Heywood the realist

Overall, Heywood seems to be representing a much more realistic picture of marriage. He really is not dressing the marriage up in any way. The only time when the reader notices the unrealistic side of marriage or a relationship is at the beginning of the play when Sir Charles is speaking so highly of Anne. It may be more accurate to say this is the only time when the marriage between Frankford and Anne appears dreamy, and completely wrapped in love. Especially when we examine the thoughts of Whately on how marriage was supposed to be during this time, the reader can begin to draw parallels that correlate to the plot and overall feel of the play. In the play, Heywood sets his characters in an environment that many people at this time could relate to or at least recognize. The text can also be understood today because this picture of marriage still exists now and is very prevalent in modern society.

Whately carries the views of many people during the time of this play's publication. In summary, the men were the providers, while women represented the picture of frailty and completely obedient to one’s husband. Heywood seems to take these same stereotypes of a marriage or relationship and apply them to his play, but bring it back to reality. Heywood shows us that in fact, this marriage is quite imperfect, and flaws exist within the relationship between Anne and Frankford.
--on behalf of Austin