The Merry Wives of Windsor

Mistress Page reads aloud the letter she has received from Falstaff and is immediately incensed. The letter is clumsy, filled with exaggerated declarations of love, and presumes that she would be willing to betray her husband. Outraged by Falstaff’s audacity, she vows revenge for the insult. Her indignation is not just at the suggestion of adultery but at the sheer arrogance of the knight.

As she fumes, Mistress Ford arrives, equally disturbed. She, too, has received a letter from Falstaff and quickly discovers that it is worded almost identically to Mistress Page’s, save for the names. Mistress Ford criticizes Falstaff’s appearance, his arrogance, and his belief that she might entertain such advances. Like her friend, she is furious at his presumption and is determined to repay him in kind.

Mistress Page points out the obvious: Falstaff has written the same letter to each of them, thinking neither woman would discover the deception. This realization deepens their anger: Instead of keeping the letters private, they agree to conspire together. Mistress Page proposes a scheme: They will both feign interest in Falstaff’s advances, luring him along with promises but delaying any fulfillment until he grows more desperate and more bankrupt. Mistress Ford agrees to the plan, though she insists that they avoid anything that might truly compromise them since her husband is already prone to jealousy.