
Lady Windermere's Fan
by Oscar Wilde
'Lady Windermere's Fan' Summary
Act I
The play opens in the morning room of the Windermeres' residence in London. It is tea time and Lady Windermere—who is preparing for her coming of age birthday ball that evening—has a visit from a friend, Lord Darlington. She shows off her new fan: a present from her husband. She explains to Lord Darlington that she is upset over the compliments he continues to pay to her, revealing that she has very particular views about what is acceptable in society, due in part to her somewhat Puritan upbringing.
The Duchess of Berwick calls and Lord Darlington leaves shortly thereafter. The Duchess informs Lady Windermere that her husband may be betraying her marriage by making repeated visits to another woman, a Mrs. Erlynne, and possibly giving her large sums of money. These rumours have been gossip among London society for quite a while, though seemingly this is the first Lady Windermere has heard about it.
Following the departure of the Duchess, Lady Windermere decides to check her husband's bank book. She finds the book in a desk and sees that nothing appears amiss, though on returning she discovers a second bank book: one with a lock. After prying the lock open, she finds it lists large sums of money given to Mrs. Erlynne.
At this point, Lord Windermere enters and she confronts him. Though he cannot deny that he has had dealings with Mrs. Erlynne, he states that he is not betraying Lady Windermere. He requests that she send Mrs. Erlynne an invitation to her birthday ball that evening to help her back into society. When Lady Windermere refuses, he writes out an invitation himself. Lady Windermere makes clear her intention to cause a scene if Mrs. Erlynne appears, to which Lord Windermere responds that it would be in her best interest not to do so.
Lady Windermere leaves in disgust to prepare for the party, and Lord Windermere reveals in soliloquy that he is protecting Mrs. Erlynne's true identity to save his wife extreme humiliation.
What shall I do? I dare not tell her who this woman really is. The shame would kill her.
— Lord Windermere
Book Details
Authors

Oscar Wilde
Ireland
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 1854 – 30 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, the early 1890s saw him become...
Books by Oscar WildeDownload eBooks
Listen/Download Audiobook
- Select Speed
Related books

The Young Idea by Noël Coward
The Young Idea is a play about two siblings, Gerda eighteen and Sholto twenty-one, who attempt to engineer the reconciliation of their divorced parent...

Beyond the Horizon by Eugene O'Neill
Beyond the Horizon is a play written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill. Although he first copyrighted the text in June 1918, O'Neill continued to...

Botchan by Sōseki Natsume
Botchan is a satirical novel that follows the experiences of a young math teacher from Tokyo who is transferred to a rural middle school. The novel e...

Fantasma de Canterville y otros cuentos by Oscar Wilde
The Canterville Ghost is a humorous and satirical novella by Oscar Wilde. It tells the story of an American family who moves into a haunted English ca...

The Duchess of Padua by Oscar Wilde
The Duchess of Padua is a play by Oscar Wilde. It is a five-act tragedy set in Padua and written in blank verse. It was written for the actress Mary A...

Shakespeare Monologues Collection vol. 14 by William Shakespeare
This is the fourteenth collection of monologues from Shakespeare's plays. Our readers have chosen their favourite monologues from Shakespeare's famous...

Our American Cousin by Tom Taylor
Our American Cousin is a three-act farce by English playwright Tom Taylor, first staged in 1858. The play centers on Asa Trenchard, a naive and somewh...

Red and the Black by Stendhal
Set in early 19th-century France, *The Red and the Black* chronicles the rise and fall of Julien Sorel, a young man of humble origins who yearns for a...

History Plays for the Grammar Grades by Mary Ella Lyng
A charming collection of 14 short American history plays for the very young - ranging from Christopher Columbus to George Washington to Susan B Anthon...

The Alchemist by Ben Jonson
The Alchemist is a comedy by English playwright Ben Jonson. First performed in 1610 by the King's Men, it is generally considered Jonson's best and mo...
Reviews for Lady Windermere's Fan
No reviews posted or approved, yet...