Bernard Shaw, The Philanderer, and the (Un)Making of Shavian Drama

Abstract

Bernard Shaw, The Philanderer, and the Making of Shavian Drama is an essay that considers this early play by Shaw in the context of the popular theater of the time, and bases its appreciation or advocacy on The Philanderer's honesty in exploring human relationships-a characteristic that disappears from Shaw's oeuvre as his various philosophies ossify into orthodoxy. The first section supplies historical and background information; the second section summarizes and comments on The Philanderer's action, scene by scene; and the third section analyzes Shaw's interest in this play in the dramatic confrontation between realists and idealists, before offering some final parting comments. In sum, the author attempts to reevaluate The Philanderer and to try to understand why it has been neglected, how Shaw himself may have contributed to its neglect, and why, in some ways, this drama may not only be better than it has long been thought to be, but may also be better even than the plays by which Shaw is best known (e.g., Major Barbara, Saint Joan, Heartbreak House).