scription we get from Orsino’s exclamation of his love for Olivia we could discern that Shakespeare is presenting Olivia as the stereotypical object of affection, a beautiful young woman whom men pine after. However it could be argued that Orsino has dual intentions, as to marry at this time would result in a dowry since marriage was often seen as a financial arrangement with the higher classes of Elizabethan Society, and Olivia would be seen as a suitable partner due to her status as “countess”. This is reinforced when Orsino imagines himself “king” (I.1.39) of Olivia’s affections. This would therefore suggest a marital hierarchy rather than mutuality. Orsino and Olivia also present themselves as being very accepting as in the conclusion of the play there seems to be a happy ending as the lovers are paired off into new pairs – Olivia and Sebastian and Orsino and Viola. Only moments before Olivia and Orsino thought Viola a man. Olivia also appears to accept Sebastian readily in marriage, suggesting that the ending owes more to dramatic convention rather than a realistic ending.

To continue addressing the exploration of social boundaries through Shakespeare’s use of doubles, Maria and Sir Toby Belch successfully challenge both gender roles and social roles. This is primarily through their status. Maria is Olivia’s maid, whereas Sir Toby is related to, or “consanguineous” to Olivia, immediately heightening his social status. Even Sir Toby’s vocative ‘sir’ reiterates this difference in social hierarchy. However by the end of the play, within the subplot, Sir Toby and Maria marry. This could suggest that Maria had aspirations to rise in status through marriage (something the Malvolio fails to do through Olivia) perhaps because Maria is more anarchic and therefore has no fear of breaking the rules of social expectation – to marry someone of your own status if you were from the working class. Another way Shakespeare uses Maria and Toby to challenge social and gender roles through their pairing is their use o