The Way of the World by William Congreve: Summary

Before the action of the play initiates, some events are supposed to have taken place. Mirabell, a typical young Restoration man, but not a man of great wealth, has had an affair with Mrs. Fainall, the widowed daughter of Lady Wishfort. Mirabell has arranged a marriage between Mr. Fainall and the Mrs. Fainall to protect her from scandal in the event of pregnancy.

Fainall married the young widow because he wanted her fortune to support his courtship with Mrs. Marwood. In time, Mirabell found himself in love with Millamant, the niece and ward of Lady Wishfort, and the cousin of his former mistress. He is strongly in the pursuit of gaining her for love and also for the wealth she possesses. 6000 pounds of Millamant's fortune were under her own control, but the other half, 6,000 pounds, was controlled by Lady Wishfort. She put a condition if she marries a suitor approved by her then only she could get her fortune.Sadly, Mirabell had earlier hurt Lady Wishfort; she had misinterpreted his flattery as love.

Mirabell made a plan in which he has arranged a fake uncle (Waitwell) to make Lady Wishfort fall in love with him. Waitwell is married to Foible, the maid of Lady Wishfort. He then plans to reveal the real identity of Waitwell and pretends to save her from this mismatch. He thinks that he would gain lady Wishfort’s favor and permission to marry Millamant. Millamant is aware of the plot, probably through Foible.

When the play opens, Mirabell is eagerly waiting to hear that Waitwell is married to Foible. Mirabell's card game with Mr. Fainall reveals their relationship is not good. Fainall has been twice tricked by Mirabell: Mrs. Fainall is Mirabell's former mistress, and Mrs. Marwood, Fainall's former mistress, is in love with Mirabell. Meanwhile, although Millamant secretly loves Mirabell, she enjoys teasing him in his state of uncertainty.

Unfortunately, Mrs. Marwood hears Mrs. Fainall and Foible discussing the scheme of Mirabell, along with Mirabell and Mrs. Fainall's earlier love affair. She also overhears insulting comments about herself, so, she is vengeful and immediately informs Fainall of the plot and the fact that his wife was once Mirabell's mistress. The two conspirators now have both motive and means for revenge. In the same afternoon, Millamant accepts Mirabell's proposal and rejects Sir Wilfull Witwoud, Lady Wishfort's candidate for her hand.

Fainall, the conspirator, now leads the action. He reveals the truth of Waitwell, the false uncle, and starts blackmailing Lady Wishfort with the threat of her daughter's disgrace. He demands that the balance of Millamant's fortune should be turned over to his sole control. In addition, he wants to be sure that Lady Wishfort will not marry so that Mrs. Fainall is certain to be the heir.

This plot of Fainall's is now defied by Millamant. She says that she will marry Wilfull to save her own fortune. Fainall goes on insisting that he wants control of the rest of his wife's money and immediate management of Lady Wishfort's fortune. At the same time, Mirabell brings two servants to prove that Fainall and Mrs. Marwood were themselves guilty of adultery. Fainall ignores the blame and points out that he will still create a scandal which would blacken the name of Mrs. Fainall if he does not get the money.

At this point, Mirabell victoriously reveals his most successful trick. Before Mrs. Fainall married Fainall, she and Mirabell had suspected the man's character, so, she had appointed her lover trustee of her fortune. Fainall, now cannot claim the fortune because Mrs. Fainall does not control her own money. He and Mrs. Marwood leave in great anger. Lady Wishfort forgives the servants and gives consent to the match of Mirabell and Millamant.