Marwood, Milton, and Monstrous Women: The Neglected Villain of The Way of the World

Abstract

Marwood, Milton, and Monstrous Women:The Neglected Villain of The Way of the World Rachel Ewing Tell me if Congreve's Fools are Fools Indeed?1 – Alexander Pope Raphael, said he, thou hear'st what stir on earth / Satan from hell scaped through the darksome gulf / Hath rais'd in Paradise, and how disturbed / This night the human pair, how he designs / In them at once to ruin all mankind.2 – Paradise Lost Although William Congreve's The Way of the World was first performed in 1700, critics regard the play as a glory of the late Restoration stage, a work that deftly pushes established comedic conventions to suit the shifting social norms of the day. Like many Restoration comedies, the play turns on the exploits of a truewit hero with a knavish reputation, who must secure both his sweetheart and her fortune. But Congreve famously tempers the customary bawdy plot points of cuckholding and "ruined" virginity with unexpected complications. Protagonist Mirabell is a reformed rake, a new beau ideal who struggles to overcome his past flirtation with love interest Millamant's aunt, Lady Wishfort, and his selfish seduction of Lady Wishfort's daughter, Mrs. Fainall. The supporting cast is also notably rounded, acting mostly from individual motivation and personality, rather than according to type. Arguing for the play's exceptionalism, Brian Corman, among many others, has pointed to the significance of Congreve's secondary characters, including his villains: [End Page 65] Lady Wishfort could have been the only obstacle to the marriage of the hero and heroine, but she is not. Mirabell's uncle could have been the traditional senex figure to be overcome by the lovers, but he is not. Fainall could have been the loyal friend of the truewit hero who provides atmosphere through witty, cynical epigrams, and his wife could have been another revenge-seeking, cast-off mistress, but they, too, are not.3 Given this notice of Congreve's character complexity, it is surprising that relatively little critical analysis has focused on Marwood, the strange and lonely nemesis of the celebrated Millamant. When Marwood does appear in critical discussion, she is generally dismissed. Though Richard W. F. Kroll notes her social competency, he ultimately relegates her, along with Fainall and the flatter characters of Witwoud, Petulant, and Willful, to the "'natural' realm," arguing that, unlike Millamant, Marwood succumbs to base passions that she is unable to socialize, losing control of language and eventually lapsing into silence.4 For Pat Gill, she "becomes the butt of the play's satiric joke" as the comedy dramatizes women's subordination to male authority.5 Even Corman, while recognizing Marwood as powerful, claims that Millamant reduces her to "a ranting termagant void of all decorum."6 The circumstances of the play's original performance are one indication that Mar-wood warrants further exploration. Congreve created the part for renowned actress Elizabeth Barry, pairing her with his favorite female lead, Anne Bracegirdle, as Millamant. Though in her youth Barry played many comedic ingenues, she secured her acting reputation with her portrayal of Thomas Otway's ill-fated Monimia, delivering a performance that set a standard of greatness for generations of later tragediennes.7 By the time The Way of the World debuted, Barry, who was then about forty, had come into full command of her powers and was focused primarily on tragic roles.8 James E. Evans is one of several scholars who note that Congreve's play doubtless capitalized on the pairing of Barry and Bracegirdle.9 The actresses were famous for their publicized rivalry and disparate reputations—Barry being known to cause a scandal while Bracegirdle maintained a chaste life-style.10 But Congreve's choice also lends weight to the character of Marwood, written to make the most of Barry's ability to, in the words of one reviewer, "[force] Tears from the Eyes of her Auditory, especially those who have any sense of Pity for the Distress't."11 What results from a reexamination of Marwood as a vehicle for tragic passion? Given the play's critical acclaim as a morally serious comedy in which "real" people make their way in a less than perfect world...