Pericles book cover

Pericles

William Shakespeare · English text · 19,509 words

Pericles travels across the Mediterranean after discovering a dangerous secret at Antioch. Shipwreck, separation, and reunion shape his family’s story, while the Chorus Gower guides the audience across years and distant places.

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Background

This romance draws on the old tale of Apollonius of Tyre and survives with a complex textual history. Many scholars discuss collaboration, including a possible role for George Wilkins, so authorship should be presented as debated rather than certain.

Reading notes

  • Use Gower’s appearances to orient yourself when the story jumps in time or place.
  • Track the repeated motifs of travel, loss, and recognition.
  • Notice how the play uses theater and music to make reunion feel like a recovery from hardship.

Version note

Text source: the Standard Ebooks EPUB edition identified on this page. This site extracted the English text and retained the source edition’s chapter order. Public-domain status must be checked for the territory where the text will be distributed.