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pay Falstaff to seduce his wife on
his behalf. Unaware of the plans
the mistresses Ford and Page have
for Falstaff, Ford angrily follows
him on his assignation with
Mistress Ford. As Ford comes
home, Mistress Ford (as planned)
tells Falstaff to hide in a basket of
filthy linen, which is then dumped
in the river. Recovering later at the
Garter, Falstaff is told by Mistress
Quickly that it was all a big
mistake and Mistress Ford wants
to meet again. Ford (as Brooke)
finds out. At Mistress Ford’s house,
Falstaff is persuaded to dress as an
old woman in order to escape Ford,
but Ford thinks it’s his hated aunt
and beats him black and blue.
Mistresses Ford and Page tell
their husbands what has been
going on, and together they plot
Falstaff’s final humiliation. They
invite him to dress as the mythical
stag spirit Herne the Hunter, and
to meet them at night in the forest.
Page arranges for Slender to elope
with Anne, while Mistress Page,
unaware, arranges for Caius to
elope with Anne. Meanwhile,
Anne elopes with Fenton. Page tells
Slender that Anne will be in theTHE LORD CHAMBERLAIN’S MAN
2.2
2.2 3.3 4.2
3.2 3.5 4.4
Mistress Quickly tells
Falstaff that Mistress
Ford wishes him to
visit her at home.Falstaff boasts
to Master Ford
(disguised as
Brooke) that he
will show how
Mistress Ford
can be seduced.As instructed by Mistress
Ford, Falstaff hides in a
basket of stinking laundry
to escape her husband and is
dumped in the river.Falstaff tries to
escape Mistress
Ford’s house
dressed as an
old woman. Ford is
baffled about how he
could have missed
Falstaff once again.The Host of the
Garter sends Evans
and Caius to
different locations
for their duel.While pretending to
support all three of
Anne’s suitors,
Mistress Quickly
encourages Anne in
her own choice of
young Fenton.Mistresses Ford
and Page tell their husbands
about Falstaff and plan a
final lesson for him
in Windsor Forest.5.5
Falstaff dressed as
Herne is attacked by
“fairies” in the forest
and mocked by all.Act 2 Act 3 Act 4 Act 5
forest dressed in white. Mistress
Page tells Caius that Anne will be
in the forest dressed in green.
In the forest, Falstaff is terrified
by “fairies” (really children trained
by Evans), who pinch him while
Pistol and Nim tease him with
burning candles. Caius runs off
with a boy dressed in green and
Slender with a boy dressed in white.
The wives reveal their pranks to
Falstaff who admits he has been
made a complete ass—as Caius and
Slender return to acknowledge that
they too have been made fools of.
Fenton arrives, married to Anne. ❯❯