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Plays Unpleasant: The Widower's House, the Philanderer, Mrs Warren's Profession
Hardcover
ISBN13: 9781025908991
Publisher: Tradd Street Press
Published: Feb 14 2026
Pages: 280
Weight: 1.25
Height: 0.69 Width: 6.14 Depth: 9.21
Language: English
Plays Unpleasant is a seminal collection of three early dramas by George Bernard Shaw that challenged the complacent social and moral values of late Victorian society. In The Widower's House, Shaw exposes the corruption of slum landlordism and the complicity of the middle class in urban poverty. The Philanderer offers a satirical look at the New Woman movement and the intricate, often absurd constraints of marriage laws and intellectual vanity. The final play, Mrs Warren's Profession, remains one of Shaw's most provocative works, examining the economic realities of prostitution and the hypocrisy of a society that profits from exploitation while condemning the individual.
Collectively, these plays were intended to confront audiences with the unpleasant truths of modern life, moving away from the romanticized theatrical tropes of the era toward a bold, realist social critique. Shaw's sharp wit, rhythmic dialogue, and piercing intellectualism are on full display, making this collection an essential cornerstone of modern English drama. George Bernard Shaw uses the stage to provoke thought and incite reform, ensuring these works remain relevant for their insight into power, money, and morality.
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you may see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.
This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.
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