As I had mentioned above, Filaminta was neither bad nor an evil woman. She was though mediocre, selfish, vane and shallow, an adult child. At the same time she felt bored, had nothing to do and was desperate for playing games. In this she precluded two remarkable literary characters- Madame Bovary and Scarlett O'Hara. Both were weary of their surroundings, selfish and eager to do games which they mistook for "passions', while both were really rather mediocre and not developed spiritually.
Learning was a new game in town for the bored ladies of means and Filaminta fell into the trap. It was fashionable to learn no mater what and why. It was fashionable to talk about something enlightened: astronomy, poetry, etc. It was excitingm to talk with "educated men', who were so different from the ones she met every day. It was terrific to "poke into the Moon's business'. All of that was quite harmless at first and from the modern point of view could be considered as a person investigating her potential in the struggle for women's equality. But it was not that at all. It was what it was -- an addiction. Filaminta did not know why she was doing all that -- she did not have a goal. Then she started to seek for that goal and, lo-and -- behold, she found it in the process of arranging the house and the lives of all people around her according to that addiction. It is the same as an alcoholic hides bottles everywhere; Filaminta wanted EVERYTHING AND EVEYRONE to make her feel secure in her new endeavor. And that started to hurt people bad.
Con men did not come that house by chance. They came because they sniffed the disease. Their key was unlimited flattery. Filaminta drank those vulgar praises like Cool -Aid. They called her empowered, enlightened, superb. Her mediocre writings were proclaimed as revelations. If those con men had not eventually fought with each other and revealed their true goals she would have never found out the truth. The author though gave her that chance because, as all her family he dearly loved her.
The more Filaminta drank that poison the more harmful she became. She fired good servants thus depriving them of sustenance. She made her younger daughter miserable by pushing her marriage to a conman. She became more and more vehement. Thus the family decided to concoct a false ploy; right at the moment of the marriage contract she was told about an alleged family bankruptcy. The conman immediately refused to marry. Klitandre stepped in and in a culmination the young couple achieved happiness.
Filaminta seems bewildered but not shaken at the end. It is not clear if she reevaluates her goals. The author wisely leaves the matter open to us. But there is a very stern warning: one member of the family really rises severe discontent. The older daughter Armanda demonstrates malice: during the whole play she, unlike her mother wanted to destroy her sister's happiness due to pure envy and covert desire to possess that young man herself. She did not give a damn about learning and enlightenment: she used the addiction of her mother for her own practical purposes. The dream of Filaminta's mind created a monster.
Great plays live in ages. If JB lived now he would have said that Filamintas and Armandas had taken over while still not being enlightened. And he would have said it as I say now- with love and respect.
I am saying with love and respect that feminists in this country play games instead of seeing real things. I am saying with love and respect that MSM plays the role of the Moliere's conman and delivers Cool-Aid to women so that they get addicted to words with no meaning. I am saying with love and respect that men and women are allies, good men and good women, I mean and that everyone who somehow separates the rights of women from the rights of men is an enemy of both. I am saying with love and respect that I do not see the real power of women when we need them -- in fights for peace, for proper work conditions, for motherhood, for children for men (yes, for men having meaningful occupations), for social support structure and against abuse of power in all ways. I do not see an organized feminine support of people like Cindy Sheehan and Medea Benjamin. Instead I see praising of Hillary Clinton, Maggie Thatcher, Madeleine Albright and Condi Rice- those Armandas of the 21s Century. I don't see the outrage of our women when children are killed by drones but instead I see them insisting on the right to be drone pilots. I do not see women telling their daughters to learn how to take care of people but instead I see the reprehensible "you can do anything', which is not true and does harm. Nobody can do "anything'. I see a lot of Filamintas and much more Armandas than Henriettas and there does not seem to be any intervention. With love and respect I intervene here and now; ladies, you better reevaluate your priorities or it will be too late: con men had become much better with ages and the amount of good men had actually gone lower. At least read the play. Enlighten yourself.
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