Monologue

Lady Hunstanton Monologue from A Woman of No Importance

From A Woman of No Importance by Oscar Wilde

female · sarcastic · 1:27 min

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Ah, yes. That would be the last Earl but one. He was a very curious man. He wanted to marry beneath him. Or wouldn’t, I believe. There was some scandal about it. The present Lord Illingworth is quite different. He is very distinguished. He does—well, he does nothing, which I am afraid our pretty American visitor here thinks very wrong of anybody, and I don’t know that he cares much for the subjects in which you are so interested, dear Mrs. Arbuthnot. Do you think, Caroline, that Lord Illingworth is interested in the Housing of the Poor? (LADY CAROLINE: I should fancy not at all, Jane.) We all have our different tastes, have we not? But Lord Illingworth has a very high position, and there is nothing he couldn’t get if he chose to ask for it. Of course, he is comparatively a young man still, and he has only come to his title within—how long exactly is it, Caroline, since Lord Illingworth succeeded?

About this piece

Lady Hunstanton reflects on the peculiarities of Lord Illingworth and the societal expectations surrounding marriage and class, revealing her own skepticism about his interests and character.

40s · confusion · identity · power · social class · scandal

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