The Merry Wives of Windsor

The Merry Wives of Windsor, a romantic comedy written by William Shakespeare, was first performed in 1600. The play centers on the attempts of Falstaff to seduce the wives of Ford and Page in order to gain control of their money. Mrs. Page is infuriated by Falstaff’s letter asking for an liaison and she seeks the help of Mrs. Ford, who has received an identical letter from Falstaff, to find a way to ruin Falstaff without destroying her honor and reputation. Both husbands are told of Falstaff’s intentions and Mr. Page is not worried, since he doesn’t think his wife will fall for Falstaff, while Mr. Ford becomes jealously irate and seeks to capture Falstaff.

Mrs. Ford invites Falstaff over for a liaison, and while they are talking, Mrs. Page rushes in, forcing Falstaff to hide. She announces that Mrs. Ford’s husband is about to return and Falstaff panics. Mrs. Page and Mrs. Ford hide him in a laundry basket and the servants sneak him out under Mr. Ford’s nose. However, he nearly suffocates in the dirty laundry, gets all dirty, and then is thrown into the river.

Even though he has been humiliated, Falstaff returns again to Mrs. Ford and seeks to seduce her. This time Mrs. Page enters and again acts angry to discover Falstaff there. She warns them that Mr. Ford is almost home, so they disguise Falstaff as a fat old woman who has come as a fortuneteller. Mr. Ford hates witches and kicks Falstaff out of his house, unaware that he is the woman in disguise.

Even though humiliated a second time, Falstaff agrees to meet Mrs. Ford in the haunted forest at night. While he tries to seduce her, the children and slaves dressed up like fairies and elves attack Falstaff, pinching and burning him until he is completely terrified. As the children leave, Mr. Ford and Mr. Page arrive and Falstaff realizes he has been fooled. Falstaff is urged to give up his lustful pursuits and Mr. Ford is admonished to trust his wife. In the end, the merry wives of Windsor have won.

Shakespeare has effectively dealt with the issue of immorality and jealousy, playfully showing the foolishness of men. The wisdom of the two wives turned a potentially destructive situation into a learning occasion for the men. Shakespeare’s main objective was to show that wives can be merry, that is have a full, exciting, and meaningful lives, while remaining true to their husbands. This is a much more constructive and wholesome philosophy than what is being taught through our popular culture today.