Viola is one of Shakespeare's most charming and admirable heroines, and certainly the most sympathetic of the major "serious" characters (Orsino, Olivia, and herself) in Twelfth Night. Though she's forced to disguise herself as a page, for safety's sake, she's apparently as well-born as Olivia is - the daughter of Sebastian of Messaline, a highly-placed nobleman in his own land. She's also very attractive physically - which can be inferred from the fact that even in male attire she's graceful enough for Orsino to comment on her good looks. But ....