Original: Come, poor babe:
Modern: Come here, you poor baby:

Original: I have heard, but not believed,
Modern: I’ve heard stories, but never believed them,

Original: the spirits o’ the dead
Modern: that the spirits of dead people

Original: May walk again: if such thing be, thy mother
Modern: Can return and walk among us: but if that’s possible, your mother

Original: Appear’d to me last night, for ne’er was dream
Modern: Appeared to me last night, because never was a dream

Original: So like a waking. To me comes a creature,
Modern: So real, like I was actually awake. A figure came to me,

Original: Sometimes her head on one side, some another;
Modern: Tilting her head first to one side, then to another;

Original: I never saw a vessel of like sorrow,
Modern: I’ve never seen a person filled with such grief,

Original: So fill’d and so becoming: in pure white robes,
Modern: So full of it yet so dignified: dressed in pure white robes,

Original: Like very sanctity, she did approach
Modern: Like holiness itself, she approached

Original: My cabin where I lay; thrice bow’d before me,
Modern: My cabin where I was lying; she bowed three times before me,

Original: And gasping to begin some speech, her eyes
Modern: And struggling to catch her breath to speak, her eyes

Original: Became two spouts: the fury spent, anon
Modern: Started streaming with tears like fountains: when the outburst ended, soon

Original: Did this break-from her: ‘Good Antigonus,
Modern: These words burst from her: ‘Good Antigonus,

Original: Since fate, against thy better disposition,
Modern: Since fate, despite your better nature,

Original: Hath made thy person for the thrower-out
Modern: Has made you the one who must throw out

Original: Of my poor babe, according to thine oath,
Modern: My poor baby, because of the oath you made,

Original: Places remote enough are in Bohemia,
Modern: There are remote enough places in Bohemia,

Original: There weep and leave it crying; and, for the babe
Modern: Go there, cry, and leave the baby crying; and, since the baby

Original: Is counted lost for ever, Perdita,
Modern: Will be considered lost forever, name her Perdita,

Original: I prithee, call’t. For this ungentle business
Modern: I beg you, call her that. For this cruel task

Original: Put on thee by my lord, thou ne’er shalt see
Modern: Forced upon you by my husband, you will never see

Original: Thy wife Paulina more.’ And so, with shrieks
Modern: Your wife Paulina again.’ And then, with shrieks

Original: She melted into air. Affrighted much,
Modern: She vanished into thin air. Terrified,

Original: I did in time collect myself and thought
Modern: I eventually pulled myself together and realized

Original: This was so and no slumber. Dreams are toys:
Modern: This was real and not a dream. Dreams are just tricks:

Original: Yet for this once, yea, superstitiously,
Modern: But just this once, yes, even though it’s superstitious,

Original: I will be squared by this. I do believe
Modern: I will let this vision guide my actions. I now believe

Original: Hermione hath suffer’d death, and that
Modern: Hermione has died, and that

Original: Apollo would, this being indeed the issue
Modern: The god Apollo wants, since this baby is truly the child

Original: Of King Polixenes, it should here be laid,
Modern: Of King Polixenes, that she should be left here,

Original: Either for life or death, upon the earth
Modern: To either live or die, on the land

Original: Of its right father. Blossom, speed thee well!
Modern: Of her real father. Little flower, may fortune favor you!

Original: There lie, and there thy character: there these;
Modern: Lie there, and there are the documents about your identity: and here’s this money and jewelry;

Original: Which may, if fortune please, both breed thee, pretty,
Modern: Which may, if luck is with you, provide for your upbringing, pretty child,

Original: And still rest thine. The storm begins; poor wretch,
Modern: And still remain yours. The storm is starting; poor little thing,

Original: That for thy mother’s fault art thus exposed
Modern: You who are left out here because of what your mother is accused of

Original: To loss and what may follow! Weep I cannot,
Modern: Facing death and whatever else may happen! I cannot cry,

Original: But my heart bleeds; and most accursed am I
Modern: But my heart is breaking; and I am cursed

Original: To be by oath enjoin’d to this. Farewell!
Modern: To be bound by oath to do this. Goodbye!

