Act 4 of Cymbeline runs 634 lines across 4 scenes with 11 speaking characters — about 16.9% of the full play.
Opens (Scene 1) — Cloten: “I am near to the place where they should meet, if”
Closes (Scene 4) — Belarius: “Till it fly out and show them princes born.”
The 4 scenes of Act 4
| Scene | Lines | Speakers | Share of act |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scene 1 | 26 | 1 | 4.1% |
| Scene 2 | 489 | 8 | 77.1% |
| Scene 3 | 53 | 3 | 8.4% |
| Scene 4 | 66 | 3 | 10.4% |
Who speaks in Act 4
Leading voice: Belarius with 22% of Act 4’s dialogue (139 lines).
| Character | Lines in act | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Belarius ♂ | 139 | 21.9% |
| Guiderius ♂ | 133 | 21.0% |
| Arviragus ♂ | 110 | 17.4% |
| Imogen ♀ | 89 | 14.0% |
| Cloten ♂ | 49 | 7.7% |
| Caius Lucius ♂ | 43 | 6.8% |
| Cymbeline ♀ | 21 | 3.3% |
Characters first heard in Act 4
| Character | Lines in play |
|---|---|
| Soothsayer ♂ | 43 |
| Captain ♂ | 11 |
Pacing across the 4 scenes
Scene lengths in Act 4 range from Scene 1 (26 lines, the shortest) to Scene 2 (489 lines, the longest), averaging about 159 lines per scene.
Who carries the voice in Act 4
Act 4 is male-dominant even by the play’s standards — female share drops to 17%, compared to 29% overall.
Act 4
Male 524 · Female 110
How Act 4 of Cymbeline compares to other romances
| Play | Act 4 lines | Scenes |
|---|---|---|
| Winter's Tale | 1,142 | 3 |
| Cymbeline (this act) | 634 | 4 |
| Pericles, Prince of Tyre | 612 | 6 |
| The Tempest | 287 | 1 |
About Act 4 of Cymbeline
How many lines are in Act 4 of Cymbeline?
634 lines spread across 4 scenes.
Who dominates Act 4?
Belarius delivers 22% of the act’s dialogue (139 lines).
Which scene is the heaviest in Act 4?
Scene 2, at 489 lines — well above the act’s scene average.