Ferdinand: The King With a Foolish Plan

Ferdinand's plan is to turn his court into an academy: no women, no feasting, only study. Shakespeare gives him just enough earnestness to make the scheme feel genuine rather than simply ridiculous. He actually means it.

The Princess of France arrives almost immediately on state business, and the scheme begins to collapse. Ferdinand falls for her. His poetry is not good.

His position at the end is entirely appropriate: he must wait a year before the Princess will consider his suit. He proposed a regime of self-denial and immediately abandoned it. A year of genuine waiting is the test he needs.