She Stoops to Conquer

“As for disappointing them, I should not so much mind; but I can't abide to disappoint myself.”

Tony Lumpkin establishes himself as a selfish and pleasure-seeking character when he quips to his mother that he would prefer to go see the local working-class people in the tavern more than he would enjoy an evening at home. His statement features repetition of the word “disappoint” to comedically play with his mother's turn of phrase and imply that he is more concerned with fulfilling his own desires than he is with pleasing anyone else.

“Well, if he refuses, instead of breaking my heart at his indifference, I'll only break my glass for its flattery, set my cap to some newer fashion, and look out for some less difficult admirer.”

Kate's remark uses a zeugma, a figure of speech where a word is used in two different senses back-to-back, contrasting the emotional pain of rejection with the need for new clothing to attract other suitors. Kate claims that she will not be deeply upset if Marlow does not like her, but she will take it as a sign that she needs to change her appearance. This foreshadows Kate's eventual scheme to win Marlow's love through The Deceptive Nature of Appearances—she will switch her clothing, not to something more fashionable, but rather to something simpler.

“I could almost love him for hating you so.”

Kate discusses Constance's relationship with Tony Lumpkin, evoking verbal irony in order to show that it is more advantageous for Constance if she is romantically rejected in this scenario. Since Constance is in love with Hastings, she needs Tony to officially renounce her before Mrs. Hardcastle will allow her to marry the man she prefers. Therefore, Kate is ironically pleased that her brother hates her friend, because that is to her friend's benefit.

“It was a saying in the place, that he kept the best horses, dogs, and girls, in the whole country.”

The laborers at The Three Pigeons reminisce about Tony Lumpkin’s father, indicating that he was of a similar character to Tony. The listing format of the sentence creates a paraprosdokian, a literary device that creates a sudden and unexpected shift in meaning at the end of a phrase, often for comedic effect. By comparing Mr. Lumpkin’s fondness for “girls” to his love of the “best horses” and “dogs,” the dialogue implies that both father and son were not particularly romantic in nature, preferring to enjoy sensory pleasures over more intellectual pursuits. Tony often compares women to animals, indicating that he is not ready to pursue marriage, but rather enjoys female company in the same way that he enjoys any strong and healthy body.

“You must hear us talk, and not think of talking; you must see us drink, and not think of drinking; you must see us eat, and not think of eating.”

Mr. Hardcastle's instructions to his servants employ repetition, drawing attention to the absurdity of the class divisions and The Instability of Social Class Identity present within the home. Diggory and the other servants protest that it will be impossible for them to act in such an unnatural way, but Mr. Hardcastle's rules are not unusual for servants in an upper-class home. Through this scene, Goldsmith exposes the paradoxical nature of rules meant to enforce social divisions between classes.

“Travellers, George, must pay in all places: the only difference is, that in good inns you pay dearly for luxuries; in bad inns you are fleeced and starved.”

Marlow invents an aphorism, a concise saying that posits a universal truth, to observe that there is no cheap way to travel. He claims that good inns will always overcharge you, while bad inns will trick you or steal from you. This harkens back to the motif of travel in the play (See: Symbols & Motifs), exploring how this increasingly common part of English life is expensive and therefore more feasible for wealthy men like Marlow.

“My life has been chiefly spent in a college or an inn, in seclusion from that lovely part of the creation that chiefly teach men confidence. I don't know that I was ever familiarly acquainted with a single modest woman—except my mother.”

Marlow explains why he has developed anxiety regarding women of his own social class. He uses a euphemism, referring to upper-class women as “that lovely part of the creation that chiefly teach men confidence” to indicate why this lack of contact has impacted him so severely. In his framing of the situation, being removed from women has not just made him unfamiliar with their manner of social interaction; it has prevented him from learning to be “confident.” Marlow thus sets up a social role for women, and specifically for Kate—a support system for male confidence.

“There was a time, indeed, I fretted myself about the mistakes of government, like other people; but finding myself every day grow more angry, and the government growing no better, I left it to mend itself.”

