In "The Winter's Tale", the central female character, Hermione, embodies courage, eloquence, and dignity when accused of committing adultery with her husband's childhood friend, Polixines. Upon first being approached by her husband, Leontes, with this accusation, she is poised and collected. She responds with, "Should a villain say so, The most replenish'd villain in the world, He were as much more villain: you, my lord, Do but mistake " (II.i.694-697). She is clearly intelligent enough to comprehend what she is being accused of and it, therefore, is not a matter of misunderstanding, but rather her refusal to acknowledge such preposterousness. By breaking her silence and declaring, with dignity, how outlandish his tyranny is, the character of Hermione is severed from the typical role that the Renaissance woman played in literature of the time. As his sharp tongue stabs at her with insult after insult, she refuses to descend to his adolescent behavior, and declares: "How will this grieve you, When you shall come to clearer knowledge, that You have thus published me! Gentle my lord, You scarce can right me throughly then to say You did mistake" (II.i.714-718). While most women would be groveling or cursing this man for abandoning his loyalty to his wife, she most clearly states her concerns with eloquence; staying calm and collective, she addresses him with lady-like etiquette. .
The stress and humiliation of her imprisonment puts Hermione into an early labor and, even after this traumatic ordeal, she is still able to courageously enter the courtroom with her head held high, ready to face the charges against her. Leontes, blinded by jealousy, refuses to see truth and to acknowledge the injustice of his accusations, which hold up in the trial without any sustainable evidence. Hermione does not adhere to the common image of the submissive Renaissance woman but, instead, proclaims, "I do confess I loved him as in honour he required Which not to have done I think had been in me Both disobedience and ingratitude To you and toward your friend " (III.
