Monologue

Mrs Erlynne Monologue from Lady Windermere's Fan

From Lady Windermere's Fan by Oscar Wilde

female · sarcastic · 1:06 min

Rehearse this freeFind more monologues
(Rising.) I suppose, Windermere, you would like me to retire into a convent, or become a hospital nurse, or something of that kind, as people do in silly modern novels. That is stupid of you, Arthur; in real life we don’t do such things—not as long as we have any good looks left, at any rate. No—what consoles one nowadays is not repentance, but pleasure. Repentance is quite out of date. And besides, if a woman really repents, she has to go to a bad dressmaker, otherwise no one believes in her. And nothing in the world would induce me to do that. No; I am going to pass entirely out of your two lives. My coming into them has been a mistake—I discovered that last night.

About this piece

Mrs. Erlynne confronts Windermere about her role in their lives, expressing her refusal to conform to societal norms and expectations regarding women and repentance.

40s · defiance · identity · freedom · regret · societal expectations

Rehearse Mrs Erlynne's monologue

Run it out loud with a spotlight that follows your voice, line by line, until it's off the page. Free to start, no credit card.

Rehearse freeStart rehearsing

More from Lady Windermere's Fan

Browse