Mr. Hardcastle mentions his history with politics when he meets Marlow and Hastings. His statement uses a parallel structure and the repetition of the verb “to grow” in order to humorously indicate that his political efforts only resulted in him feeling more upset, and not in the government improving. As a member of the gentry, Mr. Hardcastle likely would have had substantial political influence in his local region, but Marlow and Hastings think that he is an innkeeper who is exaggerating his own importance, reflecting The Instability of Social Class Identity.

“This may be modern modesty, but I never saw anything look so like old-fashioned impudence.”

Mr. Hardcastle condemns Marlow and Hastings for their rude behavior in his house. This phrase features alliteration that creates a memorable, catchy sound. By pairing the words “modern” and “modesty,” Mr. Hardcastle then renders this phrase ironic by suggesting that what he thinks of as impudence must be considered modest by the younger generation. This connects to the recurring theme of Conflict Between the Old and the New, suggesting that Mr. Hardcastle ascribes the bad manners of young people to a cultural shift rather than individual rudeness.

“I was always willing to be amused. The folly of most people is rather an object of mirth than uneasiness.”

During Marlow and Kate's first conversation, Kate asks if being a passive observer of life has made Marlow judgmental and angry at the flaws of others. Marlow responds by claiming that he finds bad behavior amusing rather than upsetting. This explanation is an allusion to Aristotle's theory of comedy, wherein he argues that comedy should censure the lowest forms of behavior by exposing its foolishness. Goldsmith wrote She Stoops to Conquer in order to return to this definition of Aristotelean comedy, deviating from the more sentimental and moralistic comedies of his time.

“Ay, he learned it all abroad—what a fool was I, to think a young man could learn modesty by traveling. He might as soon learn wit at a masquerade.”

Mr. Hardcastle once again blames foreign influence for the iniquities of modern culture. He uses comparative language to equate the lack of modesty in other countries with the lack of intelligent conversation at a masked ball. This reinforces Mr. Hardcastle's characterization as an old-fashioned and nationalistic Englishman, embodying Conflict Between the Old and the New. However, this statement is also a form of dramatic irony, as Marlow is behaving rudely not due to the influence of foreign cultures like France, but due to the influence of Mr. Hardcastle's step-son Tony Lumpkin, who has tricked him. Rather than a foreign problem, his behavior is entirely caused by a domestic issue.

“Ask me no questions, and I'll tell you no fibs.”

This quip by Tony Lumpkin has become a well-known idiom in English, although it originated in this play. The sentence has been altered over time to “ask me no questions, and I'll tell you no lies,” and has even appeared in song lyrics by performers such as Bing Crosby. Tony's remark indicates that he is unable to be truthful in this situation and so it is pointless to try asking him for an honest response.

“You must learn resignation, my dear; for though we lose our fortune, yet we should not lose our patience.”

When Mrs. Hardcastle attempts to pretend that Constance's family jewels have been lost, she includes a zeugma, a figure of speech where a word is used in two different senses within the same phrase. While Constance may have “lost” her fortune literally, as the jewels are missing, she can avoid “losing” her patience by remaining calm and unemotional. Mrs. Hardcastle's advice uses language meant to sound wise, when in fact she is lying, seeking to keep Constance from accessing the jewels to keep that wealth within her own family.

“Suppose I should call for a taste, just by way of a trial, of the nectar of your lips; perhaps I might be disappointed in that too?”

When Marlow flirts with the disguised Kate, he uses a metaphor to phrase his request to kiss her as an order for more wine in a pub. When Kate, disguised as a maid, comes to ask him if he has called out for more wine, Marlow tells her that he has been having trouble getting the servants to fill his cup previously, and then asks if he could be similarly refused if he asked for a kiss. He euphemistically refers to the kiss as “the nectar of your lips,” sustaining the metaphor of requesting a drink at an inn.

“I hope sir, you have ever found that I consider your commands as my pride; for your kindness is such, that my duty as yet has been inclination.”

Kate equates the words “duty” and “inclination” to suggest that she is not being forced to comply with her father's request, but rather that she wants to do as he says and does not need to be forced. Her rhetoric plays into how she imagines her own agency as a woman. Rather than obey her father simply because it is necessary and required, Kate positions herself as a rational thinker, obeying because her father's advice is kind and reasonable.

