1) How are the characters of Sir and Lady Chiltern created for the audience? At once, as the play begins, the audience can through observing the scene understand that the Chilterns are a couple of significant wealth, accomplishment and respect in the London elite. This impression is strengthened throughout the play by various events which both aim at displaying conflict and surprise to the audience, making the play reach new climaxes frequently until the very end of it. Sir Robert, who is serving as Under-Secretary of Foreign Affairs- a post of significant influence, especially considering Sir Roberts relatively young age- is an up-and-coming politician who is presented to the audience as a man of forty, looking somewhat younger. He is furthermore presented as a character of mark, but intensely admired by the few, and deeply respected by the many. He is also described as a man of violent separation of personalities; thought and emotion, implying he suffers from divided loyalties. The audience later sees that Sir Robert is not as spotless as they are made to believe in terms of morality; he has sold cabinet secrets to Baron Arnheim, a move which could, if revealed, end his promising public life for good. Lady Chiltern, whose first name is Gertrude, is presented to the audience in a elegant manner; she is depicted as a twenty seven year old woman of grave Greek beauty in the directions of the first act, although the audience will soon find out that she has much more to her than only her good looks, as she is heavily involved in the Womenʼs Liberal Association and sets very high moral standards- ironically high in fact- which will stirr up the relationship between her and her much-believed «ideal husband» quite a bit. She is indeed the heroine of the play, and is therefore presented as such to the audience. As mentioned above, she to some extent does suffer from the misconception of an ideal husband being existent, and believes she has found one in Sir Robert. It is not until later in the play, that she, after receiving advice from Lord Goring, succeeds in realizing wifes should love their husbands with all their faults and good deeds. The interaction between these two characters is remarkably passionate, as seen at the very end of the first act. They are, all in all, a representation of the perfect Victorian couple by depicting all of the characters neccessary to advance in society at that time such as coordination, passion, elegance and witt- let alone the elements written at the start. They do however drift away when Lady Chiltern reveals her husbands dark past, something which may indicate the lack of trust or insufficient love for Sir Robert, but they are anyway dramatically reconciled in the final act, further strenghtening the impression of an ideal Victorian couple the playwright wanted the audience to see. 2) What is the effect of the interchange between Mrs. Cheveley and Lady Chiltern and Sir Robert? The audience gets to experience a tone filled with dispise but formality, as the Victorian society expected, between the Chilterns and Mrs. Cheveley. Mrs. Cheveleyʼs ill- remembered relationship with Lady Chiltern while in school instantly makes interactions between these two parties troublesome, and her blackmailing of Sir Robert further contributes to the negatively charged feelings the Chilterns have towards her. That is not too odd, as she was exactly the opposite of what the ideal Victorian woman- like Lady Chiltern- was; she was ruthless, as demonstrated through the blackmailing, acted on instinct, illustrated by her sudden wedding with Lord Goring way back in time- she was, to epitomize, most importantly portrayed as a femme fatale who threatened the Jan Berge Y12 Literature An Ideal Husband: Character Analysis