Title of The Play
A play called "The Winter's Tale" would immediately indicate to contemporary audiences that the work would present an "idle tale", an old wives' tale not intended to be realistic and offering the promise of a happy ending. The title may have been inspired by George Peele's play The Old Wives' Tale of 1590, in which a storyteller tells "a merry winter's tale" of a missing daughter. However early in The Winter's Tale the royal heir, Mamillius, warns that "a sad tale's best for winter". Indeed, his mother is soon put on trial for treason and adultery and his death is announced seconds after she is shown to have been faithful.
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