Lady Windermere’s Fan: Act III Summary & Analysis

At this point, Lady Windermere is caught between two opposing ideas of what it means to behave morally. On the one hand, she wants to stick with her husband as she once believed a good woman should. On the other hand, she wonders whether to believe Lord Darlington’s version of morality, in which a woman shouldn’t allow herself to be dishonored. Her statement that no woman could successfully resolve a situation like this highlights the fact that woman are always caught, one way or another, between different ideas of what their proper roles are.

Mrs. Erlynne’s dramatic statement illustrates just how thin the line between the right move and the wrong move can be; Lady Windermere believes she’s saving herself, but another interpretation of her situation shows that she might actually be approaching “ruin.” Her reaction to Mrs. Erlynne also shows how much Lady Windermere has internalized rigid ideas of morality gender roles; she believes that a “bad” woman like Mrs. Erlynne can only behave badly.

It’s notable that Mrs. Erlynne’s attempt to use the letter to prove her good intentions is a complete failure. Once again, written language fails to achieve its intended ends. The point about Lord Windermere’s love having caused all of this conflict also adds a new level of confusion in the play’s treatment of good and evil. It previously seemed that Lord Windermere’s actions with Mrs. Erlynne were obviously wicked, but now readers get a hint that the truth may be more ambiguous.

This moment is an especially clear illustration of how Lady Windermere’s rigid view on morality causes her harm. Mrs. Erlynne is trying to tell her a comforting truth, but Lady Windermere is so convinced that she knows what’s right and wrong that she can’t even hear this revelation. The fact that Mrs. Erlynne finally appeals to Lady Windermere’s love for her son also underscores how important family is; it is only the bond between Lady Windermere and her son that allows her to save herself. Tellingly, this turn also relies on her devotion to successfully playing the conventionally feminine role of mother.

It’s telling that being reminded of her child causes Lady Windermere to behave like a child herself. This change hints that it’s not just individual family connections that matter; it’s the full web of intergenerational bonds that has so much influence on our lives. This moment also give Mrs. Erlynne one of her only chances to behave like a mother, which bonds the women together even though Lady Windermere never finds out about their true relationship.

The banter among the men is an example of how talk and language can be used to manipulate situations in ways that have nothing to do with the actual content of what’s being said. In particular, readers know that Augustus doesn’t actually need to talk to Windermere; he’s just trying to follow Mrs. Erlynne’s instructions to keep Windermere busy. Cecil’s comment about other people’s business also reinforces the idea that friendships like these are sometimes just sources of entertainment and social jockeying rather than genuine emotional connections.

Interestingly, Augustus—whom the other characters often mock for his silliness and who even calls himself a fool—is the one who actually has the best read on Mrs. Erlynne, even though he doesn’t know her full backstory. He turns out to be right that she’s not purely “wicked,” even if she’s not purely good either. This insight suggests that perhaps “foolish” perspectives are actually wiser when it comes to morality.

Cecil’s definitions of gossip and scandal are humorous, but also telling. Previous acts have shown that there’s no practical difference between these two forms of speech, which makes the morality that Cecil mentions seem immaterial. His point about the uselessness of virtue reinforces this idea; morality may or may not be present in a given act, but its presence makes no real difference. The men’s general grumbling about marriage and women also makes it clear that in some ways, they’re just as dissatisfied with standard gender norms as women are.

Cecil’s comments indicate that in his opinion, good women aren’t actually good; what’s appealing to Darlington is unappealing to Cecil. This contrast again suggests that goodness is subjective and can’t be defined in any universal way. It also illustrates how impossible it is for women to live up to normative standards of goodness when no one can agree on what it actually means for a woman to be good.

The immediate assumption that a fan indicates a woman’s presence shows that for these characters, women are essentially synonymous with the props of their femininity. Additionally, Cecil’s blithe revelation and amusement show that he doesn’t really have much concern for his alleged friend Darlington’s feelings; he’s only part of this group as a way to entertain himself.

In this moment, Mrs. Erlynne relies on a gender stereotype very different from the one she embraced in the previous act. Where before she did her best to perform the part of a lady, here she takes on the role of scandalous woman instead. She doesn’t have to say that she’s romantically involved with Lord Darlington; her presence in his rooms is enough to make the men draw their own conclusions. By taking this action, she effectively turns around oppressive ideas of women’s roles in order to achieve the liberation of one particular woman—Lady Windermere.