Antonina Kamenchuk, FANm-1-19

An Ideal Husband

I. Summary
The story opens with a dinner party at the Chilterns` house where the
upper class of society is gathered. During the introduction, the author depicts
the main characters, their personalities and goals. Everything goes normally -
boringly and diligently - until Mrs. Cheveley appears at the party.
Mrs. Chevely’s acquaintance with Sir Robert Chiltern presents a rising
point of the play. She blackmails Sir Robert as she has in her possession a letter
that can easily crash his “ideal” reputation and life.
The main characters face a difficult choice: to act according to conscience
or convenience.
At the end of the story author draws the conclusion that an honest person
is always better than “ideal” one.

II. Sketch of Lord Goring

Lord Goring is the pure image of Oscar Wilde himself. The character is a dandy
with a witty mind, who «plays this life». He isn`t heartless, but he lives his life
in a hedonic perspective. At the beginning of the play Lord Goring seems to be
an idle bachelor, but then his philosophy reflects in Mabel. He`s changing his
bachelor status to a status of a husband and who knows maybe for Mabel he`ll
be that ideal husband.

III. Scene in modern English

Original
Mrs. Cheveley. And what is Lord Goring?
Mabel Chiltern. Oh! Lord Goring is president.
Mrs. Cheveley. The post should suit him admirably, unless he has
deteriorated since I knew him first.
Lady Markby. [Reflecting.] You are remarkably modern, Mabel. A
little too modern, perhaps. Nothing is so dangerous as being too modern. One
is apt to grow old-fashioned quite suddenly. I have known many instances of it.
Mabel Chiltern. What a dreadful prospect!
 Lady Markby. Ah! my dear, you need not be nervous. You will always
be as pretty as possible. That is the best fashion there is, and the only fashion
that England succeeds in setting.
Mabel Chiltern. [With a curtsey.] Thank you so much, Lady Markby, for
England . . . and myself. [Goes out.]
Lady Markby. [Turning to lady chiltern.] Dear Gertrude, we just called
to know if Mrs. Cheveley’s diamond brooch has been found.
Lady Chiltern. Here?
Mrs. Cheveley. Yes. I missed it when I got back to Claridge’s, and I
thought I might possibly have dropped it here.
Lady Chiltern. I have heard nothing about it. But I will send for the
butler and ask. [Touches the bell.]
Mrs. Cheveley. Oh, pray don’t trouble, Lady Chiltern. I dare say I lost it
at the Opera, before we came on here.
Lady Markby. Ah yes, I suppose it must have been at the Opera. The
fact is, we all scramble and jostle so much nowadays that I wonder we have
anything at all left on us at the end of an evening. I know myself that, when I
am coming back from the Drawing Room, I always feel as if I hadn’t a shred on
me, except a small shred of decent reputation, just enough to prevent the lower
classes making painful observations through the windows of the carriage. The
fact is that our Society is terribly over-populated. Really, someone should
arrange a proper scheme of assisted emigration. It would do a great deal of
good.
Mrs. Cheveley. I quite agree with you, Lady Markby. It is nearly six
years since I have been in London for the Season, and I must say Society has
become dreadfully mixed. One sees the oddest people everywhere.

