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

appears to have the sympathy of the playwright, and perhaps of the audience as well.

But that is not the case in A New Way to Pay Old Debts. In this play Frank Wellborn is a prodigal and a lush who has hit rock bottom before he finally decides to mend his ways and his fortunes. He devises a plan to get money and his former property from his rich uncle, Sir Giles Overreach, who had cheated Wellborn out of his property in the first place. Wellborn asks a favor of the wealthy widow Lady Allworth: that she will pretend to be interested in Wellborn and desire to marry him. When Overreach learns of Lady Allworth’s attentions to his nephew, he thinks that he will eventually be able to cozen Wellborn out of Lady Allworth’s property and money after Wellborn has married her. So, he loans Wellborn a significant sum of money so that he can pay off his debts and woo Lady Allworth properly. By the end of the play Jack Marall, who works for Overreach and handles his legal documents, also aids Wellborn in getting his property back.

In the subplot, Tom Allworth (stepson to Lady Allworth) finds that he also needs to regain social status, and he attempts to do so by working as the page for Lovell, an English lord. The generous and honorable Lovell discovers that Allworth is in love with Margaret, the daughter of Overreach. But Overreach will not allow Allworth near his daughter because Overreach wants a title for his daughter. Therefore, Lovell woos Margaret for Allworth; and