Mistress Alicia is Mr Saleware's light wife. She runs a cloth shop that
belongs to her husband, who does not pay too much attention to her. Thus,
she decides to make him jealous. In Act One, Sir Thrivewell comes to court
her. Alicia does not give up so easily, but she cannot say no to 100 pieces
of gold. Betrayed by her suitor, she will avenge his offence soon. When she
is courted in Act Two by Bellamy, she gets rid of him by saying that he has
to sleep with Lady Thrivewell first. Later, on her husband's arrival, she
decides to depart for a business and spend the night out. Alicia is to
sleep with Bellamy after he has carried out the task assigned. She is
caught red-handed, but she is finally forgiven in the last scene of the
play.
ALICIA'S CHILDREN
"Ghost characters." Mr Saleware is suspicious that he may not be the
father of one of his children.
AMIE
A silent character. She is Fitzgerrard's sister. She left her town and
acquaintances two years ago when she had an affair with Lord Lovely. Her
brother comes in Act Five looking for her. She marries Bellamy at the end
of the play.
AMIE'S FRIENDS
"Ghost characters." They were abandoned by Amie when she left
her town.
ANDROMEDA
Only mentioned. Andromeda is a mythological character with whom Lady
Thrivewell is compared due to her beauty. She was a beautiful maiden
chained to a rock as prey for a sea monster. She was rescued by Perseus,
who then turned her uncle Phineus to stone by showing him the head of
Medusa.
BELLAMY
Bellamy is a young handsome gentleman. He depends on Lord Lovely. However,
when he visits Alicia in Act One, Bellamy betrays his master by opening his
heart to her. Being rejected, he compares her with Endymion. Bellamy asks
her to wear a pair of silk stockings and a ring, which seems to convince
the lady. However, to have her love he is given a dangerous test: to sleep
with Lady Thrivewell. He is caught red-handed by Saveall. Nevertheless, he
gets away with it and goes to sleep with Alicia. Later on, in Act Four, he
is informed by the cuckold about his plans of revenge. Bellamy goes to Lord
Thrivewell to tell him that his house has been a bawd house as this lord
had saved him from robbery and murder in the past. Bellamy marries Amie at
the end of the play.
BELLAMY'S FATHER
A "ghost character." He is Old Bellamy's brother. Old Bellamy says that he
does not want Bellamy to be like him as he was a drunkard.
CARELESSE, GEORGE
George Carelesse is a young wild heir. In Act One, Carelesse asks Wat
whether he has taken a letter to Mr Saveall to intercede for him with his
uncle. He has been counting on his uncle's help lately to pay off his debts
and on his advocates to defend him at court. However, Carelesse has gotten
into trouble again. But that is not his single problem. Carelesse has to
maintain Phoebe, and he does not know how. At the beginning, Carelesse
plans a plot against his uncle and to open a brothel of he-whores. However,
later on he prefers to defend his uncle and Mr Saveall. In Act Two, he has
already paid all his debts and he sends a letter to tell Phoebe not to
meddle in his affairs. But, the letter reaches Mistress Crostill by
mistake. Carelesse has fallen in love with his aunt, whom he compares with
Andromeda. He wants to give her an heir, and so he accepts her invitation.
He misunderstands her intentions and he confesses that he is more obliged
to her than to his mother because he has been reborn with the lady. When
Carelesse finds out the truth, he runs to court Mistress Crostill, whom he
marries at the end.
CARELESE'S FATHER
A "ghost character." Carelesse is asked whether he has inherited anything
from his ancestor.
CARELESSE'S MOTHER
A "ghost character." She was Carelesse's mother and Sir Thrivewell's
sister.
CLOSET
Closet is an old crone, nurse-keeper to Lady Thrivewell. She has brought up
Lady Thrivewell, who is a young sweet lady. She wants her to have an heir
to die in piece after having done her job, and therefore she makes a broth
for Sir Thrivewell as a stimulant. In Act Two, she takes a letter from her
lady to Carelesse.
CLOSET'S ANCESTORS
"Ghost characters." In Act Two, she says that she can rest in
piece with her ancestors if she sees that her lady gives a baby to her
master.
CROSTILL, ANNE
Mrs. Anne Crostill is a rich vintner's humorous widow. In Act Three, she
gets erroneously the letter that Carelesse had written to Phoebe. She is
told not to interfere in his affairs when the suitor really wanted to marry
her. Thus, when he visits her in Act Four, she rejects him in spite of
loving him. Mistress Crostill marries Carelesse at the end of the play.
ENDYMION
Only mentioned. Endymion is mythological character. He was a handsome
shepherd boy with whom the moon goddess Selene fell in love, and he sleeps
eternally. He is compared with Alicia by Bellamy when she rejects him.
FITZGERRARD
Fitzgerrard is a gentleman, cousin to Old Bellamy. In Act Five, he arrives
looking for his sister Amie.
