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Act 3, Scene 14
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in If We Were Villains, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Fate vs. Free Will
Identity and Disguise
Love and Sexuality
Theatre and Corruption
Summary
Analysis
On Wednesday, Oliver and Wren are scheduled to perform their midterm speeches for Gwendolyn and Frederick. Oliver goes first, and Gwendolyn and Frederick praise his delivery. Oliver takes a seat to watch Wren’s speech. When she enters, he’s shaken by how ill she looks. Exchanging small talk with Frederick, she mentions that she’s feeling a little sick. Still, she starts her speech clearly—but at the words “my dear lord’s death,” her voice cracks and she hits her chest. She doubles over but continues the speech for another stanza, until she trails off, sways, and falls to the floor.
Wren is suffering in the aftermath of Richard’s death, and her mental state is so severe that it’s starting to affect her body. This is another one of the “bruises” that Richard left them: lasting mental scars made worse by the fact that they chose to let him die. Wren breaks down at a point in the speech that suggests that she associates Richard with the “lord” in the play, a word that emphasizes his power and authority, even in death.
Themes
