Pericles (Shakespeare)

Husband of Thaisa and father of Marina. Pericles begins the play in Antioch, where he desires to marry Antiochus's daughter. After he discovers their secret, he flees to Tyre. Prone to melancholy, Pericles worries about Antiochus trying to have him killed, and sets off on more adventures and endures several shipwrecks. In many ways Pericles is a kind of classical hero figure--always ready to enter a contest or competition, especially if the prize is a king's daughter. While he starts out the play by making active decisions, to go to Antioch and then to flee it, he becomes increasingly inactive throughout the play. Things happen to him, and he endures it, never cursing the gods or his fate. As he must endure greater and greater misfortune, he becomes less active, finally ceasing to speak altogether. Yet Pericles is above all a good man, and, despite his hardships, has remained virtuous. Hence he is rewarded in the end.