To be sure, As You Like It contains good and bad rulers - Duke Frederick and Oliver are tyrannous siblings, who usurp the rights of their nobler kin, Duke Senior and Orlando - but their wickedness comes straight out of fairy tales, and, the nature of their badness left unexplored, it is easy to create a happy ending by simply letting them reform. Shakespeare seems to be more interested in developing characters like Rosalind, Orlando, Touchstone and Jacques, through whom he can explore questions of identity, semiotics, self-knowledge and (of course) love.
Some basic historical details are useful for a richer understanding of the play. For instance, modern readers should remember that all roles in Renaissance drama were played by men and boys, so that Rosalind and Celia (as well as Phoebe and Audrey) would really have been played by youths in women's clothing; this puts the theme of cross-dressing in a whole new light. And the "mode" in which As You Like It is written - in which noble people flee the court to a simpler life as shepherds and woodsmen - is part of an allegorical literary genre called the "pastoral," which was based on classical writings and was extremely popular in Shakespeare's day.
PLOT (Synopsis) .
Before the play begins, Duke Senior, one of the protagonists of the play, has had his dukedom usurped by his younger brother, Duke Frederick. In a similar manner, Orlando, another protagonist of the play, has had his inheritance taken away by his elder brother, Oliver. The play opens in the orchard of Oliver, where Orlando and an old servant are talking. Oliver arrives, and a bitter quarrel ensues between the brothers. Adam, the old servant, brings about a .
temporary reconciliation between the two, and Oliver promises to pay Orlando his share of the inheritance, which will make his a gentleman. .
The next day, a wrestling match is held, in which Orlando is to compete against Charles, the professional fighter of Duke Frederick.