CONFLICT

Protagonist

Viola is the protagonist of the play. She is forced to disguise herself as Cesario and act as a messenger between Duke Orsino and Countess Olivia until her identity is finally revealed.

Antagonist

Viola's disguise is her antagonist. It prevents her from expressing her true feelings towards Orsino and Olivia and for complicating the plot, most of which arises from her mistaken identity.

Climax

Midway through the play, Viola and Olivia meet for the second time, and Olivia openly declares her love for Viola/Cesario. From now on Viola has to deal with Olivia's love for Cesario, while suppressing her own feelings for the Duke because of her disguise until Viola's actual identity is revealed.

The play is a romantic comedy, where the protagonist overcomes her antagonist, and everything ends on a relatively happy note. The problem of the mistaken identities is resolved and Olivia marries Sebastian whom she initially mistook for Cesario/Viola. Once Viola's actual identity is revealed, she marries Duke Orsino, whom she has loved right from the start.

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