The Screen Scene
SCREEN SCENE
The screen scene is Sheridan’s greatest achievement. This scene provides a strength to the plot and makes it interesting and heart-warming. At the end of this scene we find changes in some character’s mentality. The ‘screen-scene’ is one of the greatest triumphs of Sheridan.
The Fabrication of the scene: This scene is the meeting point of two different streams of the play. Two different strands of the play combine together in this scene and intermingle in such a way that they seemed to be one. Both the strands of the play namely, rivalry of Joseph and Charles for the favour of Maria, and the other strand, the domestic life of Lady Teazle and Sir Peter, converges here.
As we go through the scene we observe that Joseph is impatiently waiting for Lady Teazle’s arrival, because he has planned a confidential meeting with her. Lady Teazle comes a little late and explains the reason of this delay and informs Joseph that her husband is suspicious of her and thinks that she in love with someone else. Joseph suggests some remedies for her problem and urges her to accept him as her love. Lady Teazle is ready to accept him and on the verge of surrendering herself to him. At the same moment, Joseph’s servant arrives with a message that Sir Peter is standing outside to meet him. After listening the arrival of Sir Peter, Lady Teazle is perplexed and goes behind a screen to hide herself. Now, Sir Peter meets Joseph and informs him about her wife’s infidelity. He tells Joseph that his wife is probably in love with Charles Joseph. Surface, Joseph feels delighted when he receives this news because it is he who is in collaboration with Lady Sneerwell, has hatched a plan to dismantle Charles’ image and he feels ecstatic because his plan seems to be working.