Understanding Shakespeare: The Merry Wives of Windsor by Robert A. Albano - HTML preview

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  1. The laundry basket scene in Act III
  2. Falstaff as the Witch of Brentford in Act IV
  3. Falstaff as Herne the Hunter in Act V

 

Each scene is accompanied by a companion scene in the Garter Inn in which Sir John Falstaff discusses his future plans and reports upon his failures to Master Ford (disguised as Master Brooke). The three punishment scenes (or one may even call them the revenge scenes) build upon one another and lend to the dramatic tension of the play. The audience may wonder whether the knight has learned his lesson after his first (or second) experience and will submit to further humiliation. The audience may wonder whether the wives will be successful in their attempts to get revenge. The revenge scenes are funny – full of physical comedy that play well on the English stage. And the humor is increased by the reaction of the fat knight when he reports his lack of success to Master Brooke at the Garter Inn.