I got a chance to see a great production of Richard Brinsley Sheridan's The School for Scandal the other day, at a Waldorf high school in a suburb of Boston. I have a fondness for this script, as I got to play Sir Peter twice back when I still thought I had a chance at a career in theater.
The play premiered back in 1777, but I found myself thinking how little in human nature has changed since then, and how the worst pressures of human society keep reasserting themselves.
One thread in the story is the corrupting effect, not so much of money, but of the distance between the money one has and the money one feels one should have. Joseph Surface latches on slimy piety to recommend himself to his distant patron, in hopes of a huge inheritance and marriage to an heiress. Lovely Lady Teazle marries Sir Peter six parts for love...but at least four parts to get out of the country in and among the glittering baubles of the city.
Another thread concerns the perils of idleness. The 'school' at Lady Sneerwell's house are mostly clever people, even if they think far more of themselves than they really should. But they have nothing to do, nothing with which to occupy their active and questing minds, except speculate and gossip about their acquaintances. Oh, yes, and have affairs with them when the occasion arises.
But there is a third thread, touching on the enduring virtues of friendship, honesty, and duty (in this story, the test case is whether to offer charity to a distant relative who can do nothing for you in return). That he exhibits these traits redeems the otherwise-dubious character of Charles Surface, the wastral brother.
As I watch the US economy lurch away (perhaps) from governance by greed and better things (perhaps) raise their heads, I find in Sheridan's writing a very modern tale in which the good guys came out on top. A hopeful tale, then.
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