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Act 4, Scene 10
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Way of the World, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Jealousy, Deceit, and Intrigue
Wits and Fools
Men vs. Women
Female (In)dependence
Love and Money
Summary
Analysis
Wishfort, exasperated with Wilfull, tells him he stinks and to get out of her sight. Meanwhile, Foible has arrived. She whispers in Wishfort’s ear that Sir Rowland is growing impatient waiting for her return. Wishfort begs Witwoud to babysit her nephew, promising to reward him greatly, so that she can get back to more important matters.
Rather than a means of getting the brothers to bond, urging Witwoud to stay with Wilfull secures Wishfort alone time with her suitor. Financial incentive is closely associated with family duty, as Wishfort’s promise to reward Witwoud for his help with Wilfull indicates.
Themes
Witwoud invites Wilfull to a cockfight. Wilfull agrees to this idea and asks whether there will be wenches there. Wishfort, hearing all of this, resignedly admits to herself that Wilfull, at the moment, is not ready to marry her niece. She hopes that after he has been abroad he will prove more suitable to Millamant.
The two men have in common a taste for lowbrow pursuits. Their debauched evening plans lead Wishfort to finally realize the futility of trying to wed her sophisticated niece to her unrefined nephew.
Themes
