The Way of The World Summary, Analysis
Introductory Note:[The Way of The World Summary]
An It premiered in early March 1700 in the theatre in Lincoln’s Inn Fields in London. Its The Way of the World is a play written by the English playwright William Congreve. widely regarded as one of the best Restoration comedies and is still occasionally formed. Initially, however, the play struck many audience members as continuing the immorality of the previous decades and was not well received.
Substance:
Mirrabell, once a womanizer,seeks to marry a girl he loves,Mrs Millamant, unfortunately, her aunt, Lady Wishfort, holds power over her 6,000-pound inheritance and Mirabell, once a womanizer, seeks to marry a girl he loves, Ms. Millamant. Unfortu despises Mirabell because he once pretended to love her. Mirabell and Ms. Millaman devise a plot in which his servant, Waitworth, will marry Lady Wishfort’s servant, Foible and then woo Lady Wishfort in disguise as Mirabell’s uncle, Sir Rowland. The scheme proceeds as planned until Ms. Marwood, who unrequitedly desires Mirabell, overhears the plot when Foible fills in Lady Wishfort’s daughter, Mrs. Fainall.
Ms. Marwood tells the man to whom she is mistress, Mr. Fainall , about the scheme and the fact that Mirabell was also once romantically involved with his wife, Mrs. Fainall. Incensed by this situation, the two plan to foil Mirabell’s scheme. Sir Wilfull, a nephew of Lady Wishfort, comes to town before departing to go abroad, and Lady Wishfort desires for him, though a bumbling man, to marry Ms. Millamant. The situation comes to a head when Lady Wishfort, while visiting with “Sir Rowland,” receives a letter from Ms.
Marwood revealing Mirabell’s scheme. Fainall attempts to use Lady Wishfort and her daughter’s precarious social situation as leverage to gain Ms. Millamant’s inheritance and all of Lady Wishfort’s money through control of his wife’s inheritance. However, he is foiled by Ms. Millamant announcing she will marry Sir Wilfull and Mirabell announcing that he has had a claim to Mrs. Fainall’s inheritance since before her marriage to Fainall. Once Fainall and Ms. Marwood leave, Ms. Millamant rescinds her offer to Sir Wilfull and she and Mirabell receive Lady Wishfort’s blessing for marriage, her reputation having been saved by the two lovers.
I. The Proloque
An Analytical Summary:
The Prologue was a conventional requirement for all plays. This one was delivered by the sixty-five-year-old Betterton, the grand old man of the Restoration stage. Congreve did not keep the promises he made in this prologue:
He swears he’ll not resent one hissed-off scene,/Nor, like those peevish wits, his play maintains,/Who, to assert their sense, your taste arraign.
The dedicatory letter indicates that he did arraign the taste of his audience because it did not approve his play (although his scenes were not hissed). His statement about what is in his play has more value: “some plot,” “some new thought,” “some humor too,” but “no farce,” the absence of which, he adds, ironically, would presumably be a fault. The fact that he describes his play as having no farce indicates that he planned the Willful-Witwoud scenes and the Lady Wishfort scenes as less broadly burlesqued than some of his contemporaries might have wished. The statements that there is no satire because the town is so reformed and that there are surely no knaves or fools in his audience are, of course, ironic.
I. Act I
The curtain ris as Mirabell is defeated by Fainall in a desultory card game at the chocolate-house. The conversation reveals that Mirabell is in love with Millamant but is intensely disliked by Millamant’s guardian. Lady Wishfort’s dislike seems to have some justification: Mirabell at one time pretended to court her in order to conceal his love for her niece. She is fifty-five years old, and her vanity was offended when she discovered that Mirabell did not love her. When Fainall leaves for a moment, a servant enters and informs Mirabell that his valet married that day.