“I generally make my father's son welcome wherever he goes.”

This humorous quip from Marlow features a pun, indicating his facetious and flippant tone that Mr. Hardcastle finds inappropriate for the situation. Marlow, believing that he is speaking with an innkeeper he is paying, interprets Mr. Hardcastle's allusion to him being “his father's son” incorrectly. While Mr. Hardcastle is referring to the long friendship between their families, Marlow treats the phrase as a comedically redundant way to refer to himself, pointing out that he is obviously the son of his own father.

“I mistook your assiduity for assurance, and your simplicity for allurement.”

Marlow explains to Kate that he had the wrong impression of her identity when they previously interacted, reflecting The Deceptive Nature of Appearances His sentence employs both alliteration, the repetition of the “A” sound at the beginning of the word, and assonance, the repetition of the “U” sound in the middle of the words “assurance” and “allurement.” These poetic devices give his words a musical and memorable quality, contributing to the witty and light-hearted tone of the play.

“I'll still preserve the character in which I stooped to conquer; but will undeceive my papa, who perhaps may laugh him out of his resolution.”

In a short soliloquy, a type of dramatic speech directed to the audience rather than to another character, Kate reveals her plan to continue pretending to be a much humbler woman than she really is. Her dialogue emphasizes the title of the play, drawing attention to how she is executing the premise of the comedy. By referring to her use of a disguise as “stooping to conquer,” Kate calls out the great irony of the play—that in order to raise her social station, she first has to lower it, evoking The Instability of Social Class Identity.

“And if you don't find in him what I describe—I fear my happiness must never have a beginning.”

Kate responds to Sir Charles Marlow's conditional statement that if he finds his son to be as flirtatious as Kate claims he is, his happiness will have “an end,” meaning that he will be displeased with Marlow for lying. Kate turns this phrase around, suggesting in a parallel conditional statement that if the older generation does not see Marlow acting romantically towards her, her happiness will not have “a beginning,” meaning that she will not be able to marry who she desires. Kate's response demonstrates her wit and her clever use of language.

“All the parish says you have spoiled me, and so you may take the fruits on't.”

Tony tells his mother that she deserves his bad treatment because of how she spoiled him as a child. His phrasing alludes to the common idiom “you reap what you sow,” using the metaphor of agriculture to suggest that people are responsible for the consequences of their actions. Since Mrs. Hardcastle has spoiled Tony, she must now take the “fruits” that have grown from the seeds she planted, with the fruit figuratively representing Tony's disrespectful actions.

“In the moment of passion fortune may be despised, but it ever produces a lasting repentance.”

Constance reminds Hastings that they should wait to elope until they can secure her family inheritance, personifying the concept of fortune in order to suggest that people who disregard money will eventually regret their choice. Constance's advice indicates her pragmatic personality and her class consciousness, showing that she is prudent to recall that a relationship based on love alone might not make up for the lack of material comforts.

“Do you think I could ever relish that happiness which was acquired by lessening yours?”

Kate asks a rhetorical question to Marlow in which she expresses the selflessness of her love for him. While she might be happy gaining a handsome and wealthy husband, she suggests that she could not enjoy that happiness if Marlow did not like the situation. Her dialogue reinforces the importance of freedom and agency in choosing a partner, which Kate herself has sought to secure despite her gender.

“In which of your characters, sir, will you give us leave to address you? As the faltering gentleman, with looks on the ground, that speaks just to be heard, and hates hypocrisy; or the loud confident creature, that keeps it up with Mrs. Mantrap, and old Miss Biddy Buckskin, till three in the morning?”

Kate teases Marlow after her identity is finally revealed, using a listing sentence structure in order to call out the opposing behaviors that Marlow has exhibited based on context and The Deceptive Nature of Appearances. Her remark particularly denotes the irony of Marlow's previous condemnation of hypocrisy, where he criticized how a person could behave different in private versus in public, when he himself has behaved entirely differently depending on how he perceived the social class of other people. Goldsmith invents comedic names such as the double entendre “Mrs. Mantrap” and the alliterative “Biddy Buckskin” to increase the absurdity of the contrast.