Hester

[Wilde woman]

As I was reading this play, I couldn't help but notice that Wilde's Hester is a Puritan, with very idealistic notions of morality and love. I can't help but wonder if Wilde was perhaps thinking at all of the other famous Hester of literature...Hawthorne's Hester Prynne from the Scarlet Letter.

Wilde's Hester strikes me as the "happy twin" - if you will - of Hawthorne's. She's a Puritan who does not engage in adultery (by refusing Lord Illington's kiss) and finds true love in the end.

Thoughts?

[Sebas. Melmoth]

Thoughts?

Well, Hester is a recognizable American character like those in 'The Canterville Ghost'.

A Woman of No Importance is one of Wilde's more overlooked plays; it's somewhat static and melodramatic, but it has some very good lines.