Ans:
“As You Like It” is one of the best-known plays of William Shakespeare who is known as the Bard of Avon in the annals of English literature. In the play, Shakespeare has created an unforgettable female character very skillfully i.e. the heroine of the play- Rosalind. Shakespeare has shown his mastery in creating the character of Rosalind. Indeed, Rosalind is often regarded as one of the most lovable heroines in the entire range of Shakespearean drama.

Rosalind is the heroine of the play who is sympathetic by nature. She has a compassionate mind. When Orlando is going to enter into a wrestling contest against Charles, she thinks that Orlando will be defeated by Charles and she feels sympathy for him and tries to dissuade him from fighting against Charles. Orlando wins the wrestling match and she falls in love with him and gives him her chain as a token of her love.

Rosalind has been portrayed as a faithful friend, leader, and schemer. She stays true to her family and friends throughout the entire story no matter how dangerous the consequences are Rosalind dominates the stage.

Being banished by her uncle Duke Frederick, she came to the Forest of Arden disguised as a man by the name of Ganymede. Here, she meets Orlando writing verses in praise of her beauty. Being disguised as a man she induces Orlando to make love to her. Here we find her saying —

“Come, woo me woo me for now I am in a holiday humor and like enough to consent.”

In the mock wooing scene, she knows her ready wit. Here she makes two memorable witty remarks. She tells Orlando that the world is almost six thousand years old but that in all this time, no man has ever died for the sake of his love. She illustrates this idea by citing the case of Troilus and Cressida and the case of Hero and Leander. Her second memorable remark in this scene is

“Men are April when they woo, December when they wed.
Maids are May when they are yet maids but the sky changes when they are wives”.

Rosalind’s intervention in the Silvius — Phebe affair shows her capacity for admonishing others. Silvius is madly in love with Phebe by Phebe shows her callous attitude toward him. Rosalind scolds Silvius for being too servile to Phebe and warns Phebe against continuing to be cruel towards Silvius. Rosalind then urges Phebe to fall upon his knees and to thank heaven for having given her such a faithful lover as Silvius. Eventually, Rosalind does bring about Silvius’s union with Phebe.

In conclusion, we can say that the character of Rosalind has been delineated in the play “As You Like It” very wonderfully by Shakespeare. She starts as a romantic character but ends up with a realistically presented character. So undoubtedly, we can term her as a brilliant character of Shakespeare in the play “As You Like It”.