LADY THRIVEWELL
Lady Thrivewell is Sir Thrivewell's wife. She married to give her
husband a son. But, she finds out that he has been unfaithful to her. In
Act Two, she is buying a dress in Alicia's shop with her Servingman. She is
not to pay it because Alicia has lain with her husband. She also invites
Carelesse to come with her abroad in the coach to buy some toys, which is
misunderstood as an invitation to sleep with her. Later, in Act Four, when
she is left alone by her husband, she plans to make Carelesse sleep with a
lady.
LADY THRIVEWELL'S CHAMBERMAID
A "ghost character." Lady Thrivewell reveals how Saveall had almost abused
of her chambermaid one day that he was drunk.
LADY THRIVEWELL'S COACHMAN
A silent character. In Act Two, he opens the door of the coach to his lady
when she goes shopping.
LADY THRIVEWELL'S SERVINGMAN
A silent character. In Act Two, he accompanies the lady to go shopping and to
hold her purse.
LORD LOVELY
Lord Lovely is a wencher. He is Sir Thrivewell's spokesman. He is in love
with Alicia and therefore he sends a tailor and a mercer to make a dress
for her. In Act Four, he advises Mistress Crostill to accept Carelesse as
her husband.
LORD LOVELY'S PAGE
This page arrives in Act Five to inform Lord Lovely that Alicia and
Saleware have come.
MERCER
A "ghost character." He is paid by Lord Lovely to make a dress for Alicia.
OLD BELLAMY
Old Bellamy is Bellamy's uncle. In Act Five, he tells Lord Lovely that he
wants his nephew to be like him and not like his father.
OLD BELLAMY'S PARENTS
"Ghost characters." Old Bellamy confesses that they were nice
people and that he does not understand how Bellamy's father could turn out
to be a drunkard.
OLD SIM
A "ghost character." He is the butler who helps Saveall in his flings.
PHOEBE
Phoebe is Carelesse's whore. Carelesse had gotten engaged with her. But
later, she was abandoned by her groom although he took her under his
protection. She has a child of his. In Act Three, she wrongly gets a letter
from Carelesse, where he asks her to marry him, when that letter had been
directed to Mistress Crostill. She finally marries Wat.
PHOEBE'S CHILD
A "ghost character." He is Carelesse and Phoebe's child.
PRENTICE
A silent character. Prentice is a lady who works in Alicia's shop. She is to
take the dress to Lady Thrivewell's.
SALEWARE, THOMAS
Thomas Saleware is a citizen and a cuckold. In fact, he has always thought
that one of his kids was not his. His wife, Alicia, works in his shop. In
Act One, he comes to see how much she has sold. There, he discovers that
she has not made much money. They decide to be friends from now on. Later,
in Act Four, he shares his doubts with Bellamy because he thinks that his
wife has been sleeping with someone, and then he is planning his revenge.
In Act Five, he goes to Lord Lovely's with Alicia to complain about
Bellamy, who has slept with his wife and who has been seen to go to Lord
Thrivewell. Then, he is informed that everything was his wife's plan to
make him jealous.
SAVEALL
Saveall is Sir Thrivewell's demure steward and friend. In Act One, he is
begged by Carelesse to intercede with his uncle for him. Later, in Act
Three, he takes a letter to Phoebe on behalf of Carelesse, but he has
gotten the wrong document: a letter written to Mistress Crostill.
Afterwards, he catches Bellamy and Lady Thrivewell red-handed, whom he
threatens if they do not pay him 500 ponds. However, he keeps silence as
they know about his flings. He is to be Lady Thrivewell's servant from now
on.
SIR THRIVEWELL
Sir Thrivewell is Carelesse's uncle. Sir Thrivewell adopted him as his heir
and he has given his nephew 200 pounds per annum. He has also helped him
with his debts. However, now he has gotten tired of it and he has decided
to get married to have an heir. Nevertheless, before that, he confesses to
his wife that he has been sleeping around with Alicia. In Act Two, he makes
up his mind about his nephew to whom he is to give 10,000 pounds and a
wife. In Act Four, he tells his wife that he is to depart on a trip, which
is to be his perdition as Bellamy tells him in Act Five.
SIR THRIVEWELL'S ADVOCATES
"Ghost characters." They have been paid by Sir Thrivewell to
defend Carelesse at court.
SIR THRIVEWELL'S SERVANT
A silent character. He works at Sir Thrivewell's as his servant.
TAILOR
A "ghost character." He is sent to Alicia by Lord Lovely to make her a
dress.
WAT
Wat is a blunt fellow and servingman to Carelesse. At the very beginning,
he is asked to take a letter to Mr Saveall, which he does. Nevertheless,
Wat advises his master to find another way to support himself. Wat has
always been on his side. He asks Carelesse if his father has bequeathed
something to him, but he has not. Thus, Wat will ask his aunt to help them.
In Act Three, he takes a letter to Mistress Crostill, whom his master will
marry. He will emulate him marrying his master's whore.
WAT'S AUNT
A "ghost character." She is mentioned to support her nephew to set up a
brothel.
WOMAN
A disguise that Bellamy adopts in the last scene of the play until he marries Amie.