William Shakespeare

The Merry Wives of Windsor William Shakespeare

Sir John Falstaff is, without doubt, a rogue. True, he is fat, jolly, and in a way lovable, but he is still a rogue. His men rob and plunder the citizens of Windsor, but he himself is seldom taken or convicted for his crimes. His fortunes at low ebb, he hits upon a plan to remedy that situation. He meets Mistress Ford and Mistress Page, two good ladies who hold the purse strings in their respective houses. Falstaff writes identical letters to the two good ladies, letters protesting undying love for each of them. The daughter of one of the ladies, Anne Page, is the center of a love triangle. Her father wishes her to marry Slender, a foolish gentleman who does not love her or anyone else, but who will marry any girl recommended to him by his cousin, the justice. Mistress Page, on the other hand, wants her daughter married to Doctor Caius, a French physician then in Windsor. Anne herself loves Fenton, a fine young gentleman deeply in love with her. All three lovers pay the doctor's housekeeper, Mistress Quickly, to plead their cause with Anne, for Mistress Quickly convinces each that she alone can persuade Anne to answer yes to a proposal. Mistress Quickly is, in fact, second only to Falstaff in her plotting and her trickery.