Mirabell is pleased because his marriage is a necessary prelude to some secret scheme which is not revealed. Witwoud and Petulant then enter, and we gain the additional information that Witwoud’s elder brother is coming to town to court Millamant. Witwoud and Petulant are also both courting Millamant but only because she is the currently reigning belle. There is further talk of an uncle of Mirabell’s who is coming to court Lady Wishfort. The men leave for a walk in the park.
III. Act II
In St. James’ Park, Mrs. Fainall and Mrs. Marwood discuss their favorite subjects, men and how to manipulate them. Beneath their apparent friendliness, they are wary of each other as they talk of Mirabell. Mrs. Fainall suspects, quite correctly, that Mrs. Marwood is in love with him. After Fainall and Mirabell enter , Mirabell and Mrs. Fainall stroll off and leave Fainall and Mrs. Marwood alone on the stage. We now discover that Mrs. Marwood is Fainall’s mistress and that he only married his wife for her fortune so as to finance his amour. However, their love includes neither faith nor trust. Fainall is sensitive to the fact that Mrs. Marwood’s seeming enmity of Mirabell covers her attraction for him. The scene ends with mutual recrimination and reconciliation as they leave the stage when Mirabell and Mrs. Fainall return.
The conversation between Mirabell and Mrs. Fainall supplies new revelations. Mirabell and Mrs. Fainall were lovers; she married Fainall as a cover for her affair with Mirabell. Mirabell, during their stroll, has told her of his scheme to trick Lady Wishfort and marry Millamant. As he does not trust Waitwell, he arranged for a marriage between Waitwell and Foible, Lady Wishfort’s maid. (The news of this marriage arrived in the first act.) After all, having wooed and won Lady Wishfort, Waitwell might plan on actually marrying her. Millamant now makes her first entrance, accompanied by Witwoud and her maid, Mincing. She is thoroughly aware of her own charm and her power over Mirabell and toys with Mirabell’s love at the same time that she returns it.
She is apparently quite prepared to go along with Mirabell’s plot, which Foible has revealed to her, clear indication that in the end, she intends to have Mirabell. After her exit, Waitwell and Foible appear. Waltwell will woo Lady Wishfort in the guise of Sir Rowland, Mirabell’s imaginary uncle. As Sir Rowland, he would be a fine ch; in add the marriage would serve Lady Wishfort as a way to be revenged on Mirabell for his earlier slight, for presumably Mirabell would be disinherited when Sir Rowland married. All exit, with Waitwell making wry, typically Restoration comments.
IV. Act III
At her home, Lady Wishfort is trying to hide the signs of age with cosmetics applied externally and brandy internally. Mrs. Marwood enters and tells her that Foible was talking to Mirabell in the park. While Mrs. Marwood hides in a closet, Lady Wishfort taxes Foible with disloyalty. However, Foible takes advantage of this opportunity to forward Mirabell’s plot; she says he stopped her only to insult Lady Wishfort, who therefore determines to accept Sir Rowland, due to arrive that day. Unfortunately, after Lady Wishfort leaves, Mrs. Fainall enters, and she and Foible discuss Mirabell’s scheme; Mrs. Marwood, still hidden, overhears their conversation.
They also mention that Mrs. Fainall was Mirabell’s mistress at one time and that Mrs. Marwood is in love with Mirabell, but he finds her unattractive. Mrs. Marwood’s anger is reinforced in the next scene when Millamant also accuses her of loving Mirabell and makes biting remarks about her age. When the guests arrive for dinner, Petulant and young Witwoud, and then Sir Wilfull Witwoud, the elder brother and Millamant’s suitor appear.
In a scene that perhaps comes closer to farce than any other in this play, Sir Wilfull does not recognize his foppish brother, and young Witwoud refuses to recognize his country-bumpkin elder brother. Afterward, Mrs. Marwood left alone with Fainall, describes Mirabell’s plot. He is certain now that he has been a cuckold and wants revenge. Mrs. Marwood then outlines a plan for Fainall. Since Lady Wishfort has control of Millamant’s fortune, and since she is very fond of her daughter,Mrs. Fainall, he can insist that Millamant’s money be made over to him on the threat of making public his wife’s transgressions.
