize saving his life, pointing out that she has her own concerns to worry about. She is also bold in many of her actions, defying her father to marry Posthumus and to run away, and showing her strength of spirit as she remains loyal to him even under Iachimo’s manipulations.

Posthumus Leonatus

Iachimo

Cymbeline

The Queen

Cloten

Pisanio

Caius Lucius

Guiderius and Arviragus

Belarius

Cornelius

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Books that Feature the Theme of Femininity

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British Literature

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Valentine's Day Reads: The Theme of Love

William Shakespeare

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