The Way of the World

The Way of the World

by

William Congreve

Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on The Way of the World makes teaching easy.

Petulant Character Analysis

Witwoud’s best friend, Petulant is a boisterous, foolish, and naughty fellow, who wants to be known as a ladies’ man but goes about it by hiring actors to help him gain a reputation. He likes to start arguments over trivial matters and usually has no real substantive points to make. He thinks Millamant is beautiful as one might think a vase is beautiful, but has no real interest in formally courting her. At first, Witwoud is the only one who really enjoys his company but by the play’s end, Sir Wilfull has warmed up to him, as well. Hardly responsible, he can only be relied on to pick arguments and follow Mirabell’s orders.

Petulant Quotes in The Way of the World

The The Way of the World quotes below are all either spoken by Petulant or refer to Petulant. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Jealousy, Deceit, and Intrigue Theme Icon
).
Act 1, Scene 9 Quotes

Where modesty’s ill manners, ’tis but fit
That impudence and malice pass for wit.

Related Characters: Mirabell (speaker), Witwoud, Petulant
Page Number: 13
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Way of the World LitChart as a printable PDF.
The Way of the World PDF

Petulant Quotes in The Way of the World

The The Way of the World quotes below are all either spoken by Petulant or refer to Petulant. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Jealousy, Deceit, and Intrigue Theme Icon
).
Act 1, Scene 9 Quotes

Where modesty’s ill manners, ’tis but fit
That impudence and malice pass for wit.

Related Characters: Mirabell (speaker), Witwoud, Petulant
Page Number: 13
Explanation and Analysis: