Sex and Morals
Traditional critics objected to the sexual themes in this play. Algernon Charles Swinburne called the work both "very clever" and "very coarse;" Clarence Andrews complained that "the bad characters all end happily; no one suffers for his flagrant immorality; the hero is faithless, a rake, a scoundrel, and a liar."
Modern commentators tend to approach the play with less moral high dudgeon, and have recognized that the play's rough-and-tumble morality, and its treatment of the contrasting roles of men and women in the Caroline double standard, have some overlooked subtlety and power. The play's element of latent lesbianism has also attracted attention.
Read more about this topic: A Mad Couple Well-Match'd
Famous quotes containing the word morals:
“Kelly: I washed my face clean the morning I woke up in your bedroom.
Griff: You got morals in my bedroom?
Kelly: You had nothing to do with it. Nothing! It was your mirror.
Griff: You must have taken a long look.
Kelly: It was the longest look of my life. I saw a broken-down piece of machinery. Nothing but the buck, the bed, and the bottle for the rest of my life.”
—Samuel Fuller (b. 1911)