ROSALIND

the witty and intelligent daughter of the deposed Duke Senior who is later disguised as a young man named Ganymede in William Shakespeare's As You Like It. One of Shakespeare's most notable female characters, Rosalind (as Ganymede) ironically pretends to heal her love Orlando's love-struck heart with such lines as Men have died from time to time, and worms have eaten them, but not for love. Her shrewd observations abound: Men are April when they woo, December when they wed. Maids are May when they are maids, but the sky changes when they are wives. When she has schooled him, she reveals herself and orchestrates four marriages, including her own to Orlando.