William Wycherley. The Country Wife.

In Wycherley’s play, the one person who wants to tell the truth is pressured to be silent so that the society can continue to teeter along. Here’s the plot. The lead character is Horner, a predatory rake who wants to cuckold as many husbands as he can. Because the husbands are so leery (furfangos) of him, however, he has a doctor (Quack) leak the news that he has been rendered impotent by venereal disease. Since he is now “safe,” Sir Jasper Fidget wants Horner to chaperone his wife as he goes about his business. Horner more than obliges. But Horner also has an affair with Marjorie Pinchwife, the country wife of the title, who is innocent to the ways of the city and who believes that two people who love each other should be together. She likes Horner much better than her jealous husband and is prepared, in a burst of sincerity, to publicly declare Horner her lover and leave her husband for him. In doing so, of course, she would reveal that he has been faking his disease. Suddenly, the whole society is in danger of imploding. Sir Jasper will be revealed to have been a cuckold, as will Pinchwife. Their wives, meanwhile, will lose their “honor,” as will all the other women that Horner has been “chaperoning.” So what do they do? Do they admit that the husbands are neglecting or abusing their wives and that the wives prefer outer appearance to inner virtue? Do they question the drive for gratification and look to spiritual connection with another human being over mere sexual trysts? Do they view the threatened crisis as an opportunity to rethink their priorities? Or do they persuade the one truthful, trusting, and non-cynical character, the country wife, to tell a lie so that society can continue on as before? Marjorie realizes she is condemned to a loveless marriage. In all likelihood she will learn how to counterfeit virtue and tell lies while engaging in clandestine affairs. She has been trained to be corrupt like the rest of them.