Question- Write a note on the plot of construction of Congreve.

Answer -

Edmund Goose rightly says "The plots of Congreve are difficult to recollect, and not always very natural in their development."

The plot of the play has various features. First, the plot of the drama is very complicated which is made so mainly by the intrigues in the play. We can, therfore, describe the plot of the play as complex, intricate, involved and baffling. The plot of the play lacks coherence. There is very little of physical action and of movement in the play. Really, the plot of the play is over ingenius. One surely gets entangled in its complications.

The play has preplexing relationships of characters. This is one of the reasons for the intricacies of the plot of the play. Sir Wilful and Witwoud are the nephews of lady Wishfort. The former lives in the country while the latter lives in London. Millamant is lady, Wishfort's niece. She holds half of Millamant's fortune in her custody. Millamant must not Marry without Lady Wishfort's approval because if she does, she will forfiet that part of the fortune of which lady Wishfort is the custodian. Mrs. Fainall is lady Wishfort's daughter. When Mrs. Fainall gets into trouble with her husband, the situation is distressing not only for her but for her mother, Lady Wishfort. Mr. Fainall has already acquired a large part of his wife's estate. He wishes to grab the remaining. He also wishes to have the fortune of Millamant. Mrs. Wishfort feels compelled to sacrifice everything in order to save her daughter's reputation. These family relations are slowly revealed to us as we go through the play. We find it rather difficult to remember them. These complex relations in the play have made the plot of the play complicated.

Then there are various intrigues that complicate the plot of the play Waitwell the servant of Mirabell, gets married to Foible, the maid servant of lady Wishfort. This is a secret marriage which takes place under the instructions of Mirabell who bribes with Waitwell and Foible into this alliance Waitwell then impersonates Mirabell's uncle and pretends to be a suitor to lady Wishfort. Mrs. Marwood reveals everything to lady Wishfort. Mr. Fainall and Mrs. Marwood hatch a plan to acquire the entire property and estate of lady Wishfort, Mrs. Fainall, and Millamant. But Mirabell has got himself appointed as the legal trustee of Mrs. Fainall. He can, therefore, thwart Mr. Fainall's design to acquire Mrs. Fainall's property. Mirabell is also there to protect Millamant's fortune. This is done by a counter intrigue involving Sir Wilfull. Sir Wilfull and Millamant pretend that they have agreed to get married. Sir Wilful is lady Wishfort's nephew and so she cannot object to the marriage. Thus, fear of divorce of Mrs. Fainfall still remains as a danger which will be faced duly by Mirabell.

The play also has very complicated love affairs. Another thing about the plot of the play is that it is too involved various developments in the play are puzling in the extreme. It was chiefly for this reason that the play was a failure on the stage when first produced. The plot lacked coherence and so the interest of the audience was not duly held. The next peculiarity of the plot of the play is the brilliant dialogue and characterisation is individual scenes. Further, the plot of the play also contains suspense to a keener eye, it becomes plain that ultimately Mirabell will have Millamant. The major element of suspense, however, lies in the intrigue-episode in the drama. We remain on the tenterhooks of suspense as to what will happen to lady Wishfort who gets hedged in by Foible and Waitwell at the behest and manouvering of Mirabell. Here in resides the interest contained in the suspense. One more, peculiarity of the plot of the play is that the three unities have been observed with near fidelity. The play has considerable unity of action. Since the first stirring of the intrigue it goes and developing through the middle to the end of the drama. Our interest does not flag. The unity of time also is noticed. The things go on happening one after the other without any loss of time. The unity of place is also observed. There is hardly any change in the locale of the drama though the characters meet at different places. The locale, on the whole is well-centralised.

According to some critics, the conclusion of the play is not satisfactory. It is difficult to believe the document which unravels the tangle and counteracts the villainy of Fainall. When all the threats have been untangled, it appears that nothing is really concluded. It is unlikely that the Fainalls will cease wrangling. Lady Wishfort will continue to hanker for young lover. Mirabell and Millamant are apprehensive that the constancy for which they long may not be realised. Another criticism of the plot of the play is that there is very little of action and stillness of movement in the play.

The whole plot of The Way of the World is well knit. The complications get resolved and the road to the climax is cleared up.

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