
Lover's Vows
'Lover's Vows' Summary
Act I:
The play opens with Agatha being ejected from an inn when her money runs out. Too proud to beg, she is desperate. Frederick enters, sees her, and offers her money although it will mean he cannot pay for his own breakfast. She recognizes him as her son, absent for five years as a soldier. He has returned in order to find his birth certificate, necessary in order to find employment. Distraught, Agatha tells him that there is no certificate: she was seduced at the age of seventeen by Baron Wildenhaim upon promise of marriage. Despite the resulting pregnancy, the Baron broke his promise and married another, wealthier woman, and Agatha, turned out of her home, struggled to make ends meet and raise her son alone. Frederick is dismayed at the news, and to find his mother so destitute, and he arranges for her to stay with some charitable cottagers.
Act II:
Frederick leaves, intending to beg for money. Not knowing her relationship to him, the cottagers tell Agatha of the recent history of Baron Wildenhaim, now widowed and with a daughter. She faints.
Meanwhile, reluctant to force her inclination as his own was forced, the Baron tries to determine whether or not his daughter, Amelia, loves the affected and foppish Count Cassel. It becomes clear to the audience that she instead loves Anhalt, a poor clergyman, and he her. It also becomes clear that the Baron regrets the misdeeds of his youth and has long sought, fruitlessly, to make amends.
Act III: Frederick, desperate as his begging has been unsuccessful, attempts to rob the Baron and the Count as they go hunting, not knowing who they are. He is arrested.
Anhalt speaks to Amelia about matrimony, at the Baron's request, but she in turn confesses her love for him and forces his own confession. They are interrupted by Verdun, a versifying butler, with the news of Frederick's attack on the Baron. The Baron enters and Amelia pleads for the life of the unknown young man, but the Baron is adamant on the grounds that an example must be made.
Act IV:
Amelia takes Frederick food and he discovers who it was that he had threatened. He asks to meet the Baron privately.
Amelia reveals to her father information she learnt from Verdun about the Count's sexual immorality. The Baron confronts the Count; he replies that he is a man of the world, and reminds the Baron that many men have behaved likewise. Confused and embarrassed, the Baron dismisses him; Amelia re-enters and reveals her love for Anhalt. They are interrupted by Anhalt, who tells the Baron that Frederick is in the next room and wants a private interview. Frederick reveals their relationship to the Baron, and then leaves. The Baron is much affected.
Act V:
Anhalt goes to Agatha at the cottage and explains some circumstances which mitigate the Baron's previous conduct.
Frederick, and then Anhalt, insist to the Baron that he must marry Agatha. After some agitation because of the social differences between them, he agrees, and in gratitude to Anhalt for his advice, agrees also to let him marry Amelia despite his poverty. Agatha enters the room and all are reconciled.
Book Details
Authors

Elizabeth Inchbald
England
Elizabeth Inchbald was an English novelist, actress and dramatist. She wrote two novels that remain prominent today. Born on 15 October 1753 at Stanningfield, near Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, Elizabeth...
Books by Elizabeth InchbaldDownload eBooks
Listen/Download Audiobook
- Select Speed
Related books

Reveries of a Bachelor by Ik Marvel
Reveries of a Bachelor is a introspective novel that explores the themes of love, loss, and the search for meaning in life. The protagonist, Paul, rem...

Shakespeare Monologues Collection vol. 12 (Multilingual) by William Shakespeare
This is the 12th edition of the Shakespeare Monologues Collection, in which we bring you your favourite characters' monologues. All topics and emotion...

Conquest of Canaan by Booth Tarkington
This novel, set in a small town in the early 1900s, follows the journey of Joe Louden, a young man who leaves his hometown to study law after a forbid...

Love Letters of Abelard and Heloise by Pierre Abélard
The 'Love Letters of Abelard and Heloise' offers a poignant glimpse into the passionate and forbidden romance between the renowned philosopher, Peter...

Countess Erika's Apprenticeship by Ossip Schubin
The baron is busy building ventures which are doomed to fail. He thinks the next one would be better, and mourns the absence of his wife who went to b...

Parlor Matches by Walter Ben Hare
Parlor Matches revolves around Mrs. Seltoon, a matchmaking matriarch determined to find suitable partners for her daughters and ward, Gail. When she s...

Her Mother's Secret by E.D.E.N. Southworth
Odalite and Leonidas, long-time lovers, are on the verge of marriage. However, a past secret of Odalite's mother emerges, threatening to ruin their h...

Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship Volume 2 by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship, Volume 2, continues Goethe's exploration of the protagonist's journey to self-realization. Meister, now immersed in...

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
Anna Karenina is a novel by Leo Tolstoy that was first published in 1877. It is widely regarded as one of the greatest works of literature ever writte...

Life and Adventures of Jack Engle: An AutoBiography by Walt Whitman
This novel, originally published as a serial in 1852, follows the life of Jack Engle, a young man navigating the complexities of 19th-century New York...
Reviews for Lover's Vows
No reviews posted or approved, yet...