Antagonist

Character Role Analysis

Iachimo; the Queen; Cloten

Iachimo: Iachimo is the inexplicably villainous bad guy of the play. He has no motivation for being evil—he hasn't been wronged or anything: he just likes being evil. But the fact that he apologizes at the end seems to hint at the fact that there's a deeper, darker villain at play here, and it's not this guy.

Queen: Leave it to the evil stepmother to take the crown—literally. The Queen is only after the power and prestige that comes with marrying Cymbeline. She even tries to kill him and his daughter to take that power for herself. The Queen even has the trickster thing down pat, playing the dutiful wife and stepmother when Cymbeline is around. When we finally see her true colors, they're not pretty.

Cloten: Cloten's our knuckleheaded would-be murderer and rapist. He's arrogant and slimy throughout the whole play, but for the most part, he seems harmless. It's not until Imogen crosses him that he turns a dark corner and never returns: he vows to take Imogen to bed whether she likes it or not. He certainly tries to stand in the way of what she wants (by planning to kill Posthumus), and he only gets more malicious as the play goes on.