Original: The day frowns more and more: thou’rt like to have
Modern: The weather is getting worse and worse: you’re likely to have

Original: A lullaby too rough: I never saw
Modern: A lullaby that’s too harsh: I’ve never seen

Original: The heavens so dim by day. A savage clamour!
Modern: The sky so dark during daytime. A wild roaring sound!

Original: Well may I get aboard! This is the chase:
Modern: I hope I can get back to the ship! Something’s chasing me:

Original: I am gone for ever.
Modern: I’m going to die.

In Act III, Scene iii of “The Winter’s Tale,” an Old Shepherd discovers the abandoned infant Perdita on the coast of Bohemia. The scene opens with Antigonus carrying the baby, having been commanded by Leontes to abandon her in a desolate place. Before leaving, Antigonus describes a vision of Hermione’s spirit, who appeared to him and named the child Perdita, instructing that she be left in Bohemia. He places the infant down with a box containing gold and a written account of her noble birth, believing this remote location to be her destined resting place. As he exits, Antigonus is famously pursued and killed by a bear, fulfilling the tragic portion of his mission.

The Old Shepherd then enters, complaining about the wild behavior of young men, and stumbles upon the abandoned baby. His son, known as the Clown, arrives reporting a terrible storm at sea that has destroyed a ship and its crew, and also describes seeing a gentleman being eaten by a bear. Despite these disasters, the Old Shepherd focuses on the discovery of the child and the treasure left with her. He recognizes this as a fortunate find that will change their circumstances, declaring the baby “a pretty one” and noting the gold as “fairy gold.” The Shepherd and his son decide to take the child home and keep their discovery secret, with the Shepherd instructing his son to help bury what remains of the bear’s victim while he takes the infant to safety.

The Winter’s Tale begins in Sicilia, where King Leontes hosts his childhood friend Polixenes, King of Bohemia. When Leontes asks his pregnant wife Hermione to persuade Polixenes to extend his visit, her success in convincing him to stay triggers Leontes’ sudden and violent jealousy. He becomes convinced that Hermione and Polixenes are having an affair and that her unborn child is illegitimate. Despite protests from his courtiers, Leontes orders Polixenes’ death, but Camillo, the lord commanded to poison Polixenes, instead warns him and they both flee to Bohemia.

Leontes publicly accuses Hermione of adultery and imprisons her. She gives birth to a daughter in prison, and Leontes orders the baby to be abandoned in the wilderness. When Hermione is brought to trial, the Oracle of Delphi declares her innocent, but Leontes rejects this divine judgment. Immediately after, news arrives that their young son Mamillius has died from grief, and Hermione collapses and is reported dead. Stricken with remorse, Leontes vows to spend his life repenting. Meanwhile, the baby is abandoned on the coast of Bohemia, where a shepherd finds and raises her, naming her Perdita.

Sixteen years pass. Perdita, now a beautiful young shepherdess unaware of her royal birth, falls in love with Prince Florizel, son of King Polixenes. Polixenes, disguised with Camillo, discovers his son’s romance with a shepherd’s daughter and angrily forbids the match. The young lovers flee to Sicilia with Camillo’s help, accompanied by the shepherd and his son, who carry the tokens that were left with Perdita as a baby. In Sicilia, these tokens reveal Perdita’s true identity as Leontes’ lost daughter, leading to joyful reunions and Polixenes’ forgiveness when he arrives in pursuit of his son. The play concludes when Paulina, Hermione’s loyal friend, reveals that she has kept a statue of the dead queen. In a miraculous moment, the statue comes to life—Hermione has been hidden away for sixteen years, waiting for her daughter’s return. The royal family is reunited, Florizel and Perdita are betrothed with both fathers’ blessings, and Leontes encourages Paulina to marry Camillo.