The School for Scandal

The School for Scandal opens with a Prologue that serves as a microcosm of the play, revealing Sheridan’s overarching moral argument before the play begins. The Prologue hints at both The Discrepancy Between Public Virtue and Private Vice and The Destructive Nature of Gossip and Scandal. Lady Wormwood notes of gossip in newspapers: “[I]n public all abuse it / But, by ourselves (sips) our praise we can’t refuse it” (385). As in the play, everyone expresses disgust and disappointment over the scandals they discuss, and yet they cannot help but perpetuate the same social norm of gossip and malice. Eventually, Wormwood finds herself in the newspaper, exclaiming: “Throw it behind the fire, and never more / Let that vile paper come within my door” (386). Once Wormwood finds herself exposed, she rejects gossip, acknowledging the damage it can cause her, just as it caused those whom she ruined. This pattern of hurting others until one is hurt follows through the play, and the Prologue frames Sheridan as a hero fighting the “hydra” of gossip.

The scheme that opens the play is between Sneerwell and Joseph, who plot to secure marriage between Sneerwell and Charles and between Joseph and Maria. Though Sneerwell loves Charles, Joseph only wants to marry Maria for her money, and both intend to destroy Charles’s character to push him away from Maria and toward Sneerwell. Two critical elements in this opening scene are Joseph’s insincerity and his prediction that Snake will betray the plot. When Joseph tries to act sentimental, Sneerwell interrupts him, saying: “O lud! You are going to be moral, and forget that you are among friends” (389). Sneerwell implies that they are all malicious people, but they pretend to be moral around others they do not trust. At the same time, Joseph foreshadows the conclusion of the play by noting that Snake cannot be trusted, implying that even among these malicious individuals they cannot completely trust each other.

Furthering The Discrepancy Between Public Virtue and Private Vice, Joseph lies to Maria when she visits Sneerwell’s home to get away from Crabtree and Benjamin, who follow her anyway. In response to Maria’s disgust at the gossiping group, Joseph says: “Certainly, madam; to smile at the jest which plants a thorn in another’s breast is to become a principal in the mischief” (390). The irony of this line is that Joseph is both starting and spreading rumors, making him the “principal” in both instances of his claim. However, Joseph maintains an outward display of morality and honor in town, making this line an example of how Joseph distances himself from his own secret behavior. In these early scenes, too, is the embedded implication that Charles—whom all agree is extravagant—might not be as immoral as his public reputation would suggest.

In the final scene, Peter complains to Rowley about Lady Teazle’s behavior, noting how she has been “taken in” by unsavory characters since moving with him to town. Beginning the theme of The Moral Conflicts of Human Nature, Peter frames Lady Teazle as “a girl bred wholly in the country, who never knew luxury beyond one silk gown, nor dissipation above the annual gala” (396). Since moving to town, she spends all his money, ignores him, argues with him, and gossips with Sneerwell’s group. To Peter, dissipation is a matter of breeding, being more common among those born and raised in town, but his experience with Lady Teazle counters this assumption, vexing him. Lady Teazle’s transformation implies that people naturally get drawn in by malice, even if it is initially foreign to them.