Structure of The Second Mrs. Tanqueray

Pinero establishes the fact that Paula's character is profoundly affected by her physical environment, by what other people think about her in that environment, and, certainly, by the physical needs of her body. The playwright shows through this relationship of character to environment that Paula is a woman headed for disaster, because she is almost entirely shaped by what other people think of her and because she has little sense of her self separate from others. Pinero chooses this approach because it emphasizes the fact that most people do, indeed, live life on the physical plane and are, in fact, shaped especially by what others think of them on that plane.

This physical/non-physical structure is emphasized as well by the contrast between the reasonable and idealistic Aubrey and the flighty and unpredictable Paula. Aubrey believes that he is motivated by spiritual concerns, which is evident in his conversation with Drummle early in the first Act: "Of course, I don't expect you to think compassionately, fairly even, of the woman. . . . " (Pinero 18).

Clearly, the suggestion here is that Aubrey himself is thinking compassionate

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ms intensify. Aubrey throughout the play essentially maintains some reasonable measure of equilibrium between the physical and non-physical parts of his character, or being. However, he is able to do so because he is an idealist in denial about the harsh nature of the real world. He believes that people at heart (that is, on a non-physical level), are good, and that given a decent opportunity to express and exercise that goodness, they will do so. He finds the contrary--that the harder he works to provide such an opportunity for society, as well as for Paula and his daughter, the worse the situation becomes. Perhaps Aubrey has come to this realization about the sometimes terrible nature of reality after his daughter tells him that Paula has killed herself at the end of the play, but because it is the end of the play, the reader can only speculate. More likely than a spiritual awakening on the part of Aubrey is a further withdrawal from the world in guilt and self-pity, a mental/emotional state which has already affected Ellean, Aubrey's daughter: "I helped to kill her. If I'd only been merciful!" (70). This reader does not consider it a coincidence that Aubrey mentions compassion as his primary motivation in helping Paula in a
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Drummle Act, Ellean Aubrey's, Paula Aubrey, Wing Pinero's, Paula Paula's, Ellean Paula, Paula Paula, Aubrey Ellean's, Nevertheless Aubrey, physical world, , aubrey trying live, worse situation, physical body, physical/non-physical structure, life physical, shown paula, paula aubrey, mercy compassion, structure play, physical non-physical,
Approximate Word count = 1589
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)

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