A Matter of Husbands by Ferenc Molnar (Themes, Summary, Analysis and Interpretation)- NEB Grade 12- English

Widely regarded as Hungary’s most celebrated and controversial playwright, Ferenc Molnár’s (1878–1952) primary aim was to entertain people by transforming his personal experiences into literary works of art. Out of his many plays, The Devil (1907), Lilion (1909), The Guardsman (1910), The Swan (1920), and The Play’s the Thing (1926) endure as classics. He immigrated to the United States to escape the persecution of Hungarian Jews during World War II and later adopted American citizenship. Molnár’s plays continue to be relevant and are performed all over the world. Published in 1923, A Matter of Husband sheds light on the basic function of actors: to make the audience believe in the illusion.

Characters

FAMOUS ACTRESS (who is having an affair with the man who is a lawyer of her manager)

EARNEST YOUNG WOMAN (She goes to the famous actress demanding her husband back)

EARNEST YOUNG WOMAN'S HUSBAND (short role but he is the central issue in the play)

Setting 

Place

The scene is a drawing-room, but a screen, a sofa, and a chair will do, provided that the design and colorings are exotic and suggestive of the apartment of the famous Hungarian actress in which this dialogue takes place.

Time

The time is late afternoon, and when the curtain rises the Earnest Young Woman is discovered, poised nervously on the edge of a gilt chair.

Costume

As for costuming, the Famous Woman wearing a floor-length gown with matching gloves and a fur coat, and the Ernest Woman wearing a frumpy dress with white shoes with the socks sticking out.

Dialogues from the Play

EARNEST YOUNG WOMAN: [Extends her arms in a beseeching gesture] Give me back my husband!

FAMOUS ACTRESS: Give you back your husband!

EARNEST YOUNG WOMAN: Yes. [The FAMOUS ACTRESS only stares at her in speechless bewilderment.] You are wondering which one he is.... He is a blond man, not very tall, wears spectacles. He is a lawyer, your manager's lawyer. Alfred is his first name.

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EARNEST YOUNG WOMAN: No. I'll read it to you. [She opens it and reads mournfully] "My darling, Shan't be able to call for you at the theater tonight. Urgent business. A thousand apologies. Ten thousand kisses. Alfred."

FAMOUS ACTRESS: Oh!

EARNEST YOUNG WOMAN: I found it on his desk this morning. He probably intended to send it to the theater by messenger. But he forgot it. And I opened it. [She weeps.]

FAMOUS ACTRESS: You mustn't cry.

EARNEST YOUNG WOMAN: [Sobbing] Why mustn't I? You steal my husband and I mustn't cry! Oh, I know how little it means to you. And how easy it is for you. One night you dress like a royal princess, and the next night you undress like a Greek goddess. You blacken your eyebrows and redden your lips and wax your lashes and paint your face. You have cosmetics and bright lights to make you seem beautiful. An author's lines make you seem witty and wise. No wonder a poor, simple-minded lawyer falls in love with you. What chance have I against you in my cheap little frock, my own lips, and eyebrows, my own unstudied ways? I don't know how to strut and pose and lure a man. I haven't got Mr. Shakespeare to write beautiful speeches for me. In reality, you may be more stupid than I am, but I admit that when it comes to alluring men I am no match for you.

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FAMOUS ACTRESS: I might have if he had come to me frankly and said: "I say, Sara, will you do something for me? My wife and I aren't getting on so well. Would you write me a passionate love letter that I can leave lying around at home where she may find it?" I should certainly have done it for him. I'd have written a letter that would have made you weep into your pillow for a fortnight. I wrote ten like that for a very eminent playwright once. But he had no luck with them. His wife was such a proper person she returned them all to him unread.

EARNEST YOUNG WOMAN: How clever you are! How good!

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EARNEST YOUNG WOMAN: You have made me so happy!

[She kisses the FAMOUS ACTRESS impetuously, wetting her cheek with tears; then she rushes out. The door closes behind her. There is a pause.]

FAMOUS ACTRESS: [Goes to the door of her boudoir, calls] All right, Alfred. You can come in now. She has gone.

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About Play

The dialogue is a little too straightforward.

A Matter of Husbands by Ferenc Molnar is a very twisted one act. It depicts the story of an Ernest Woman who is married to a lawyer who knows of a Famous Woman. The Ernest Woman comes to the Famous Woman because she believes that her husband is cheating on her with the Famous Woman. The famous woman weaves a tale about how it is a cleverly staged act where the man is attempting to trick his wife to get more affection from her. When the Famous Woman finally convinces the Ernest Woman that the story is true we find out that the husband was hiding in the closet the whole time.

The young woman thinks that she has gotten her husband again. She thinks her husband does this drama for her. She becomes very happy and satisfies at the end of the play. At the beginning of the play, she feels fear and worries about her husband that who has affair with another girl. She demands the film actress to give her husband. The film actress is very clever. She ensures her that her husband has affair with me for you. He wants to get you through me. He tries to awake his love.

On the other hand, she tells a lie with her. She only wants to clear her way. The young woman comes into her trap and thinks all is well, there is no matter. She goes back home in happy mode. She considers that her husband again comes into her life.

They clear the hurdle between them. The Famous Actress ensures her that they have no affair and it is only drama for her. At the end of the play, the young woman is very happy about her husband. The film actress and the husband of a young woman stay together without any obstacles. The ending of the play is too good but full of irony.

Cheating in Relationship

The husband of the Ernest Woman cheats his wife by having an affair with the Famous Actress. He was in the role of a lawyer with her boss, but he makes a relationship with her. Even the actress hides him when his wife came to get her husband back. 

Suffering of Innocent People

The play depicts a scenario, where the innocent people always suffer by shrewd people because they are often sincere by hearts but the cunning people always take advantage of their innocence. The Famous Actress was really clever and deceived the Ernest Woman, who goes back being happy with the false assurance of the actress. 

Questions:

a. What favor does Earnest Young Woman ask from The Famous Actress?

b. What, according to The Earnest Young Woman, are the indications that her husband has fallen in love with Famous Actress?

c. Is Earnest Young Woman convinced by the argument of Famous Actress? How?

d. Where is the Earnest Young Woman’s husband hiding as they are talking about him?

e. When do you feel that Famous Actress is really good at acting?

f. How do we come to know that the Famous Actress and the husband of Earnest Young Woman are in love?

g. Write down the plot of the play in a paragraph.

Video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofkFazSC6cE