Memory and the Past Flashcards
The past seems like a wholly negative thing. A large part of Sir Robert’s past is comprised of the positive decisions he’s made. Now, only the mistakes seem important and influential.
Mrs Cheveley’s complete control over Sir Robert Chiltern
- She doesn’t care about money
- A past can’t be solved by money, your past is permanent
- Reputation matters in the upper-class
“Even you are not rich enough, Sir Robert, to buy back your past. No man is” (MRS. CHEVELEY)
Excuse by Sir Robert about his past
“No one should be entirely judged by their past.” (SIR ROBERT CHILTERN)
Lady Chiltern opposes Sir Robert’s views on the past
- No one can be redeemed
- Reputation is controlled by actions
- Robert’s past has shaped who he is
“One’s past is what one is. It is the only way by which people should be judged.” (LADY CHILTERN)
Sir Robert wishes he could live in the truth. His fear of rejection makes that impossible at the moment. He lies.
“Gertrude, there is nothing in my past life that you might not know.” (SIR ROBERT CHILTERN)
Hypercritical by Sir Robert to speculate this, as he has a past himself
“She looks like a woman with a past, doesn’t she?” (SIR ROBERT CHILTERN)
Lord Goring reminds Sir Robert that Mrs. Cheveley might not be as susceptible to scandal as he is.
“Perhaps Mrs. Cheveley’s past is merely a slightly DECOLLETE one” (LORD GORING)
Aswell as men, women are attached to their past.
“Oh, there is only one real tragedy in a woman’s life. The fact that her past is always her lover, and her future invariably her husband.” (MRS. CHEVELEY)
Foreshadows what actually happens at the end of the play
Sir Robert is feeling regretful about his past
“I wish I had seen that one sin of my youth burning to ashes.”
Lord Goring’s understanding of human beings is fundamentally opposed to Lady Chiltern’s. He believes a person becomes, she thinks a person is.
“Why should you scourge him with rods for a sin done in his youth, before he knew you, before he knew himself?” (LORD GORING)
