How does as you like it end

Everyone agrees, and Rosalind and Celia disappear into the forest. While they are gone, Duke Senior notes the remarkable resemblance of Ganymede to his own daughter—an opinion that Orlando seconds. Touchstone and Audrey join the party.

Touchstone entertains the company with the description of a quarrel he had. As he finishes, Rosalind and Celia return, dressed as themselves and accompanied by Hymen, the god of marriage.

Phoebe, realizing that the young man she loves is, in fact, a woman, agrees to marry Silvius. A great wedding feast begins. Halfway through the festivities, Jaques de Bois, the middle brother of Oliver and Orlando, arrives with the information that Duke Frederick mounted an army to seek out Duke Senior and destroy him.

As he rode toward the Forest of Ardenne, Duke Frederick met a priest who converted him to a peace-loving life. Jaques de Bois goes on to report that Frederick has abdicated his throne to his brother and has moved to a monastery.

All rejoice, happy in the knowledge that they can return to the royal court. Because As You Like It is a Shakespearean comedy, the play's destiny in life is to end with one or more marriages. That's just how it is, folks. So, even though the play has gone out of its way to point out the foolishness of love and has cracked more jokes about cheating wives than we can count, it's still going to give its audience what they expect—a heterosexual hookup or, in this case, four heterosexual hookups.

Read more about this in "Genre. Life in the Forest of Arden sure has been a lot of fun for Rosalind and company what with playing dress-up and pretending to be rustic country-folk and all , but before Shakespeare wraps up his play, he lets us know that his exiles will be returning to the French court. This move, by the way, is typical in "pastoral" literature and you can read more about it by going to "Genre.

It's not that life in Arden isn't swell. It's just that Arden isn't exactly the real world. Plus, nobody from the court really knows how to herd sheep, the primary occupation in Arden. So, when Duke Senior gets his dukedom back and restores everybody else's titles, there's no good reason for anybody to stay behind. The idea is that, after the exiles finish their wedding cake and head back home, they'll make the once-treacherous court a better place because Arden has brought out the best in them.

Read more about this in "Setting. Four Couples married by a Greek god in France but in Arden, which we all know is in England Okay, picture it: We get the couple of Rosalind and Orlando love at first sight at the top of the play: genius.

These things happen. Tell me more about the Greek God, you say? What a beautiful blend that would be on any stage. Present at all weddings, and running this one. Really, how else can we make sense of four weddings at the same time? Orlando and Oliver as it turns out, have another brother.

Said brother, arrives just as Hymen is making his proclamation. As if out of nowhere!