Rewritten
Mrs. Cheveley. And who is Lord Goring?
Mabel Chiltern. Oh! He is the Speaker.
Mrs. Cheveley. Lord Goring and this post fit like pork and beans, unless
he has changed since I knew him first.
Lady Markby. [Reflecting.] You are remarkably modern, Mabel. A
little too modern, perhaps. Nothing is so dangerous as that. One could turn to
be out-of-date quite suddenly. I have known many instances of it.
Mabel Chiltern. Not-so-great futurity!
 Lady Markby. Ah! my dear, don’t sweat it. You will always be as pretty
as possible. That is the best fashion there is, and the only fashion that England
succeeds in setting.
Mabel Chiltern. [With a curtsey.] Thank you so much, Lady Markby, for
England . . . and myself. [Goes out.]
Lady Markby. [Turning to lady Chiltern.] Dear Gertrude, we just called
to know if Mrs. Cheveley’s diamond brooch has been found.
Lady Chiltern. Here?
Mrs. Cheveley. Yes. I missed it when I got back to Claridge’s, and
maybe it have dropped here.
Lady Chiltern. I have heard nothing about it. But wait a minute, I’ll ask
the topsman. [Touches the bell.]
Mrs. Cheveley. Oh, never mind, Lady Chiltern. Maybe I lost it at the
Opera, before we came on here.
Lady Markby. Ah yes, I suppose it must have been at the Opera. The
fact is, we all scramble and jostle so much nowadays that I wonder we have
anything at all left on us at the end of an evening. I know myself that, when I
am coming back from the Drawing Room, I always feel as if I hadn’t a shred on
me, except a small shred of decent reputation, just enough to prevent the lower
classes making painful observations through the windows of the carriage. The
fact is that our Society is terribly over-populated. Really, someone should
arrange a proper scheme of assisted emigration. It would do a great deal of
good.
Mrs. Cheveley. I quite agree with you, Lady Markby. It is nearly six
years since I have been in London for the Season, and, truth be told, society has
become dreadfully mixed. The oddest people are in every corner.

Commentary: As the play has been written many years ago, it is full of
language particularities that are suitable for that times. That contributes to the
creating appropriate atmosphere and drives as closer to the described epoch as
possible. However, language is constantly developing and to impress a modern
reader it will be great to update some sentences, make them shorter and use
slang words or phraseological units instead of archaic forms. It will contribute
to creating satirical effect.
IV.Review
A lot of readers, for some reasons, perceive Oscar Wilde mostly as the
creator of ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’, a kind of gloomy, gothic handsome
man who does not want to get old and would like to sell his soul to the devil.
His famous novel made him worldwide popular, but also made Oscar Wilde the
author of 1 book, sure in the eyes of the readers. Actually, he was also a great
playwright. It is enough to read his play “An Ideal Husband” to understand
why.
The play that describes twenty-four hours of aristocrats` life in London at
the end of the 19th century is full of humor, political intrigue, fraud and
romantic feelings.
The curtain rises and the spouse of Chilterns appears. The family hosts
guests and Oscar Wilde in a couple of lines describes the main characters of the
comedy. However, it is only the beginning, the reader paints the further portrait
of the characters by himself, without the help of the author, listening to the
dialogues and analyzing the actions of the characters.
Talking about women, which are depicted pretty vivid. My sympathy
goes to Mrs. Cheveley rather than to Lady Chiltern. She is a way too right.
Well, at least she`s pretending to seem so. While the image of the blackmailer,
fraudster and intriguer Mrs. Cheavley is pretty magnetic and thought charming,
she is “a work of art but showing the influence of too many schools.” If we
correlate such a quote with our time, in other words, update it, it will sound
rather like a compliment, and perhaps this and her ‘honesty’ in being evil
explains my sympathy for her. It was easy to imagine how she attracted the
young Lord Goring, even if she broke his heart, although according to the
development of the plot it became clear that he glued together his broken heart
long time ago since and presented it to another woman. Thus, we can say that in
the play there are no antagonists in a strict sense, except of the quixotic
endeavor in the form of prejudices.
Another characters with the help of whom the author wanted to show the
likeness of right and wrong is Sir Robert Chiltern and Lord Arthur Goring. Lord
Goring is a dandy, fop, dresser and playboy, in a word, he is a loafer and Sir
Chiltern, a young and high-potential politician who angles for a position of
prime minister. On the one hand, there is the prodigal son of Lord Caversham,
on the other, there is the ideal standing on the podium of high morality which is
set up by Lady Gertrude. This marble pedestal will give a crack already in the
first act of the play, because an honest person is always better than “ideal” one.
The whole play can be parsed into quotes and there are rather the lines of
truths about people's attitude to themselves, to others and to life filled with
humor than a philosophical high-intelligence on the subject of being. Many
people would compare Lord Goring to a guideline for intricate jokes, but I
would compare him with the book you want to read again and again, and each
time you see something new and interesting, as in the plays by Oscar Wilde.