V.Act IV
After Lady Wishfort is seen preparing for the visit of Sir Rowland, Millamant and Sir Wilfull are on stage together. Sir Wilfull, somewhat drunk but very shy, is too bashful actually to complete his proposal to Millamant. Overawed by the aloof lady, he is eager to get away and grateful when she dismisses him. It is obvious that he will not succeed, but he is likable in his embarrassment. Immediately after occurs the scene between Millamant and Mirabell is often called the proviso scene. They discuss the conditions under which he is prepared to marry her and under which she is prepared to accept him. At the end of the scene, when Mrs.
Fainall enters, Millamant admits that she does love him violently. As Mirabell leaves, the company Sir Wilfull, young Witwoud, and Petulant – come in from dinner. They are all drunk Sir Wilfull the drunkest of the three. Now the spurious Sir Rowland arrives to woo Lady Wishfort, and his wooing bids fair to be successful when a letter is brought from Mrs. Marwood in which she tells Lady Wishfort of the plot. However, Waitwell and Foible between them manage to convince Lady Wishfort that the letter is actually sent by Mirabell and is designed as a plot against Sir Rowland. Apparently, Lady Wishfort is convinced, at least for the moment.
VI. Act V
The scene, as before, is Lady Wishfort’s house. Lady Wishfort has discovered Mirabell’s plot. Foible tries unsuccessfully to make excuses for herself. Fainall now makes his demands. As Millamant’s fortune of 6,000 pounds was presumably forfeit when she refused to marry a suitor selected for her by Lady Wishfort, he wants the money as his price for not blackening his wife’s reputation. He also wants the remainder of Mrs. Fainall’s fortune turned over to his sole control. And he insists on Lady Wishfort not marrying again so that he be the sole heir. These terms are very harsh, and Lady Wishfort might not be prepared to go along with them except that Mrs. Marwood, standing by, goads her on by harping on the public disgrace of her daughter, Mrs. Fainall.
When the two maids now reveal that Fainall, in his turn, has been unfaithful to his wife, he refuses to be deterred; he is willing to be the subject of scandal himself, but he will still make public his wife’s shame. When Millamant states that she is prepared to marry Sir Wilfull, thus meeting the wishes of her aunt and saving her 6,000 pounds, Fainall suspects a trick, but he can still demand control of the balance of his wife’s estate, and now also the control of Lady Wishfort. At this point, Mirabell presents evidence which will protect Mrs. Fainall.
At the time of her marriage, they had judged Fainall’s character correctly, and Mrs. Fainall secretly signed over her fortune to Mirabell’s control. There is, therefore, no money that Fainall can successfully obtain. In great anger, Fainall and Mrs. Marwood leaves the stage, vowing dire vengeance. Lady Wishfort, having discovered that Fainall was a villain and that Mrs. Marwood, her friend, was not a true friend, is now prepared to forgive Mirabell; Millamant can now marry him with her aunt’s consent. It is on this happy but somewhat indeterminate note that the plays end.
VII. The Epilogue
The epilogue is short and serves a moral for the audience. The playwright, William Congreve, urges us to not take the play too seriously or try to guess who the characters were based on. Instead of focusing on the people who may have had been inspirations for character development, it is encouraged to look at the bigger picture by trying to understand the satirical element of the work.
Title:
The Way of the World is a comedy about deception, greed, and love. The play opens with a scene of two fashionable young men, Mirabell and Fainall, playing cards at a chocolate house. Mirabell is distracted, waiting for a particular bride and groom to return. As the play progresses, it is revealed that Mirabell loves Millamant, the debutante niece of the aristocratic and eccentric Lady Wishfort. Lady Wishfort controls Millamant’s fortune and will not hand it over until Millamant has married a man Lady Wishfort approves of. In his eagerness to impress Lady Wishfort and earn her approval, Mirabell became overly flirtatious, leading Lady Wishfort to think he desired her, despite her age, instead of Millamant.
