Autolycus' begins his passage on page 87 by proclaiming "what a fool Honesty is! and Trust, his sworn brother, a very simple gentleman!" (IV.4.594-595). Being that Autolycus is on the surface a deceitful and bad-intentioned character, beginning the passage with this quote parallels his personality, for trickery and deceit are at the forefront of both. This passage also calls to mind when honesty and trust were discussed earlier in the play- the trial of Hermoine. In this trial honesty was not upheld and trust was severed, thus giving validity to Autolycus' claim. Leontes ignored the truth until both his wife and son were dead, and trust was severed at the very beginning of the play by an insignificant touch of the hand.
In this passage he also boasts that he "picked and cut most of their festival purses," (IV.4.612-613) which highlights another key aspect of his personality: petty crime. Although he is the most deceitful character in the play, it is notable that most of his crimes have no real victims. He steals with reckless abandon, yet no one really suffers. This is an interesting parallel to Leontes, who means well but ends up hurting himself and his loved ones. Finally, he pokes fun at "My clown, who wants but something to be a reasonable man," (IV.4.603-604) and the Shepherd for how easily they were tricked. This is deeply ironic, for Autolycus eventually ends up pledging to amend his life and become their loyal servant. From this passage his future change of character is not evident at all, and it is in this way that his sudden change of heart is made all the more surprising.
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