![Book Cover of The School For Scandal](/image/book/the-school-for-scandal.webp)
The School For Scandal
'The School For Scandal' Summary
Act I
Scene I: Lady Sneerwell, a wealthy young widow, and her hireling Snake discuss her various scandal-spreading plots. Snake asks why she is so involved in the affairs of Sir Peter Teazle, his ward Maria, and Charles and Joseph Surface, two young men under Sir Peter's informal guardianship, and why she has not yielded to the attentions of Joseph, who is highly respectable. Lady Sneerwell confides that Joseph wants Maria, who is an heiress, and that Maria wants Charles. Thus she and Joseph are plotting to alienate Maria from Charles by putting out rumours of an affair between Charles and Sir Peter's new young wife, Lady Teazle. Joseph arrives to confer with Lady Sneerwell. Maria herself then enters, fleeing the attentions of Sir Benjamin Backbite and his uncle, Crabtree. Mrs. Candour enters and ironically talks about how "tale-bearers are as bad as the tale-makers." Soon after that, Sir Benjamin and Crabtree also enter, bringing a good deal of gossip with them. One item is the imminent return of the Surface brothers' rich uncle Sir Oliver from the East Indies, where he has been for sixteen years; another is Charles' dire financial situation.
Scene II: Sir Peter complains of Lady Teazle's spendthrift ways. Rowley, the former steward of the Surfaces' late father, arrives, and Sir Peter gives him an earful on the subject. He also complains that Maria has refused Joseph, whom he calls "a model for the young men of the age," and seems attached to Charles, whom he denounces as a profligate. Rowley defends Charles, and then announces that Sir Oliver has just arrived from the East Indies.
Act II
Scene I: Sir Peter argues with his wife, Lady Teazle, refusing to be "ruined by [her] extravagance." He reminds her of her recent and far humbler country origins. Lady Teazle excuses herself by appealing to "the fashion", and departs to visit Lady Sneerwell. Despite their quarrel, Sir Peter still finds himself charmed by his wife even when she is arguing with him.
Scene II: At Lady Sneerwell's, the scandal-mongers have great fun at the expense of friends not present. Lady Teazle and Maria arrive; Lady Teazle joins in, but Maria is disgusted. So is Sir Peter, when he arrives, and rather breaks up the party with his comments. He departs, the others retire to the next room, and Joseph seizes the opportunity to court Maria, who rejects him again. Lady Teazle returns and dismisses Maria, and it is revealed that Lady Teazle is seriously flirting with Joseph – who doesn't want her, but cannot afford to alienate her.
Scene III: Sir Oliver calls on his old friend Sir Peter. He is amused by Sir Peter's marriage to a young wife. Their talk turns to the Surface brothers. Sir Peter praises Joseph's high morals but Sir Oliver suspects that he might be a hypocrite.
Book Details
Author
![Richard Brinsley Sheridan image](/thumbs/image/author/richard-brinsley-sheridan.webp)
Richard Brinsley Sheridan
Ireland
Richard Brinsley Butler Sheridan was an Irish satirist, a politician, a playwright, poet, and long-term owner of the London Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. He is known for his...
More on Richard Brinsley SheridanDownload eBooks
Listen/Download Audiobook
- Select Speed
Related books
![Gyges und sein Ring Cover image](/thumbs/image/book/gyges-und-sein-ring.webp)
Gyges und sein Ring by Friedrich Hebbel
Tauchen Sie ein in die faszinierende Welt von "Gyges und sein Ring" von Friedrich Hebbel, einem zeitlosen Drama, das die Grenzen von Macht, Moral und...
![Tis Pity She's a Whore Cover image](/thumbs/image/book/tis-pity-shes-a-whore.webp)
Tis Pity She's a Whore by John Ford
'Tis Pity She's a Whore is a tragedy written by John Ford. It was first performed c. 1626 or between 1629 and 1633, by Queen Henrietta's Men at the C...
![Shakespeare Monologues Collection vol. 13 Cover image](/thumbs/image/book/shakespeare-monologues-collection-vol-13.webp)
Shakespeare Monologues Collection vol. 13 by William Shakespeare
This is the thirteenth collection of monologues from Shakespeare's plays. Our readers have chosen their favourite monologues from Shakespeare's famous...
![Woyzeck Cover image](/thumbs/image/book/woyzeck.webp)
Woyzeck by Georg Büchner
Woyzeck ist ein Dramenfragment des deutschen Dramatikers und Dichters Georg Büchner. Büchner begann vermutlich zwischen Juni und September 1836 mit de...
![Candida Cover image](/thumbs/image/book/candida.webp)
Candida by George Bernard Shaw
In George Bernard Shaw's Candida, a woman must choose between her husband, a self-righteous religious leader, and a young poet who offers her a more p...
![Inheritors Cover image](/thumbs/image/book/inheritors.webp)
Inheritors by Susan Glaspell
Inheritors is a four-act play written by the American dramatist Susan Glaspell, first performed in 1921. The play concerns the legacy of an idealist...
![Twelfth Night Cover image](/thumbs/image/book/twelfth-night.webp)
Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare
Twelfth Night, or What You Will is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night's enter...
![The Widowing of Mrs Holroyd Cover image](/thumbs/image/book/the-widowing-of-mrs-holroyd.webp)
The Widowing of Mrs Holroyd by D. H. Lawrence
The Widowing of Mrs. Holroyd is a play by the English writer D. H. Lawrence. It was written in 1911 and the revised version was published in 1914 by D...
![The Merry Devil of Edmonton Cover image](/thumbs/image/book/the-merry-devil-of-edmonton.webp)
The Merry Devil of Edmonton by William Shakespeare
It is a captivating play filled with humor, romance, and supernatural elements. This lively and entertaining work showcases Shakespeare's unparalleled...
![Reginald Cover image](/thumbs/image/book/reginald.webp)
Reginald by Saki (Hector Hugh Munro)
Saki was the pen name of the British author Hector Hugh Munro (1870 – 1916). His witty, biting and occasionally odd short stories satirised Edwardian...
Reviews for The School For Scandal
No reviews posted or approved, yet...