When the truth was revealed, Lady Wishfort felt so embarrassed she refused to agree to Mirabell’s engagement to Millamant. Now, Mirabell has hatched a plot to force Lady Wishfort to agree to the engagement. The play is a comedy, a satire about life in the Restoration Age, it is about love and the ways of the world – this world, the world of the wealthy in London, 1700. The play presents a picture of high society in Restoration England. London is the heart of this world, and its different ways – its colorful characters, its extreme fashions, its new chocolate houses, and its parks, where all can meet and be seen, are part of the play as much as the tireless intrigues around love and marriage and money.
Background:
The Way of the World premiered in 1700 at London’s theatre in Lincoln’s Inn Field, performed by Majesty’s Servants, an acting company of the time. Though it is now regarded as one of the best Restoration comedies in existence, it was not well received by audiences at the time, who felt it was too vulgar. The Way of the World is still performed today as one of the most famous examples of Restoration comedy. The play is a comedy, a satire about life in the Restoration Period.
Character List:
– Mr. Fainall – He is a married man, but his closest relationship is to his mistress, Ms. Marwood. He plots to get money out of his wife’s mother, Lady Wishfort, after finding out from his mistress that his wife, Mrs. Fainall, married him while in a relationship with Mirabell.
Mr. Edward Mirabell – A young man, once a womanizer, is now honestly in love with Mrs. Millamant, a young, attractive, intelligent woman. He is perhaps the closest to a protagonist in the play and drives the plot with his scheme to get Ms. Millamant’s aunt, Lady Wishfort, to approve a marriage between them.
Anthony Witwoud Witwoud is a suitor of Ms. Millamant and half-brother to Sir Wilfull Witwoud. He serves as a supporting, comedic character.
Petulant – He is another suitor of Ms. Millamant, and is often seen with Witwoud. He is another supporting, comedic character, especially for his ineptitude with speech and wit.
Sir Wilfull Witwoud – Sir Wilfull is a half-brother to Anthony Witwoud and nephew to Lady Wishfort. He comes to town to prepare to go abroad but is swept up in the plot because Lady Wishfort wishes him to marry Ms. Millamant. He is a bumbling man, inept with the social fashions of the town and with attempts to pursue Ms. Millamant romantically.
Waitwell – He is Mirabell’s servant. In accordance with Mirabell’s directions, he marries Foible, Lady Wishfort’s servant, but then pretends to be a well-bred man named Sir Rowland to trick Lady Wishfort into a fake engagement.
Lady Wishfort – Lady Wishfort is a bitingly mean, witty, wealthy, old lady. She is the aunt of Miss Millamant and controls half, 6,000 pounds of Millamant’s inheritance. She is uncomfortable with her age and looks, and this allows Mirabell’s plot with the fake Sir Rowland to succeed as far as it does.
Ms. Millament – Miss Millament is the young lady whom Mr. Mirabell and many others love. She has a large inheritance of 12,000 pounds but is attempting to secure half of it which is held by her aunt, Lady Wishfort. However, Lady Wishfort wants Ms. Millament to marry Sir Wilfull Witwoud.
Mrs. Marwood – She is the mistress of Mr. Fainall, a married man. She is a nosy woman, bitter because her love for Mirabell is not returned, and this leads her to reveal his scheme to Fainall and later Lady Wishfort herself after overhearing it while in a closet.
Mrs. Arabella Fainall – Mrs. Fainall had a relationship with Mirabeli before marrying Fainall, and is still friends with him and aid in his scheme. She is daughter to Lady
Wishfort, so their reputations in the climax are closely tied.
Foible – He is servant to Lady Wishfort and is integral to Mirabell’s plot, marrying Waitwell and then introducing the idea of Sir Rowland to Lady Wishfort. Mincing – Attendant to Ms. Millament.
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