In contrast to all of the shenanigans involved in the subplot of the last scene, this scene shifts abruptly back to Duke Orsino's palace, and, once again, the mood and atmosphere are re-established as the duke again calls for music. We return to that same languid and indolent duke; now, he asks for the old and antique song that he heard last night. Later in the scene, Feste will appear and sing the song "Come away, Come away, death." The theme of this lyric is the sadness unto death of a young man whose love for a fair, cruel maid is unrequited. (The duke obviously sees a parallel between his and Lady Olivia's relationship in the song). The youth in the song dies of his love, and he hopes that no other sad, true lover shall find his grave for a similar reason — that is, because of unrequited love. The song is quaint and filled with conceits. Its melancholy artifice probably appeals to the duke in his present mood, and it certainly suits the musical atmosphere of the play as a whole. Ironically, while the theme of the song expresses Duke Orsino's mood, it also expresses the mood of Olivia (who is unrequited in her love for Cesario), as well as that of Viola (who is unrequited in her love for Duke Orsino).
At the end of the scene, when Cesario says, "My father had a daughter loved a man," this statement comes as close as Viola dares in expressing her love for Duke Orsino. The contrast is between her tormented, inner anguish and reasoned love and the duke's exaggerated statements of love. While Viola's passion is less pretentious than the duke's, it is nevertheless as deep and sincere.
The ending of the scene furthers the plot since Orsino once more commands Cesario to deliver a love message and a jewel to Olivia, thus setting up another encounter between the unrequited Olivia and the inaccessible Cesario (Viola).
